A Sahrawi soldier waves the Sahrawi flag during a parade marking the 45th anniversary of the declaration of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SDAR), at a refugee camp on the outskirts of the southwestern Algerian city of Tindouf, on 27 February 2021. (Photo by RYAD KRAMDI / AFP)
Western Sahara is expected to top the agenda as President Cyril Ramaphosa prepares to meet Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) counterpart President Brahim Ghali.
Ramaphosa will host Ghali for a State Visit on 18 October 2022, at the Union Buildings in Pretoria.
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The Presidency said the visit aims to strengthen the already existing good political relations fortified by the strong historical ties dating back from the years of the struggle against colonialism and apartheid.
“The two Presidents will exchange views on recent developments related to the question of Western Sahara, including the mobilisation of regional, continental and international support toward finding a sustainable resolution to the Western Sahara conflict in line with the provisions of the 1991 Ceasefire Agreement.”
In 2019, South Africa hosted a Solidarity Conference for the region’s support of self-determination.
The Presidency said government remains concerned about the impasse in a dialogue toward finding a lasting solution that will provide for the self-determination of the Sahrawi people in line with the relevant AU, UN resolutions and the objectives and principles of the Constitutive Act of the African Union.
“South Africa remains steadfast in its support for the Sahrawi people and continues to provide humanitarian and material support to alleviate the harsh living conditions that they have continued to suffer.”
Meanwhile, the African National Congress (ANC) in Ekurhuleni said it will be marching with the Gauteng PEC to the Moroccan embassy to demand the withdrawal of Moroccan troops in Western Sahara.
“The freedom struggle of the Sahrawi people is a plight we join openly because we know all too well what it is like to be denied freedom and comfort in your own place of birth.
The party hosted the Western Sahara Ambassador Mohamed Yeslem Beisat Deich anticipating the official state visit by Ghali.
ANC Ekurhuleni spokesperson Lesiba Mpya said while most African countries still suffer from neo-colonialism imposed by “Western imperialists”, the people of Western Sahara find themselves under the oppression of a fellow African country.
“Morocco was an ally of apartheid South Africa, today, they are one of the biggest allies of Israel an oppressor of Palestinians, defenders of the Swaziland Monarch which denies its people freedom, and an enemy of progress for the African people.”
“The Moroccan monarch actively participates in the detriment and destabilisation of the African continent through their invasion and oppression of the Western Saharan people,” Mpya said.
The ANC in Ekurhuleni believes the party should be deliberate and unapologetic on its stance of solidarity with the Sahrawi people.
“The African Union should rescind its 2017 decision to re-admit Morocco into the union until the country ceases to use their military to invade and oppress the Western Saharan people,” it said.
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