C24 in Saint Lucia: Resounding Support for Morocco’s Autonomy Plan

The Morocco-proposed autonomy plan was strongly supported as the only solution to the regional dispute over the Sahara during the regional seminar of the Committee of 24 (C24) of the United Nations for the Caribbean, held in Castries, Saint Lucia, this May 11 to 13.

During this seminar, several countries representing the different regions of the world expressed their strong support for the territorial integrity of Morocco and its autonomy plan as the one and only solution to the regional dispute over the Sahara, while recalling that this plan has been described as serious and credible by the UN Security Council in all its resolutions since 2007.

In this regard, the representatives of the Member States insisted That the resolutions adopted since 2007 have all highlighted the pre-eminence of the Moroccan autonomy plan for the Sahara, noting that this plan has the merit of transcending traditional positions and meets international standards in terms of devolution of authority to local populations.

The representatives of the countries participating in this regional seminar underlined that autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty guarantees regional stability and security, considering that this is an issue of the utmost importance for the entire Sahelo-Saharan region.

They emphasized, in this regard, that the final resolution of the Sahara issue should contribute to the strengthening of cooperation between the Member States of the Arab Maghreb Union, to the stability and security of the Sahel region, in addition to its positive effects in terms of socio-economic development in this area and the well-being of its populations.

The seminar was an opportunity to evidence again that Algeria is a main party to the dispute.
Actually, the virulent and multiple exchanges between the Moroccan ambassador to the UN, Omar Hilale, and that of Algeria, Nadir El Arabaoui, confirmed, once again, the bilateral nature of the regional dispute over the Moroccan Sahara.

Ambassador Hilale has demonstrated, with documented evidence, the direct involvement of Algeria in the creation and perpetuation of this dispute and its status as the main party in the Sahara issue. He also brushed aside the baseless allegations of the Algerian ambassador on the situation in the Moroccan Sahara, while confronting him with the sad realities of the massive violations of human rights in Algeria.

The participants also welcomed the efforts of the UN Secretary General and his new Personal Envoy for the Moroccan Sahara, Staffan de Mistura, calling on the latter to capitalize on the progress made by his predecessor in the framework of the round tables with the four participants (Morocco, Algeria, Mauritania, Polisario), and with the same modalities, in accordance with the spirit of Security Council resolution 2602 adopted in October 2021.

Even the rare Algerian supporters present at the seminar, mostly non-members of the C24, expressed backing to the UN political process, much to the chagrin of the Algerian ambassador.

The various representatives of the participating countries on the other hand welcomed the opening by several countries of general consulates in Laayoune and Dakhla, in the Moroccan Sahara, considering that this is “an undeniable surge of support for the ongoing political process” and for the sovereignty of the Kingdom over its Sahara.

With regard to the socio-economic dynamics in the southern provinces, several ambassadors and diplomats welcomed the new development model for the Moroccan southern provinces launched in 2015, noting that this initiative has made it possible in particular to empower the populations of the Sahara region and to raise the human development indices there, carry out large-scale projects and other infrastructures, in addition to the efforts made in the field of human rights, efforts that were repeatedly welcomed by the Security Council in its resolutions.

The various speakers during this seminar also reiterated the call for the registration by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) of the population of the Tindouf camps, in Algerian territory, as requested by the Security Council in all its resolutions since 2011. They have also spoken out against the human rights violations suffered by the populations of these camps.

Several delegations welcomed Morocco’s commitment to the ceasefire and urged the polisario to respect it.

This new clear success of Morocco on the UN scene shows the growing international support for Morocco’s legitimate rights over its Sahara, for the Kingdom’s efforts to definitively settle this regional dispute and for the dazzling achievements in the area of the socio-economic development of the southern provinces.

The C24 seminar in Saint Lucia confirmed, if need be, that the fallacious separatist theses of Algeria and its puppet, the polisario, are waning, and that the international community, including the C24 in charge of decolonization at the UN, does not give the slightest credit or attention to these theses.