Hundreds of people have concentrated in favour of the right to self-determination in Western Sahara and against the latest decision by the Spanish Government. A joint communiqué has been read in Bilbao between the Sahara Delegation, the Solidarity Movement and the Sahrawi Diaspora. “In the face of the unacceptable transfer to blackmail of Morocco, we express our rejection and demand the final resolution of this conflict that we are making in Euskal Herria,” they said.

Responsibility of Spain

They recall that Western Sahara is a country pending decolonization according to the UN, which has recognized its right to self-determination and independence and that Spain is the “administering power” of the territory. They denounce that the Government of Spain "has abandoned its responsibility": “By supporting the illegal occupation of Western Sahara, the Government of Spain and the parties supporting it give legal coverage to the human rights violations denounced by international organizations and to the plundering of their natural resources.”

Declarations by parties

The mobilisation of Bilbao has been attended by representatives of the Basque Government, the PNV, EH Bildu and Elkarrekin-Podemos, among others. The spokesman for the Basque Government, Bingen Zupiria, said yesterday that the conflict in the Sahara must be resolved along the path set by the UN. Arnaldo Otegi, as a "hypothesis", suggested that the government of Spain may have opted for alignment with Morocco, France, Germany and the United States. Elkarrekin Podemos has denounced the "unilateral action" of the PSOE that governs in Spain and has denounced that change of attitude is a "betrayal".