News
The leading importer of phosphates from occupied Western Sahara, US/Canadian firm PCS, has received yet another vessel.
Published 01 January 2010
Image

In December 2010, the long term agreement between the Mexican phosphate importer Innophos and the Moroccan phosphate company OCP expired. The trade has been going on for 18 years, and it is not known whether arrangements have been made to continue the cooperation. The firm has not yet responded to questions WSRW sent in October regarding the unethical purchases from the occupied territory.

Published 01 January 2010
Image
28 high profile personalities in Portuguese society ask its own government to prevent a renewed EU fisheries agreement in the occupied Western Sahara, and to defend international law, as it did with the case of decolonisation of East Timor.
Published 31 December 2010
Image

The firm Ballance Agri-Nutrients is busy this Christmas plundering the phosphate resources of the Sahrawi people.

Published 30 December 2010

Members of the European Parliament in Brussels who defend the illegal fisheries agreement offshore Western Sahara, did not want to explain their position to Swedish national radio.

Published 29 December 2010
Image
The Moroccan government’s new “Plan Halieutis” envisages big investments in Western Sahara. No reference is made as to whether the plan is according to the wishes of the Sahrawi people.
Published 29 December 2010
Image
Chief Executive of Moroccan state phosphate company in occupied Western Sahara claims his company is not working to gain profits.
Published 28 December 2010
Image

The bulk vessel Orient Dream, in far right corner, is currently waiting to offload its cargo of phosphates from occupied Western Sahara. Photo was taken in Tasmania, Australia, two days ago.

Published 28 December 2010
Image

The Norwegian fish oil producer GC Rieber clarifies that their refinery Maromega in TanTan in South Morocco has stopped all purchases from Western Sahara.

Published 27 December 2010
The firms Etosha/Oceana keep fishing offhore occupied Western Sahara on controversial Moroccan licences.
Published 25 December 2010
Image

"Which fish ends up at the Christmas table? Against a new fishery agreement between the EU and Morocco”. December 19th 2010, demonstrators gathered in front of the German foreign office and the French embassy in protest over the EU plundering of occupied Western Sahara.

Published 24 December 2010

The Spanish embassy in Oslo does not wish to respond to the question whether the word “wishes” is mentioned in the conclusion of the UN 2002 legal opinion. In order to get an answer of how Spain interprets the UN document, a national Norwegian student organisation was referred to the Saharawi delegation in Madrid.

Published 23 December 2010

“I believe that one has misinterpreted my legal opinion to the Security Council in a very astonishing way”, stated former UN legal counsel, Hans Corell, in Swedish Radio today. “It is important that Europe does not act in such a way that it puts obstacles in the way for the UN to find a solution to the conflict”, he stated regarding the EU fisheries in the territory.

Published 22 December 2010

The European Fisheries Commissioner, Maria Damanaki, is evaluating the possibility of negotiating a new fishing agreement with Morocco which excludes the waters of Western Sahara. If approved, more than a hundred EU vessels would have to withdraw from the Moroccan fisheries. FIS, 17 December 2010.

Published 22 December 2010

The Chilean owned vessel Sibulk Prosperity few weeks ago arrived US with conflict minerals from occupied Western Sahara.

Published 22 December 2010

The European Commission earlier this year asked the Moroccan government of a report on how the Saharawis benefit from the EU fisheries. “This position is simply not acceptable”, writes former UN Legal Counsel Hans Corell in an article.

Published 22 December 2010
Image

A Danish journalist was expelled from Morocco after having published a story with comments from the Danish Government and former MINURSO chief.

Published 21 December 2010

The Irish oil company San Leon explores illegally for oil in occupied Western Sahara. On 19 December 2010, Western Sahara Action Ireland demonstrated against San Leon's work.

Published 21 December 2010

UN General Assembly called on 10 December a halt of economic activity in colonies that are detrimental to the people\'s interest.

Published 18 December 2010
Image

Western Sahara Resource Watch (WSRW) has asked international banks to halt further funding of the US oil firm Kosmos Energy. The company is exploring for oil offshore occupied Western Sahara.

Published 09 December 2010

"Credible reports indicate that Lt Gen Benanni is using his position as the Commander of the Southern Sector to skim money from military contracts and influence business decisions. A widely believed rumor has it that he owns large parts of the fisheries in Western Sahara", a new Wiki-leaked US embassy cable states.

Published 03 December 2010
Image

The Irish/British companies illegally exploring for oil in occupied Western Sahara had planned seismic studies for Fourth Quarter this year. They have still not started, but the plans to carry out the programme remains.

Published 03 December 2010
Image

In the midst of a complete media blackout and during a wave of human rights violations, Moroccan government has set up a separate charter plane to Western Sahara to convince Spanish businessmen that doing business in the territory is safe and smart.

Published 01 December 2010

Here are the exact coordinates of the Zag Basin block, explored by San Leon Morocco Ltd, Longreach Oil and Gas Ventures Limited and "Island International Exploration Morocco”.

Published 01 December 2010
Image

First cable from US embassy mentions 3 billion Euro deals for Sarkozy, as French Western Sahara policy leans towards Moroccan position. Among the agreements signed by Sarkozy, was the nuclear deal with Moroccan phosphate plunderer OCP.

Published 01 December 2010
Image
Norwegian company obliged to pay 1,2 million Euro in customs for importing fish oil from occupied Western Sahara. The importer falsely labelled Western Sahara products as Moroccan.
Published 30 November 2010
Image

At least six Scandinavian investors have the last few years divested from international fertiliser firms importing from occupied Western Sahara.

Published 30 November 2010

Slovenian Member of European Parliament, Ivo Vajgl, asks for increased mandate for UN peace force in the occupied Western Sahara.

Published 30 November 2010

On Thursday 25th November, Danish Radio broadcasted a documentary on EU’s illegal fisheries in occupied Western Sahara. Two days later, the journalist behind the programme was expelled from Morocco.

Read also: Here is the EU fish story that the Moroccan government didn't like

Published 29 November 2010
Image
EU is currently fishing in occupied Western Sahara in violation of the wishes and interests of the Sahrawi people - and thus in violation of international law. Read the entire transcript of the seminar on illegal EU fisheries in the European Parliament, 16 November 2010.
Published 28 November 2010

Thai shipping company Precious Shipping has carried out 3 shipments from Western Sahara to Colombia in just over a year. WSRW asked today the company to halt the transports until the conflict is solved.

Published 26 November 2010

Despite of the clear conclusions in the report presented by the Legal Service office of the European Parliament which point to the necessity to revise or cancel the fisheries agreement between the EU and Morocco if it continues to ignore the wishes and interests of the Saharawi people, the EU ambassador to Morocco, Eneko Landáburu, declared on 27 of May in Rabat that “The EU defends the legality of the fisheries agreement with Morocco”.

Published 26 November 2010
Image

In a resolution adopted today, the parliamentarians of Europe "Calls on the EU to demand that the Kingdom of Morocco abide by international law regarding the exploitation of the natural resources of Western Sahara".

Published 25 November 2010
Emails sent from WSRW to the 2 phosphate importing firms Petrokemija and Tata Chemicals on 24 November 2010, and Tripoliven 25 November 2010.
Published 24 November 2010

Karin Scheele, regional minister in Lower Austria, asks the Austrian government to place human rights in Western Sahara before trade interests with Morocco. "The EU does not honour its own principles", Scheele stated.

Published 23 November 2010
Image

The French shipping company Setaf Saget removed a vessel from their webpages, and stopped replying to mails, after a French organisation wrote them about a transport of phosphates from occupied Western Sahara.

Published 22 November 2010
Image

Some 30 Sahrawis and Norwegians carried out a demonstration in front of the Spanish embassy in Oslo today to protest the Spanish government’s undermining of the Sahrawi people’s rights. Spain is currently pushing the EU to try to renew an illegal fisheries agreement covering the waters offshore the occupied territories.

Published 22 November 2010
Image
The EU could be signing an Agricultural Agreement with Morocco that also covers the territory of Western Sahara. The Spanish farmers demand that the agreement be stopped.
Published 18 November 2010
Image

The international network BHP Billiton Watch dedicated a chapter to the Western Sahara issue when they this week launched its BHP Alternative Annual Report for 2010. The report was published before the BHP announced its withdrawal from the plans of buying Western Sahara phosphate plunderer.

Published 18 November 2010
Image

"Had the benefits been flowing to the Saharawi people, would there have been a need for the peaceful and ultimately tragic protests by more than 20,000 Saharawi people in the area in and around El Aaiún, angered by the long-standing political repression and desperate socio-economic conditions prevalent in the Territory?", the Western Sahara liberation movement asked the EU fisheries commissioner Damanaki yesterday.

Published 17 November 2010
Image

The British-Australian mining company BHP Billion has decided not to bid for the Canadian fertiliser firm PCS. Western Sahara Resource Watch previously urged BHP to terminate the imports from occupied Western Sahara if it was to gain control over the company. BHP stated today they have "no plans for activities" in the territory.

Published 16 November 2010
Image
Tuesday 16 November, 14:30 - 16:00, in the European Parliament.
Speakers: former UN envoy Francesco Bastagli, Law Professor Carlos Ruiz Miguel and Saharawi human rights defender Aminetu Haidar.
For access badges, please send complete name, nationality and date of birth to coordinator@wsrw.org.
Published 11 November 2010
Image
The UN Development Programme (UNDP) announces that all its programmes in Morocco “are limited to the internationally recognised borders of Morocco”. UNDP rejects an erroneous media report claiming that a UNDP official praised the development in “Morocco’s Southern Provinces”.
Published 10 November 2010

In complete violation of international law, Morocco is pillaging the minerals and phosphates in occupied Western Sahara. This week, their office in El Aaiun was raided by Saharawis. A phosphate worker was killed by Moroccan police. 

Published 10 November 2010
Image
For 4 weeks, the Saharawis had protested peacefully in a camp outside the Western Sahara capital, against unemployment and discrimination. When the camp was destroyed by the Moroccan army, killing several Saharawi, the protesters went into town, where they set on fire symbols of the plundering.
Published 10 November 2010
“The extremely tense situation in occupied Western Sahara illustrates the need for the UN to work for the protection of the people and the natural wealth of the territory”, stated Western Sahara Resource Watch in a letter to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon and all members of the Security Council today. Read the letter here.
Published 04 November 2010

Check out this WSRW video showing the vessel spotted by Brisbane Times.

Published 03 November 2010

Every now and then we discover all is not as right with the world as we thought it was. Even so, who would think a wake-up call could come in the shape of phosphatic rock?

Published 03 November 2010
Brussels, 21 Oct (EFE). – European Commissioner for Fisheries, Maria Damanaki, and the Moroccan Minister for Fisheries, Aziz Akhannouch, have debated the fisheries agreement, set to expire in March 2011. But still no agenda has been set to negotiate its renewal, sources from within the Commission informed Efe.
Published 24 October 2010