Physical Address
Indirizzo: Via Mario Greco 60, Buttigliera Alta, 10090, Torino, Italy
In a climate of growing exasperation, thousands of Sahrawis took to the streets of Laâyoune, Smara, Dakhla and in several refugee camps in Tindouf to reaffirm their unwavering commitment to independence. Draped in the colors of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), they chanted their rejections of the status quo imposed by the great powers and denounced the “complicit silence” of the Security Council in the face of the perpetuation of the occupation of Sahrawi territory.
These demonstrations, among the most notable in recent years, reflect the weariness of a people tired of waiting for diplomacy to keep its promises, reflecting a general fed-up fueled by decades of waiting, diplomatic impasse and hopeless illusions.
Nearly fifty years after Spain’s withdrawal from the territory, the Sahrawi people remain without a state, without recognized sovereignty and without a tangible prospect of a self-determination referendum. The latest report from the Secretary General of the United Nations, considered “tasteless” by many observers, acted like a spark in a powder keg already saturated with frustrations. The Sahrawis criticize the UN for maintaining “horizonless” crisis management, where resolutions follow one another without ever leading to concrete actions.
By occupying the streets of Laâyoune, the demonstrators wanted to send out, loud and clear, the message “the status quo is no longer bearable”. The slogans “No other alternative than independence” and “The Security Council is complicit in the occupation” summarize this feeling of abandonment and disillusionment, marking a real tipping point, expressing weariness in the face of UN inaction, especially since the signing of the ceasefire in 1991, the promise of a self-determination referendum has gradually faded in favor of a vague diplomatic discourse.
Broken diplomacy and paralyzing vetoes
For decades, the Western Sahara issue has remained stuck in a deadlocked diplomatic cycle. The United Nations Mission for the organization of a referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), supposed to guarantee this process, has become in the eyes of the Sahrawis a symbol of impotence. Created to organize the self-determination referendum, it is today reduced to the role of administrative observer.
No timetable, no human rights observation mission, no constraints on the parties. This blockage is largely explained by the weight of vetoes in the Security Council, in particular those of France and the United States, allies of the Makhzen. “The Sahrawis do not have a veto in New York, but they have it on every square meter of their land, in their cemeteries, in their schools and in their hearts. » This sentence, which circulated widely on social networks, has become one of the symbols of Sahrawi resistance.
It is in this context of impasse that protest movements have re-emerged with force, led by young people who have only known exile, marginalization or repression in the occupied territories. The Sahrawis are not only fighting for land, but for recognition. In their eyes, this slowness is not due to chance, but to a play of geopolitical interests, where the rights of peoples carry little weight compared to economic and military alliances.
Therefore, this wave of anger is first and foremost a reflection of a total loss of confidence in the international community. All the more so, the majority of these young people have the deep conviction that legitimacy is not decreed in New York, it is lived and defended on the ground. Thus, the current situation marks a historic turning point where the region finds itself at a crossroads: either the international community finally assumes its responsibilities by applying the right of peoples to self-determination, or the region will plunge back into a cycle of confrontation
The gatherings of recent days were not born from a spontaneous impulse, but from a concerted organization between activists, associations and representatives of the Sahrawi civil fabric. Several preparatory meetings were held in the refugee camps of Smara and Rabouni, as well as in Laâyoune itself, where clandestine committees called for a unified mobilization. The slogan is to rehabilitate peaceful resistance, like the major protests of 2005 and 2010, including that of Gdeim Izik.
These demonstrations, brutally repressed at the time, marked the collective awareness that the struggle for independence cannot be suspended on the goodwill of the great powers. Twenty years later, this conviction resurfaces with new vigor, nourished by a generation that refuses to grow up under occupation.
It should be noted once again that one of the main causes of popular discontent is the perception of a powerless, even biased, UN. In the eyes of many Sahrawis, the Security Council has become an inactive arbiter, preferring to extend MINURSO mandates rather than impose binding decisions. The United States and France are particularly singled out for their systematic vetoes of any initiative deemed unfavorable to Morocco. This diplomatic imbalance has fueled a sense of injustice; while other peoples have achieved independence after decades of struggle, Western Sahara seems condemned to waiting indefinitely. The young demonstrators see this as further proof that liberation will not come from outside, but from internal mobilization and the strengthening of the resistance front.
Algeria, while reaffirming its support for the right to self-determination, always advocates for a peaceful political solution based on respect for international law. But maintaining the status quo, his diplomats warn, risks exhausting this patient approach. For many activists, the current demonstrations represent more than a simple cry of protest, they announce a new phase of the struggle. Voices within the Polisario Front are already talking about a rereading of resistance strategies, which could range from an intensification of civil disobedience to a resumption of military actions if the political route remains closed. Behind these words lies a reality: the patience of the Sahrawi people has reached its limit. For the demonstrators, the greatest injustice is undoubtedly that of indifference. While global crises follow one another, the question of Western Sahara seems to be bogged down in diplomatic silence. Calls for a resumption of dialogue are seen as empty formulas. The Sahrawis only see it as a way to gain time and preserve the status quo, without calling into question the occupation on the territory. The absence of international pressure on the Makhzen, particularly regarding human rights violations in the occupied territories, reinforces the feeling of abandonment. Many believe that the Sahrawi cause no longer interests the chancelleries for geostrategic considerations, and not for principles.
A flame that nothing can extinguish
However, despite the weariness and anger, the Sahrawi mobilization remains imbued with deep dignity. In Laâyoune, Smara, Dakhla and Tindouf, the demonstrators say they are determined to continue their struggle “until the total liberation of the territory”. “We are not begging for a right, we are demanding it,” summarize the demonstrators. This constancy across generations is the true strength of the Sahrawi people. She explains why, despite the repression, despite the exile, despite the silence of the world, the flame of independence has never been extinguished. The scenes observed during this strong mobilization reflect the state of mind of a people tired of broken promises, but still standing, still convinced that their independence will come. Every Saharawi flag brandished in the streets is an act of defiance. Each slogan is a reminder of the moral debt that the international community has borne since 1975.
Through this image, everything is said. The Sahrawis have not ceased to exist, even if the world has stopped looking at them. Moreover, today more than ever, the observation is that the massive demonstrations in Laâyoune are not an isolated episode, but the expression of deep disenchantment and an intact demand. They reflect the exhaustion of a people faced with the slowness of diplomacy, but also their refusal to give up. As long as the right to self-determination is not applied, Western Sahara will remain a center of injustice and therefore of resistance, because the Sahrawi people made their choice a long time ago, that of freedom. And de facto, faced with the silence of the Security Council, the Sahrawi people respond with the clamor of the streets, that of a people who do not give up. It remains to be seen whether the international community will have the courage to hear this cry before patience definitively gives way to anger.