The vessel Sea Lavender is here loading phosphates in occupied Western Sahara, destined for Mexican imports.
Communiqué on the Conference on Multilateralism and International Law with Western Sahara as case study Hosted by the South African Department of Foreign Affairs and the University of Pretoria, 4 and 5 December 2008.
See more details about the conference itself here.
No less than 426 organisations signed a petition letter, demanding from the EU Commission that occupied Western Sahara be kept clearly outside of the so- called Advanced Status cooperation that Morocco currently is being granted. The petition was sent to the EU Commission this morning. PRESS RELEASE.
Shortly before the Government of New Zealand changed, the former Minister of Trade, Hon Phil Goff, wrote two letters regarding the natural resource exploitation. Read them here.
The Swiss flagged and managed vessel Celerina in November carried out a highly unethical phosphates transport from occupied Western Sahara to Louisiana, USA.
Two vessels are arriving New Zealand with phosphates from occupied Western Sahara first week of December.
Update: ....and here is one for Christmas.
On December 5th 2008, a petition letter signed by 426 organisations was sent to the EU commission demanding that occupied Western Sahara be kept outside of the Morocco-EU socalled Advanced Status cooperation. Do you wish your organisation had signed, but did not make the deadline?
Two so-called reefers, or refrigerated ships, have recently visited El Aaiun harbour in occupied Western Sahara, for transport of frozen fish to Russia and China.
The bulk vessel Furness Karumba arrived this port in Perth, Australia, in August.
New Zealand firm Ballance Agri-Nutrients is importing phosphates from Western Sahara, contributing in the financing and legitimation of the illegal occupation from the territory. Here is correspondence between the NZ firm and the Norwegian Support Committee for Western Sahara.
In an extraordinary show of arrogance and disdain for representatives of civil society organizations, the Washington based law firm Covington & Burling flatly refuses to engage with the global solidarity network Western Sahara Resource Watch (WSRW) and this year's Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Human Rights Award laureate, Mrs. Aminatou Haidar. The US law firm is, because of a legal analysis it provided, the source the world phosphate industry refers to when they claim the phosphate trade from Western Sahara to be legal.
Several Swedish parliamentarians from one of the parties in the Swedish government, have motioned that the Swedish Government should work to prevent the EU from signing any new agreements or agreements of advanced status with Morocco "as long as the country occupies Western Sahara".
BASF, the German chemical company who imported Western Saharan phosphates early October, wrote that they "are fully confident that the operations of OCP at Boucraa and the purchase of the replacement delivery were consistent with international law". But after request from WSRW, they refuse to publish their “expert opinion” upon which their conclusion is based. To clarify further aspects of the unpublished report, they refer to a US law firm.
The fertilizer company Yara remains under investigation by Norwegian police after having purchased a shipload of phosphates from occupied Western Sahara.