News
On 20 February, the EU Commission briefed the Parliament on the negotiations with Morocco to secure Western Sahara trade flows, and the EU External Action Service (EEAS) provided an update on a so-called consultation process. But why is there a consultation process? And with who is the EEAS talking?
Published 27 February 2018
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The EU Court this morning issued a ruling stating that the EU-Morocco Fisheries Partnership Agreement is only valid if it does not apply to the waters of Western Sahara.

Published 27 February 2018
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At 11:45 today, Saharawi refugees are celebrating that the Court of Justice has ruled that EU cannot continue fishing offshore Western Sahara in partnership with the country that occupied their homeland. 
 

Published 27 February 2018
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The High Court of South Africa today confirmed that the owner of the cargo of phosphate rock aboard the detained vessel, NM Cherry Blossom, is the Saharawi Government, and not Morocco's state-owned phosphate company which was not entitled to sell the commodity. Major victory for the Saharawis in an African Court.

Published 23 February 2018
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The European Parliament has voted to rein in toxic fertilizers that are high in carcinogene heavy metals. Morocco stands to lose a major market for its high in cadmium fertilizer products, which it exports also from occupied Western Sahara.

Published 23 February 2018
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The company which certified a Moroccan energy project in occupied Western Sahara has rectified a report it submitted to UN Global Compact in which it erroneously claimed that the UN body had approved of its operation.
Published 21 February 2018

The European Commission will today brief the Parliament's International Trade Committee. The Western Sahara intergroup of the Parliament expressed today its deep concern of the Commission's approach.

Published 20 February 2018
All EU Member States agreed to grant the EU Commission a mandate to open negotiations with Morocco for a change to the protocols to the EU-Morocco Association Agreement, allowing for trade with Western Sahara to continue within that framework. This came on the back of a ruling by the EU Court of Justice in December 2016, concluding that no EU-Morocco trade or association deal could be applied to Western Sahara unless with the explicit consent of the people of the territory.

Sweden was the only EU Member State to issue a critical statement with regard to the granting of the negotiation mandate. Read that statement below.
Published 16 February 2018
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"Sweden considers that the proposed mandate does not meet the requirements of international law", the official government statement reads.

Published 15 February 2018
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Is Kosmos Energy undertaking a last survey on the Boujdour Maritime licence before it waves goodbye to occupied Western Sahara? Or has an unknown company taken over the licence? Last week, seabed petroleum surveys started at the place where Kosmos drilled in 2014.

Published 08 February 2018

The EU's foreign affairs department has invited WSRW to take part in a consultation process regarding EU-Morocco trade talks covering Western Sahara. Though in principle always open to dialogue, WSRW had to decline.

Published 07 February 2018
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17 years of US private company engagement in exploring the oil potential of Western Sahara has come to an end.

Published 07 February 2018
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The European Commission has failed to obtain consent from the Saharawi representatives before deciding to include Western Sahara in trade deal with Morocco. In a statement today, 89 organisations in and from Western Sahara condemn the EU Commission for its sham consultations.

Published 03 February 2018
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Why did you not seek permission from my people?, a Saharawi refugee asked at Siemens AGM. Company fails to answer questions why it operates on occupied land.

Published 02 February 2018
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The European Commission and Morocco yesterday initialed an agreement covering trade in goods originating in Western Sahara without the consent of the people from the territory, contrary to the orders of the EU Court of Justice.

Published 01 February 2018
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The national liberation movement of Western Sahara threatens to claim 240 million Euro in compensation of the EU's illegal fisheries in occupied Western Sahara and sends a warning to importers of goods from the territory to halt their imports.

Published 31 January 2018
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The company that certified energy infrastructure in occupied Western Sahara, claims that a UN body had found the company not to breach human rights.

Published 31 January 2018
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Canadian company Nutrien announced last week that its multi-million dollar imports of conflict minerals to Vancouver is stopping. Nutrien is now reconsidering what to do with its "PotashCorp" imports to the US.

Published 29 January 2018
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Two important members of the S&D group in the European Parliament this week expressed strong criticism of the Commission’s approach to EU-Morocco trade negotiations in relation to Western Sahara. This might reflect a significant shift ongoing in positions in the Europarliament.
 

Published 27 January 2018
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The final assets that Glencore held in oil exploration in occupied Western Sahara have been sold.

Published 23 January 2018
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The German government has clarified that no export credit guarantees can be given to projects in Western Sahara.

Published 22 January 2018
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The Danish government has started arguing for its own fishing interests in occupied Western Sahara and challenges the recent developments in the Court of Justice of the EU. A request to continue EU fisheries in Western Sahara was issued to Danish legislators just one day after the EU Court's General Advocate found that practice invalid.

Published 15 January 2018
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An official of the Western Sahara liberation movement Frente Polisario expresses satisfaction of the opinion issued today by the top lawyer in the Court of Justice of European Union.
Published 10 January 2018
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In an opinion issued this morning, the Advocate General of the Court of Justice of the EU stated that the EU-Morocco Fisheries Agreement is invalid because it applies to Western Sahara waters. Judgement expected in a few months. 

Read reaction from Frente Polisario on the opinion.

Published 10 January 2018
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Not awaiting the EU Court of Justice's verdict on the legality of the current fisheries protocol with Morocco over the inclusion of Western Sahara's waters, the EU Commission is already thinking out loud about its successor.
 

Published 08 January 2018
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A new Canadian company accounts for half the purchases of conflict minerals from occupied Western Sahara. WSRW calls on investors to immediately blacklist the new company for breach of basic ethics.

Published 07 January 2018
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While the highest Court of the EU has stipulated that no trade arrangement with Morocco can be applied to Western Sahara, the EU Commission this month visited the occupied territory to update the list of companies authorised to export their products to the EU.

Published 20 December 2017
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WSRW has again asked Siemens to clarify how they’ve obtained the consent of the people of Western Sahara to their involvement in literally all of Morocco’s wind power plans in the occupied territory.

Published 07 December 2017
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For a third consecutive year, Morocco has spent most of the EU’s fisheries sectoral support on further developing the fishing industry in occupied Western Sahara – with the explicit approval of the Union.

Published 05 December 2017
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While Morocco presses on with its renewable energy projects in occupied Western Sahara, the EU's Foreign Affairs Chief has clarified that the EU will not provide any financial contributions.

Published 21 November 2017
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Fresh leaks from international tax-havens provide more information about who is behind the Glencore oil operations in occupied Western Sahara.

Published 21 November 2017
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Even more wind farms are being planned in occupied Western Sahara, and all of them are in the portfolio of the Moroccan monarch's company NAREVA.

Published 31 October 2017
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“I think this incident should alert people about these EU-Morocco trade negotiations on products from Western Sahara: they are not transparent at all”, says Jytte Guteland, socialist Euro-parliamentarian from Sweden.

Published 31 October 2017
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Morocco and Siemens press on with their plans to generate energy in the human rights black-spot that is Western Sahara: the first controversial wind farm near Boujdour is expected to be operational in December 2018, built by a UK company.

Published 30 October 2017
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Over the past 24 hours, WSRW has observed a resumed seabed exploration north of Dakhla, in the block operated by American oil company Kosmos Energy in collaboration with Scotland's Cairn Energy.

Published 26 October 2017
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Both the EU and Morocco seem keen conclude the negotiations to keep occupied Western Sahara within the territorial scope of their bilateral trade deal - in spite of a judgment by the EU's highest Court ruling this out.

Published 24 October 2017
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Opposition referred to the inclusion of Western Sahara, which they say renders the deal illegal under EU law.

Published 24 October 2017
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For the umpteenth time, the EU's self-contradiction in relation to Western Sahara surfaces.

Published 23 October 2017
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Finnish energy company Wärtsilä has struck a deal with the Moroccan government to supply a power plant to Dakhla - a town located well outside of Morocco, and inside occupied Western Sahara.

Published 11 October 2017
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... precisely in the territory that the highest Court of the European Union considers "distinct and separate" from Morocco.

Published 09 October 2017
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The EU Commission puts the trade flow from Western Sahara into the Union at "just €7000" for the entire year of 2016. "Beggars belief", WSRW states.

Published 27 September 2017
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Sweden is known for paying lip-service to Saharawi self-determination, but is it putting its money where its mouth is? Check out our newly published report on Sweden's involvement in the taking of occupied Western Sahara's natural resources.

Published 27 September 2017
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"Seeking to circumvent the ECJ’s ruling, directly challenges the credibility of the EU, and significantly damages the potential for progress through the UN-led negotiation process", Saharawi groups qualify the EU's talks with Morocco regarding Western Sahara trade, in their letter to the EU's Foreign Affairs Chief.

Published 01 September 2017
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Verdict comes after years of accusations that the trials were politically motivated, imprisoning activists who stood up against Morocco's social and economic deprivation of Saharawis.

Published 19 July 2017
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The Moroccan state company OCP has decided to drop defending the detained conflict mineral cargo in South Africa. The Saharawi people thus won a 5 million USD walk-over victory before the trial over phosphate rock ownership even had begun.
Published 13 July 2017
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While the German industrial mastodon has no problems in delivering turbines to the area of Western Sahara that is under Moroccan occupation, it goes out of its way to distance itself from similar deliveries to Crimea.
Published 10 July 2017

The Moroccan government has today initiated draft regulations aimed at incorporating the waters of Western Sahara into its own territorial waters.

Published 06 July 2017
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“We call on the EU to abide by the judgment of its own Supreme Court, and to cease all trade talks regarding Western Sahara with the occupying state, Morocco. As a champion for rule of law and human rights, the EU should respect the rights of the Saharawi people and negotiate trade in goods from Western Sahara with their representatives, the Polisario Front.” 

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Published 05 July 2017
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The private owned Chinese company China Great United Petroleum (Holding) Limited could be close to taking over controversial rights to onshore oil exploration in occupied Western Sahara.
Published 02 July 2017