Westphal, J. (2017). Africa’s Last Colony: The Question of Western Sahara. https://ifair.eu/2017/04/12/africas-last-colony-question-western-sahara/
The author explains the readmission of Morocco back into the AU after leaving for 33years. According to the author, the joining of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic in OAU resulted in the departure of Morocco. This results from the long dispute between Morocco and Algeria over the ownership of Western Sahara. Western Sara had previously been occupied by the Spanish, who later left due to the high cost of producing phosphate. This made Morocco occupy a larger share of the land because they believed Spain had changed Western Sahara into Africa’s last colony. South Africa, Algeria and Zimbabwe have a stake in this in that they oppose the readmission of Morocco to the AU. In my opinion, all African countries have a right to join AU. Therefore, Morocco should not be denied the privilege of being part of the AU. This article will help me expound on some of the results of Western Sahara’s dispute.
Hillard, M. (2021). The Battle for Western Sahara: Africa’s last colony. https://www.youngausint.org.au/post/the-battle-for-western-sahara-africa-s-last-colony
The article by Hillard explains the battle that Western Sahara is facing. From the issue, Niger and Mali have a larger share of the region. Reflecting on the period of decolonization of Africa, Western Sahara was being ruled by the Spanish because it produced phosphate. However, the increase in production cost forced the officials to flee from Western Sahara. The Sahwaris, who live in present-day Morocco, were the largest inhabitants of Western Sahara. Despite the fact that they were many, the Algerians still took a larger part of Western Sahara, thus resulting in the dispute. France and Washington have a stake in this issue in that they sided with Algeria while the United States is siding with Morocco. In my opinion, I believe that democracy is critical in such matters. Therefore, the Sahwaris should be given a chance to partake in a referendum regardless of the outcome. In general, Algeria and Morocco should conduct a referendum.
Rudd, H. (2012). Africa’s Last Colony. https://reliefweb.int/report/western-sahara/africa’s-last-colony
Rudd talks about the lack of self-determination by the Sahrawi. The lack of self-determination comes after the Sahrawian people were denied the chance for conducting a referendum for them to gain self-independence. The author further explains the steps taken by the UN Security Council to help the Sahrawi people to achieve self-independence. The inclusion of the Security Council in Western Sahara indicates that the Sahrawi people, who are the largest inhabitants of Western Sahara, have been subjected to the violation of human rights by the Moroccans. This violation is evident from the text in that the author states that “There is overwhelming evidence that the Saharawi people are being subjected to widespread human rights violations…” The UN Security Council and the UN Mission for Referendum in Western Sahara stake in this issue. In my opinion, this article will help me to expound on the right for self-independence among countries. Therefore, the Sahrawians should have self-independence like any other nation.
McGann, B. (2012). Africa’s ‘Last Colony.’ https://worldjusticeproject.org/news/africas-last-colony
The article discusses the lack of morality in law, even with the availability of laws. According to McGann, the force that Morocco used to try to take the whole of Western Sahara indicates the disrespect of the international order ordered in the rise of the second world war. Even though the UN was formed to prevent the forceful acquisition and expansion of territories by colonies, Morocco still participated in this. On the other hand, the existence of the UN Security Council has not taken any steps to prevent the illegal acquisition of lands by Morocco, which is contrary to the UN charter. The UN Security Council has participated in this immorality issue in the presence of law. Based on me, I believe that regardless of the allies that a country forms with others, it must follow the rules set and that there should be equity when serving justice. This article will help me explore the issues of injustices in the UN Security Council.
Ross, C., & Jean, A. (2017). Life in Africa’s Last Colony. https://newrepublic.com/article/141698/africas-last-colony-western-sahara-photo-essay
The authors explain the war and occupation endurance of the people of Sahrawis. According to the authors, about 100,000 of the Sahrawians’ territory was taken away by the Moroccans, and this forced the Sahrawis to move to refugee camps in the neighbouring country of Algeria. The refugee camps were interior places, and they were characterized by drought. To prevent the Sahwaris from coming back to this land, the Moroccans have used the towering sand wall to declare their territory, which goes up to about 1700miles through the desert. To add to this, the journalists were not allowed in the territory, considering that Morocco systematically abused human rights. Back in 2010, the Sahrawis demonstrated to see if they could be granted their independence. In response to this, the Moroccans attacked them, using ground troops, water cannons, and helicopters to respond to the demonstration. This article is vital since it will help me explore the struggles that the Sahrawis went through as they tried to acquire their independence.
Connett, D. (2016). Western Sahara: Africa’s last colony takes Struggle for self-determination to European courts. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/western-sahara-africa-s-last-colony-takes-struggle-for-selfdetermination-to-european-courts-a6830216.html
Connett explains Western Sahara’s fight for self-independence. The Struggle for self-determination has been deemed to be quite hard, especially when it is evident that both violent and peaceful methods have been sued to help reach a consensus. With a continuous struggle of achieving self-independence, the Sahrawi people have tried to demonstrate by heading to the law courts for justice to be served. Morocco had taken the larger part of Western Sahara, and the Court of Justice of the EU had signed tariffs that favored the dealings of Morocco. However, the court ignored to sign the impacts that the Moroccan business dealing had on the Sahrawis. Various countries and organizations had a stake in this issue. First, there is the EU Court of Justice, UN, which was trying to create a conducive environment for negotiation and countries such as South Africa, Algeria and Mauritania. Following the Struggle that the Sahrawi people had, the court could have granted them the opportunity for self-determination.
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