Moroccan ambassadors put pressure on MEPs to remove any reference to Western Sahara in the annual report on Human Rights and Democracy in the World.
A shadow hangs over the European Parliament’s annual report on Human Rights and Democracy in the World. The issue of Western Sahara has been silenced following Morocco’s intervention, which put pressure on MEPs to remove any reference to the region.
The amendment tabled by Miguel Urbán (Anticapitalistas) and Manu Pineda (IU), which sought to have the report “pay special attention to the human rights situation in illegally occupied territories, including cases of prolonged occupation, such as Palestine and Western Sahara”, was rejected by MEPs.
The role of the Socialist Group The Socialist Group, led by Spanish MEP Nacho Sánchez Amor, coordinator of the human rights subcommittee and responsible for the report, worked with Moroccan diplomacy to ensure that Western Sahara did not appear in the text.
To ensure the removal of references to Western Sahara, the Socialists proposed splitting the amendment into two parts and voting on them separately. The first vote focused on omitting the words “such as Palestine and Western Sahara”, while the second dealt with each territory individually.
The Socialist Group’s strategy was successful. The amendment, not being voted en bloc, lost its force and was finally rejected. 386 MEPs voted in favour of removing the mentions of Palestine and Western Sahara, while 110 MEPs from The Left and Greens opposed, with 24 abstentions.
The omission of Western Sahara from Parliament’s report is a blow to human rights advocacy in the region. This decision, the result of pressure from Morocco, silences the plight of the Saharawi people under Moroccan occupation and deprives the international community of a crucial tool for the defence of their rights.
It is crucial to denounce Morocco’s interference in the European Parliament and to demand that the inclusion of Western Sahara in the report on Human Rights and Democracy in the World be reconsidered. The international community must unite to defend the rights of the Sahrawi people and ensure that their voice is heard.
