ASVDH Statement on racist attacks against Sahrawi students in Agadir

10 May 2007 | Statements

Following the bloody events, which occurred recently at the university IBNO ZOHR of Agadir, and which resulted in tens of wounded in a very worrying situation and the arrest of five Sahrawi students, after an attack of some chauvinistic and racist Moroccan students against Sahrawi students, demonstrations of protest and solidarity, with the victims of this brutal attack, took place in other Moroccan universities and the cities of the Western Sahara. The Moroccan security forces oppressed these protests by using excessive violence what resulted in casualties in a very critical situation. The Sahrawi student, Miss. Sultana KHAYA, currently suffers from a permanent inaptitude, since she lost an eye, and from a fracture on the level of her nose. The Moroccan security forces had also repressed the protests of the families of the students, organized in front of the Wilaya of EL-Ayoune, having for result of the variable degrees of wounds between women. The number of arrests at the university Alqadi Ayad, in Marrakech, reached more than sixteen prisoners, whereas the number of wounded about sixteen cases, including seriously alarming cases. The situation of the Sahrawi students, in the Moroccan universities, is alarming, embarrassing and is likely to be degraded dangerously, which requires the pressing intervention to:

1. Stop the racist attacks against Sahrawi students

2. Put an end to the arrests and the pursuing and the violations of the houses by the Moroccan security forces

3. Release of the detained students

4. Pursuing of the officers of the security for use of excessive violence against the Sahrawi students.

In this context, the ASVDH declares:

1 – its condemnation of the racist attacks and the repressive campaigns, which reached the Sahrawi students at the university of IBNO ZOHR in Agadir and the following repressive attacks and the excessive use of violence against the Sahrawi students in all Moroccan universities, in particular the university Alqadi Ayad, Marrakech, and the university Mohamed V in Rabat

2 – Its absolute solidarity with the victims of these attacks and their families and with the arrested students and claims their immediate release

3 – That it takes the Moroccan state for responsible of what the Sahrawi students endure in the Moroccan universities

4 – That it calls the international organizations of the human rights and all those interested in the human rights to work and act in order to put a term to such attacks and to protect the Sahrawi citizens.

Executive Office
The President: Mr. Brahim DAHANE