King Mohammed VI of Morocco has spoken in favor of his country’s Sahara autonomy plan which he termed as a “basis” for the UN-backed negotiation process, at the African local governments’ summit “AFRICITIES” which opened in Marrakesh (centre) before some 5,000 participants.
Morocco reasserted its commitment “to the UN process to settle the Western Sahara conflict on the basis of our bold autonomy initiative within the framework of the Kingdom’s sovereignty, its national unity and territorial integrity,” the Moroccan king particularly highlighted in a letter addressed to participants of the fifth AFRICITIES summit.
The statement comes a day after UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called for the resumption of negotiations on the Sahara that are on a standstill since the fourth round in March 2008.
Rabat argues that its autonomy plan proposed in April 2007 is the “only solution” to ending the 34-year old Sahara crisis while the Polisario Front claims a self-determination referendum from its bases in south-west Algeria.
A UN-backed negotiation process was initiated on US soil in June 2007, but it struggles to find common ground between the two main protagonists, Morocco and the Algeria-backed Polisario Front.
The fifth round of negotiations should be set by mutual agreement between Morocco and the Polisario.
In August, a first round of informal talks was held in Austria between Morocco and the Polisario under the aegis of UN mediator Christopher Ross.
“This initiative, acknowledged by the UN as being serious and credible because of its democratic essence, is intended to strengthen human rights and encourage broad management of their own local affairs by the people and inhabitants of these provinces,” the King of Morocco, who is also sponsoring the summit in Marrakesh, further claimed.
The autonomy proposal, which the separatist Polisario Front rejected “stands out, moreover, by its strategic scale to foster the development and integration of the Maghreb, and enable us to ensure security and stability in the region of the Sahel, Sahara and North Africa and protect the region against the demons of balkanization, extremism and terrorism,” added the king.
During five days under the theme “The response of local and regional communities in Africa to the global crisis : promoting sustainable local development and employment”, the summit is being held in Marrakech while the crisis in the Sahara is at a standstill considering the high tension between Morocco and the Polisario.
The speech of King Mohammed VI would make the Sahara issue one of the main topics of this African gathering where mayors, councillors, trade unionists, ministers, academics and civil society representatives would open up on the cooperation between nearly 15,000 African local governments and about 2,000 cities including big cities.
On Wednesday and Thursday, participants will closely examine development strategies in Africa, especially in the wake of the global financial crisis.
“Suitable” answers are expected during the summit described as the “African Davos”.
A total of 25 thematic sessions are on the agenda of the first two days that will shed light on the development action plans and the identified political and structural barriers in the continent.
According to organizers, concrete proposals are expected to address the global crisis.
The third day will be punctuated by 40 special sessions with a variety of topics related to global development on the continent.
The agenda includes “The media treatment of African excellence”, “Elected female representatives and their place in local institutions,” “Road safety and Local Governments”, ‘Decentralized Cooperation,” Taxation and Local Development” and “Implementation of Global Employment Pact in Africa “.
The Pan African Summit will discuss political issues at a conference on “Global Crisis from an African viewpoint,” a discussion panel on “Africa’s response to the crisis and Africa in ending the crisis” and a meeting of the United Cities and Local Governments of Africa (UCLGA), based in Rabat since 2008, on “the situation of the African municipal movement.”
Further political sessions are schedules against the backdrop of dialogue, partnership and cooperation issues, which are the actual weak links in the African strategies.
Meanwhile, the international African Local Governments Exhibition Fair (CITEXPO), bringing together over 500 exhibitors, will be held alongside the AFRICITIES forum.
Source African Press Agency
loading...
