Western Sahara, a non-self-governing territory, is witnessing an intensification of Moroccan occupation policies marked by militarization, surveillance, and the suppression of civil and political freedoms. This escalation coincides with ongoing United Nations Security Council consultations and the fiftieth anniversary of Sahrawi National Unity. Amid these developments, a recently circulated United States draft Security Council resolution promoting Morocco\u2019s autonomy plan risks undermining the Sahrawi people\u2019s internationally recognized rights to self-determination and independence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the occupied cities of El Aai\u00fan, Smara, Boujdour, and Dakhla<\/strong>, Moroccan authorities have imposed comprehensive security measures, deploying both military and plainclothes units to monitor activists and human rights defenders. Public gatherings and peaceful demonstrations are heavily restricted. The pervasive surveillance and militarization create an environment in which even referring to \u201cWestern Sahara\u201d is considered a subversive act, reflecting a systematic attempt to criminalize dissent in violation of international human rights law, including Article 21 of the ICCPR, which guarantees the right to peaceful assembly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n M.Y., Activist from El Aai\u00fan:<\/strong> F.B., Activist from El Aai\u00fan:<\/strong> T.A., Activist from El Aai\u00fan:<\/strong> Y.N., six-year-old child from El Aai\u00fan:<\/strong> These testimonies vividly illustrate the psychological, cultural, and social repression<\/strong> imposed on Sahrawi civilians, including children. They demonstrate how militarization affects daily life, freedom of expression, and education, while fostering an atmosphere of fear, humiliation, and forced assimilation. The presence of Moroccan flags across the occupied cities and the prohibition of Sahrawi national symbols reflects a deliberate attempt to erase cultural identity and impose colonial dominance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sahrawi political prisoners face additional layers of repression. They are routinely subjected to prolonged solitary confinement<\/strong>, denied medical care, restricted from family visits, and verbally abused. Such treatment constitutes cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment<\/strong>, prohibited under Article 7 of the ICCPR<\/strong> and Articles 31\u201332 of the Fourth Geneva Convention<\/strong>, reflecting a deliberate strategy to silence political dissent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Despite the challenges within the occupied territories, Sahrawi refugees in Tindouf camps in Algeria<\/strong> have staged large-scale peaceful demonstrations, affirming their commitment to UN-mandated rights and rejecting any settlement that disregards self-determination. These mobilizations followed a formal objection by the Polisario Front<\/strong> to the US draft resolution, sending a clear message to the international community that any solution ignoring Sahrawi sovereignty is unacceptable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nFirst-Hand Testimonies from Occupied Territories<\/strong> to Adala UK: <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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“Occupation forces are everywhere, in both military and civilian clothes, in ways that are unbelievable. We cannot even say ‘Western Sahara,’ and we are unable to meet or demonstrate. The police monitor our movements everywhere, and they monitoring our homes. They have created a climate of fear and panic among neighbors and among our family members.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n\n
“I was going to the market when a Moroccan police vehicle followed me. They insulted me with degrading words, telling me that the Sahara is Moroccan and that I should leave Western Sahara if I want self-determination. They continued to verbally abuse me in ways that are humiliating and deeply offensive.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n\n
“They have hung Moroccan flags across every street in our Sahrawi cities, while we are forbidden from displaying any symbol of Western Sahara. Even wearing our traditional Sahrawi dress subjects us to surveillance and harassment. We do not want these Moroccan flags in our cities we feel sadness and helplessness seeing them imposed on us.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n\n
“At school, we were forced to memorize Moroccan songs glorifying Morocco and stating that the Sahara is Moroccan, not Western Sahara. The teacher told me that if I do not memorize all these songs, my grades will be lowered. The teacher also told me that if I do not attend the 50th-anniversary celebration of Morocco\u2019s occupation of Western Sahara (the Green March), the administration or the school will punish me.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
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