The Polisario Front celebrates the annulment of the EU-Morocco agreements as a “triumph of the resistance”

MADRID 4 Oct. (EUROPA PRESS) –

The Polisario Front has celebrated as a “triumph of the resistance” the ruling of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) that annuls the trade and fishing agreements between the EU and Morocco, since it considers that it meets its main demands: that Any pact of this type requires the “consent” of the Sahrawi population and the right to self-determination must be respected.

The Polisario representative in Spain, Abdula Arabi, has stressed in statements to Europa Press that Western Sahara must be understood as “a different territory” from Morocco, in such a way that Rabat cannot negotiate any agreement with third parties on its behalf. Accepting the Moroccan Government as a representative of the Sahrawi population, according to Arabi, implies “recognizing the occupation.”

Now, he hopes that European countries will be “consistent” and abide by the CJEU ruling. In this sense, he pointed out that Polisario has always been “at the disposal” of companies and the agricultural and fishing sectors so that they can benefit from the resources of Western Sahara but “respecting International Law.”

Arabi pointed out that any future dialogue must therefore include the Polisario Front and recalled that Morocco and the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) already sit in forums such as the African Union “as two distinct States”, suggesting that as such they should be also understood from the European Union.

THE NUANCE OF CONSENT

With its ruling this Friday, the CJEU puts an end to the litigation on the fishing agreement with Morocco and its protocol, by dismissing the appeals of the Council and the Commission, in line with the ruling of the General Court of the EU of 2021 and with the conclusions by Attorney General Tamara Cápeta.

The CJEU specifies, contrary to what the General Court declared, that the consent of the people of Western Sahara to the controversial agreements did not necessarily have to be explicit, that is, it can be taken for granted when no obligations are created for that people and the Exploitation of its natural resources gives it some type of advantage.

In this regard, the Court of Justice recognizes that these agreements do not create legal obligations that fall on the people of Western Sahara, but neither do they confer any right or advantage over the exploitation of their resources, so consent cannot be presumed, added to that the Polisario Front, as the legitimate representative of said people, opposes the agreements, which in the opinion of the CJEU is also sufficient to question the existence of consent.