REFLECTIVE WRITING:

Does Morocco have an economic interest in the exploitation

of the natural resources of Western Sahara?
The Sahara,
my brothers and sisters,
is not for sale.
The green of my land,
makes me proud,
as the beauty of
its pastures,
in the eyes of the
good shepherd.
The phosphates you desire,
they will cause you harm,
not even if they were for sale,
will you be able to buy them.
So go the first lines of a poem by Fatma Brahim, who composed the work in 1976 as she and
her daughters left the destroyed refugee camp of Um Dreiga, Western Sahara, after the
Moroccan air force napalmed it. The poem, titled “Sahara is not for sale,” has become a
classic revolutionary song for Saharawis, who are still pursuing their struggle for
independence. It succinctly draws attention to a central aspect of the Western Sahara
conflict, and an increasingly key demand made by Saharawi pro-independence activists:
natural resources. Western Sahara is a territory in North-West Africa, bordered by Morocco
in the north, Algeria and Mauritania in the east and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. And yes,
Sahara truly is not for sale, but Morocco has still been claiming sovereignty over Western
Sahara since it gained independence in 1956 and has formally annexed around 80% of its
territory, over which it exercises de facto control in contravention of the International Court
of Justice’s (ICJ) advisory opinion of 1975. Why? Well, Western Sahara’s soil is rich in
phosphates and its 1 200 km long coastline is rich in fishery products, one of the richest in
the world. Iron, uranium, gold, petrol, gas and sand are also resources to be found as
potentially exploited by state and private companies alike for major profits. Therefore, it is a
subject of interest not only to Morocco,but also to many other countries. Morocco maintains
control over most of the disputed land, and is aiming to turn it into a major economic and
investment hub. The kingdom has plans for the construction of a $1 billion port in the
Western Sahara coastal city of Dakhla. In January 2020, the Moroccan parliament passed
two draft laws to expand the country’s territorial waters and to establish an exclusive
economic zone that includes waters along the disputed Western Sahara, a move that
angered Spain, which controls the waters surrounding the neighboring Canary Islands, and
the Polisario Front, which rejects all exploitation of resources by Morocco off the Western
Sahara coastline. But Morocco has every reason to push forward. It has been pursuing a
significant economics-driven foreign-policy shift toward sub-Saharan Africa, especially since
it rejoined the African Union after a 33-year hiatus. It is seeking to become a member of the
Economic Community of Western African States. All of this is part of the North African
kingdom’s ambitions to become an economic hub connecting Europe and Africa. The
disputed Western Sahara territory is an integral piece of land in this puzzle. So, yes, it is
obvious that Morocco has big economic interest in exploitation of natural resources of
Western Sahara. It is very hard for Saharawi people to ''win'' this battle when Morocco has a
support and expression of solidarity from European countries, the United States, Persian
Gulf Arab states, and, increasingly, China. The fear of persecution stopped many Saharawis
in the occupied territories from raising the issue of natural resource exploitation. The
peaceful resistance has always progressed little by little in accordance with the possibilities
offered, and with careful progress building on the past experience. Before, it was very
dangerous to show one’s political views, so the activists used social, economic and cultural
claims to create an atmosphere of resistance in the society. There are mechanisms in place
elsewhere in the world that could (or should) inspire the main stakeholders involved in the
resolution of the conflict in Western Sahara. The UN Security Council established the
Development Fund of Iraq through Resolution 1483 of May 22nd, 2003 soon after the United
States-led coalition forces occupied Iraq in April 2003. This mechanism was structured to
comply with international humanitarian law, despite deficiencies in its implementation
reported by many observers. The Fund was held by the Central Bank of Iraq and
independently audited by accountants approved by the International Advisory and
Monitoring Board. Most importantly, the revenue collected could be used solely to benefit
the people of Iraq. No comparable mechanism exists with regard to any of the resources of
Western Sahara despite demands from the Sahrawi side (Kamal 2015). With the failings of
the international legal system in responding to the conflict, perhaps a closer look into human
rights issues in this case should be taken given the absence of human rights. However, in the
case of the protection of group rights, “it is only through the realization of this very basic
right of people to determine, with no compulsion or coercion, their own future, political
status and independence that we can begin to address others such as dignity, justice,
progress and equity”. The plunder of natural resources in Western Sahara arguably
contributes directly to the prolongation of the occupation, the strengthening of the military
presence of Morocco in the territory and ultimately, the maintenance of a status quo (Smith
2015). A fair recommendation to be made would be that the General Assembly’s Fourth
Committee call for the appointment of a United Nations rapporteur for natural resources in
Western Sahara, to work in conjunction with the Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General
and to consider United Nations administration of natural resources and revenues from such
resources pending the self-determination of the Saharawi people, recognised over and over
again in the United Nations resolutions.
Sources:
1. Natural Resources in Western Sahara : A Fishy Battle at the Doors of Europe.
Accessed at: https://www.google.com/search?
q=translation&rlz=1C1GCEB_enBA838BA838&oq=translation&aqs=chrome.0.69i59j0i
131i433i512l2j0i512l7.2052j0j9&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
2. Natural resources and resistance in Western Sahara. Accessed at:
https://democracyinafrica.org/natural-resources-resistance-western-sahara/
3. Western Sahara – Economic indicators. Accessed at:
https://www.economy.com/western-sahara/indicators#ECONOMY
4. How the Western Sahara Became the Key to North Africa. Accessed at:
https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/12/18/how-the-western-sahara-became-the-key-to-
north-africa/
5. Morocco: Unpacking the Power Plays Over Western Sahara. Accessed at:
https://allafrica.com/stories/202208020010.html