NLC, civil societies call for sanctions against Morocco

[Punch]

The Nigeria Labour Congress and the civil society organisations from African countries have called on member nations of the African Union to take a united action against Morocco for the forcible occupation of Western Sahara.

The labour centre and the civil society organisations also called on the member nations of AU to ensure the imposition of economic, military and diplomatic sanctions against Morocco as was done  against Apartheid South Africa.

This was part of the resolutions of an African Conference of Solidarity with the Struggle of the People of Western Sahara organised by the NLC in collaboration with civil society organisations and movement across the world at the Yar'Adua Centre, Abuja from October 28 to October 30, 2013.

They specifically urged African countries such as Nigeria, Algeria, South Africa and others to work towards the isolation of Morocco as was done to South Africa.

The participants of the conference also called on the United Nations Security Council to expand the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara to include surveillance and reporting about human rights.

The UN Security Council was also urged to actualise the conduct of the referendum to determine the future of Western Sahara which it was mandated to do since 1991.

The Conference "commended the principled position of the Governments of Nigeria, Algeria and South Africa, and other African countries on Western Sahara and resolved that they should go further to ensure the isolation of Morocco as they did in the case of Apartheid South Africa.

"They urged the United Nations Security Council to expand the mandate of MINURSO to include surveillance and reporting about human rights. Additionally, the Security Council should ensure that the referendum which it was tasked to conduct since 1991 to determine the future of Western Sahara is held without further delay.

"Calls upon the African Union and its member states to impose economic, military and diplomatic sanctions against Morocco just as was successfully done with the Apartheid regime in South Africa."

They called on the labour and civil society movements across Africa to commence a boycott of companies and multinational companies doing business with Morocco.

The organised labour in Nigeria and its international civil society allies also advocated the assignment of a special day for the annual celebration of the struggle of the Saharawi people for independence.

They also resolved to form an African Solidarity Movement for the Independence of Western Sahara to strengthen the people's resistance against Morocco.

The participants condemned Spain and France for the inimical roles they played in the continued occupation of Western Sahara by Morocco.

 Also, "the Conference condemned the repression, systematic human rights violations and crime against humanity perpetrated by the Moroccan authorities against the Saharawi people."

The participants noted that the said rights violations were documented properly by the various international human rights organizations.

The NLC and its allies also criticised some African countries and the African Union for their lukewarm attitude to pursuit of the emancipation of Western Sahara from Moroccan occupation.