Sahrawi youths and human rights defender lost at sea
27/11/2006 | Newsletter
New tragedy in Western Sahara: Death of numerous young Sahrawsi, among them, militant and human rights defender Naji Mohamed Salem BOUKHATEM
Date : Monday 27 November 2006
Place: El-Ayoune – Moroccan occupied Western Sahara
Once again, clandestine immigration has caused the death of a great number of young Sahrawis. They are forced to leave the territory fearing the atrocities to which the Sahrawi citizens have been subjected since May 2005. The repressive Moroccan forces do not cease in their savage practices in opposition to the international covenants and agreements relating to the human rights.
These victims had tried to immigrate towards the Canary Islands on Saturday, 25 November 25 2006, in three boats. Two boats were submerged under unknown conditions. The first boat, transporting twenty-four candidates, left twenty died; ten bodies were found and ten disappeared; four survived. However, nine passengers of the second boat are still alive, whereas eleven are reported missing.
One of these victims is Sahrawi militant the and human rights defender, member of the Committee of Support for the Afro-U.N Resolution Plan and for the Protection of the Natural resources in Western Sahara, Naji Mohamed Salem BOUKHATEM, born in 1970.
Lately, the flow of the Sahrawi clandestine immigration has not stopped increasing. The repressive practices of the Moroccan security forces are the principal cause of this phenomenon. Indeed, and since May 2005, several young Sahrawi people, victims of Moroccan repression, threatened with torture by Moroccan security officials, were encouraged to leave the territory, and told they would not be intercepted by the Moroccan royal navy.
The case of fifteen Sahrawi disappeared, potential immigrants, remains open. There are still suspicions surrounding involvement of certain Moroccan security services according information that the families have been able to collect continuously.
In spite of the declarations on the engagement of Morocco to decrease the flow of sub-Saharan immigration, the policy of this State towards Sahrawi clandestine immigrants remains suspect. Several young Sahrawi people have confimed that they were encouraged, and threatened, to leave the territory by Moroccan authorities. This is in the interest of Morocco to clear Western Sahara of as many young Sahrawis as poossible given their participation in demonstrations calling for the right of self-determination.
We will be back to this subject with more details later on.
