European Parliament « fact finding » mission to Western Sahara 31.08 - 2018 16:00 A group of Europarliamentarians is about to travel to occupied parts of Western Sahara to assess whether including the territory in the trade deal with Morocco is a good idea.
ISOCARD backtracks on moving camel conference out of Western Sahara21.08 - 2018 Despite promises of moving its triennial conference from El Aaiun, occupied Western Sahara, to a city in Morocco proper, ISOCARD now states it will not do so, because "it has no power to change the city" - indicating the organisation's lack of backbone to go against its Moroccan hosts.Read more
Sweden says EU-Morocco trade proposal fails court ruling20.08 - 2018 "Sweden is not satisfied that the outcome of the consultation process can be said to constitute the free and informed consent of the people of Western Sahara", the country formally explained its abstention in the EU Council vote on the Western Sahara trade scheme.Read more
EU Court confirms: Western Sahara not part of EU-Morocco fish deal 26.07 - 2018 For the third time, the highest Court of the European Union has confirmed that Morocco has no sovereignty over Western Sahara. In its new ruling dated 19 July 2018, the Court confirms that the EU's fisheries agreement with Morocco cannot be applied to the territory.
Large Russian-Chinese-British oil study in Western Sahara25.07 - 2018 With all multinational oil companies in occupied Western Sahara having abandoned their activities, the Moroccan government is trying to catch interest of new investors for further illegal oil exploration. Russian and Chinese state-owned companies, commissioned by a UK firm, are behind a large exploration programme. Read more
Key player quits dirty Western Sahara phosphate game23.07 - 2018 One of the most important companies in the controversial phosphate business in Western Sahara is ending its involvement. Innophos Holding's exit might lead to the US totally terminating its decade-long imports from the occupied territory. Read more
A consignment of 3000 tonnes of fishmeal that was loaded in occupied Western Sahara is at present being unloaded in the port of Bremen, Germany. "How does this fit with the ECJ judgment on trade with Western Sahara?", WSRW asks.
Polisario condemns Council's approval of Western Sahara trade deal16.07 - 2018 The Western Sahara liberation movement, Frente Polisario, has issued a statement condemning today's EU Council Decision to include Western Sahara in the Morocco Trade Agreement. Polisario appeals on the EU Parliament not to follow suit, and threatens further legal action if need be. Read the full statement here.Read more
EU Council approves Morocco trade deal to include Western Sahara16.07 - 2018 The Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the EU Member States have today approved the proposed amendment to the Trade Protocol with Morocco to include occupied Western Sahara, in spite of the lack of consent from the people of the territory - as ordered by the EU Court of Justice. The European Parliament is yet to cast its vote.Read more
EU vessels return home in absense of new EU-Morocco fish deal16.07 - 2018 The four-year Fisheries Protocol between Morocco and the EU expired last Saturday. Over 90% of the European catches under the deal were made in the waters of Western Sahara - illegally occupied by Morocco.Read more
EU Parliament backs self-determination - split on EU Court ruling 06.07 - 2018 As the vote on the European Parliament's report on the UN General Assembly revealed, MEPs are split on the inclusion of a reference to the EU Court of Justice in relation to Western Sahara.
Berlin sceptical - misguided by EU Commission05.07 - 2018 German Minister of State at the Federal Foreign Office stresses importance of complying with Judgment of EU Court of Justice in relation to Western Sahara trade.Read more
Saharawi groups object to EU's Western Sahara trade plans03.07 - 2018 No less than 93 Saharawi groups have called on the EU institutions to respect the will of the people of Western Sahara when negotiating trade or fisheries agreements that will affect their occupied land.Read more
This is how the European Commission will violate the CJEU ruling03.07 - 2018 The European Commission is trying to push through a new trade agreement with Morocco for the territory of Western Sahara, in disregard of the Court of Justice of EU judgment of 2016. WSRW has summarised why its approach is wrong. Read more
Morocco now demands twice the money for EU fishing in Western Sahara29.06 - 2018 €84 million in return for fishing licenses - is what Rabat threw on the table in the EU-Morocco negotiations for a new Fisheries Protocol. Earlier this year, the EU Court of Justice invalidated the application of the EU-Morocco fish arrangement to Western Sahara - where 91.5% of the EU's fishing activities under the deal take place.Read more
Morocco occupies the major part of its neighbouring country, Western Sahara. Entering into business deals with Moroccan companies or authorities in the occupied territories gives an impression of political legitimacy to the occupation. It also gives job opportunities to Moroccan settlers and income to the Moroccan government. Western Sahara Resource Watch demands foreign companies leave Western Sahara until a solution to the conflict is found.
It's not easy keeping up with all the different legal proceedings relating to Western Sahara. For the sake of clarity, here's an overview of the five different cases at the Court of Justice of the European Union.
Leading activists from Western Sahara are condemned to sentences ranging from 20 years to life imprisonment in connection to a mass protest in 2010 denouncing the Saharawi people’s social and economic marginalization in their occupied land; the Gdeim Izik protest camp.
At COP22, beware of what you read about Morocco’s renewable energy efforts. An increasing part of the projects take place in the occupied territory of Western Sahara and is used for mineral plunder, new WSRW report documents.
