Monthly Archives: May 2011

Moroccan police violently disrupt pro-democracy protests

Moroccan police violently disrupt pro-democracy protests in Casablanca and near capital
Associated Press, Washington Post, 29 May 2011

CASABLANCA, Morocco (AP) — Club wielding Moroccan police riding motorcycles drove into crowds of thousands of demonstrators in the country’s largest city to disperse a protest by pro-democracy activists on Sunday.

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The theft of Western Sahara

by David Cronin
29 May 2011 – New Europe, Issue : 937

When and where did the “Arab Spring” begin? Most observers of the tyrant-toppling uprisings would probably agree they kicked off after the Tunisian street vendor Mohammed Bouazizi set himself on fire in December last year. Not for the first time, Noam Chomsky has highlighted an omission from the conventional discourse. The wave of protests really started a month earlier in Western Sahara, Chomsky has argued..

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MOROCCO: Protest violence could escalate, intelligence analyst says

Los Angeles Times Blog, 24 May 2011

Moroccan police beat dozens of protesters who defied a ban on demonstrations and took to the streets of the capital Rabat and Casablanca on Sunday, according to news reports.

Months of protests in the north African nation have led its monarch, Mohammed VI, to make some concessions, but not enough to please protesters. They appeared more defiant Sunday, although their numbers have failed to match the scale of demonstrations in Egypt, Tunisia other countries that saw “Arab Spring” uprisings. Article continues….

Youtube footage of protest violence >>

AWSA Press Release, 24/5/2011 Disputed phosphate shipped to Geelong and Hobart

aicha-dahane-ia035729-252501.JPGAustralia Western Sahara Association
Press Release – 24 May 2011
….photo courtesy Geelong Advertiser
Disputed phosphate shipped to Geelong and Hobart – Australian companies continue unethical trade

As the Triton Stork berthed in Geelong at 6pm Monday, the Australia Western Sahara Association denounced Australia’s trade with Morocco in phosphate sourced in the disputed territory of Western Sahara.

Earlier this month, Aicha Dahane, a Saharawi human rights activist from occupied Western Sahara added her voice to the protest about what superphosphate manufacturer, Incitec Pivot is doing in Geelong.

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Keep the focus on Morocco’s illegal occupation of the Western Sahara

By Mouloud Said – 05/19/11 01:12 PM ET
The Hills Congress Blog

In his recent blog entry in The Hill, “Mercenaries in Libya: Gadhafi’s Hired Terrorists,” Edward Gabriel disingenuously alleges that the indigenous Saharawi people, of the Western Sahara, are fighting for Moammar Gadhafi and somehow linked to al Qaeda. Gabriel’s tired allegations could not be further from the truth and, as a long-time lobbyist for the Government of Morocco, he knows it.

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Janelle Saffin relaunches the Parliamentary Friends of Western Sahara Group

Article in Northern Star, 18th May 2011
Saffin a Friend of Western Sahara

“Page MP Janelle Saffin has enhanced her busy political life by being elected chair of the Australian Parliamentary Friends of Western Sahara Group.
The group has been relaunched after Saharawi human rights activist Aicha Dahane visited Canberra last week….”

Read rest of Northern Star report >>

Greens call on Australian companies to cut ties with occupiers of Western Sahara

Media Release, Senator Scott Ludlam, Wednesday May 18th, 2011

The Australian Greens have called on Australian companies to sever all ties with Moroccan firms involved in the occupation of Western Sahara.

The Greens justice spokesperson, Senator for Western Australia Scott Ludlam, said the African Union and more than 80 governments around the world refuse to recognise the Moroccan conquest of Western Sahara and Australian companies should withdraw from deals with the occupation forces.
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Media Release 18 May from Janelle Saffin MP Federal Member for Page

Media Release:
Wednesday, May 18, 2011.
Federal Parliament shows solidarity for Western Sahara

FEDERAL Labor Member for Page Janelle Saffin has been elected Chair of the Australian Parliamentary Friends of Western Sahara Group, relaunched when Saharawi human rights activist Aicha Dahane visited Canberra last week as part of her national speaking tour.

Media Release >>

Killed in Western Sahara by a bomb shaped like a ball

Hassan Hassan now herds his goats alone
By Louise Orton Western Sahara
BBC News Africa, 17 May 2011
Twenty years after a ceasefire brought a halt to a long-running conflict in Western Sahara, cluster bombs used by the Moroccan armed forces are still claiming victims – among them children attracted by their toy-like size and shape.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-13413947