Western Sahara

Independent human rights work continues to be repressed in Western Sahara by the Moroccan authorities who consider Western Sahara to be part of Morocco. No progress has been made towards a UN sponsored referendum on the future of Western Sahara. Freedom of association and freedom of expression are limited. In particular, members of human rights organisations which monitor and denounce human rights abuses in Western Sahara are targeted.

The key legal hurdle facing non-governmental organisations operating in Western Sahara is registration, which has been denied to several independent human rights organisations by the Moroccan authorities. The denial of legal registration and other legal measures taken against them severely hampers the work of these organisations and exposes their members to potential criminal sanctions. Human rights defenders have been subjected to charges of membership of an illegal organisation, heavy surveillance, threats, harassment, illegal searches, arbitrary arrests and detentions and interrogations. Defenders monitoring and reporting on excessive use of force by police in quashing pro-independence demonstrations were convicted of inciting violence (and subsequently released following royal pardon). Other human rights defenders have alleged physical assault and torture by security forces while in police custody: defenders report a recent pattern of short detention by the authorities, during which the defender is beaten, followed by release without charge. Associates of human rights defenders are also interrogated and threatened. Access to victims of human rights abuses has been prevented and defenders’ passports have been confiscated, preventing them from participating in international human rights conferences.