Sunday, June 12, 2011

The Western Sahara Today: In Light of The Arab Revolutions

The Western Sahara conflict has always been a controversial issue and could be traced back to the bloody clash between the Polisario front and the Moroccan army during 1970s. In a time of great tension, shaped by a lasting barrier to formal regional economic integration agreements, there is an urgent need for the world’s intervention. In other words, world political leaders were impelled to act boldly and swiftly to tear down this conflict. In fact, the history, complexity, and the world’s interest on the issue have unleashed strong reactions of political leaders alongside the rise of organizations to call for an immediate resolution to the dispute. In effect, the potential results of the successful resolution of this decades-old conflict of violence and mistrust are tremendous for both parties, if not, the world. Given the influence of the United States, there is an urgent need to spread awareness of the Western Sahara issue in America.
American Task Force on the Western Sahara Event at George Washington University
In June 2010, a youth organization called, the American Task Force on Western Sahara (ATFWS) was established to help spread this awareness. Defining itself as a youth-and-student-led initiative, the organization’s mission statement is to bring about more awareness and action on the Western Sahara conflict to the world. In fact, ATWFS was established to demonstrate the profound American interests at stake in the Western Sahara conflict. Just recently, the organizations leaders took an unprecedented initiative to address the sensitivity of the Western Sahara conflict to the American people starting from students, faculty members, and representatives of American organizations. This event took place at the George Washington University and included a comprehensive lecture given by a true authority in the field of Western Sahara, Dr. I. William Zartman. Dr. Zartman is a professor of international organizations, conflict resolution, and former Director of Africans studies. He is truly an acclaimed authority in North African studies, conflict resolution, negotiation, and crisis management. In his lecture, he gave audience the big picture of the situation in the Moroccan-administered Western Sahara, its current status, history and the major efforts undertaken by Morocco to solve the dispute.
GWU Students Learning about the Western Sahara Conflict
Dr. Zartman has acknowledged at first his strong admiration of ATFWS for both its clear vision to promote awareness on Western Sahara conflict and the wisdom of its founders by making it lie on the involvement of all the American people. In his lecture, Dr. Zartman believed that understanding the history of the Western Sahara conflict is inextricably linked to having a clear understating about this region of conflict and its people. Unlike the Polisario Front, Dr. Zartman affirmed that Morocco has always clearly stated its position regarding the Western Sahara region as being one unbreakable part of Morocco. “From the Moroccan point of view, the claim on Western Sahara is simply the last element of retrocession for its full independence,” Dr. Zartman claimed.  Historically speaking, the Western Sahara controversies released major areas of interest for Spain, the fact that has shaped the Spanish government’s relations with the Maghreb countries. On its Sahara retrocession, Morocco has always blamed Spain for the current Western Sahara conflict for not being determined to recognize Morocco’s rights on its independence in 1956. Dr. Zartman pointed to the major steps the United Nations took to resolve the conflict; launching a referendum for the Sahraoui people. Yet, this proposal reached an impasse as Morocco felt disadvantaged over the Algerian party. Since the conflict is getting costly for both parties, Morocco has taken major steps forward to bring end to the conflict. According to Dr. Zartman, Morocco’s Autonomy plan proposal has been effective to some extent in unifying both parties’ interest; a proposal that is open to negotiations and offers the Sahrawi people the self determination within a Moroccan sovereignty. 
Prof.Zartman
                                    
 Above all, the Western Sahara conflict remains as insoluble as ever no matter how much progress has been made. Both parties bear in mind that resolving the conflict should pass through giving the Sahrawi people the right to self determinate. Furthermore, a strong determination of both parties to make compromises based on mutual interest and mutual respect is the key to resolve this divergence. The first world nations are also required to take part in unifying both parties to reach a common ground. This is what Dr. Zartman put emphasis on when he affirmed: “Outsides countries such as USA, France, Germany, and England have got the power to lead the situation to a serious consideration of autonomy, serious discussion, and recognition of both parties interest.”
http://www.atfws.org/
      

1 comment:

  1. I believe Dr.Zartman exelled in bringing up the western sahara conflict based on conflict history, opposed perspectives, and the strong interest of the USA to take part of the conflict's resolution. Great Job ATFWS !

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