News
Image
Published 08 November 2010

...until the Moroccan army stormed the place. 

Published 08 November 2010

For 3 weeks, they had been peacefully demonstrating in the desert. Today, Moroccan forces intervened, stopping the protest camp. 

Published 08 November 2010
Image
Statement from the Liberal Party of Norway, 8 November 2010.
Published 08 November 2010
Image
The Norwegian Support Committee for Western Sahara, Centre for Peace Studies and SAIH-Tromsø hosts the conference “35 years without rights” on Western Sahara in Tromsø on 6 November. The day before the 35 year anniversary of the Moroccan invasion and occupation of Western Sahara.
Published 28 October 2010
Image

A 14-year old boy was shot and killed by Moroccan police last Sunday.

Published 26 October 2010

Saharawis wanting to join the new protest camp inside the occupied territories are chased away by stone throwing Moroccan army. Check out 02:21.

Published 23 October 2010
Image
When Fugro Norway was to promote itself on the Business days at the University of Oslo on 28 September, they were welcomed with cake. In 2009, Fugro was refused to attend the same event due to their engagement in occupied Western Sahara. Since then, the firm has withdrawn from the occupied territory.
Published 02 October 2010

The film ‘Stolen’, which falsely portrays a Saharawi refugee woman as a slave, has been rejected by Bergen International Film Festival. The festival chose to take it off the programme, out of concern to the main character of the movie.

Published 30 August 2010
Image

If the film makers behind this movie ever approach you for an interview, it would be wise to decline. Stolen - a movie that will be screened at a Norwegian film festival on Thursday - is full of fabricated subtitles. A normal Saharawi woman is portrayed as a slave despite no coverage for this claim in the movie.

Published 19 June 2010
Image

A court in Oslo decided Friday to not prohibit the screening of a film at the Norwegian Short Film Festival tomorrow, despite the evidence that the film is a scam. All of the film's allegations presenting the main character Fetim as a slave have been fabricated. The main character feels deeply offended of the film being shown.

Published 19 June 2010
Image

In a few hours, a refugee from Western Sahara will be victim of an offence of her dignity at the Norwegian Short Film Festival. At 2 PM today, a film will be screened, in which she is portrayed to be a slave – something which she not is. Press release, 17 June 2010.

Published 17 June 2010
Image

If the film makers behind this movie ever approach you for an interview, it would be wise to decline. Stolen - a movie that will be screened at a Norwegian film festival on Thursday - is full of fabricated subtitles. A normal Saharawi woman is portrayed as a slave despite no coverage for this claim in the movie.
 

Published 16 June 2010
Image
Norwegian investor KLP has blacklisted another two new fertiliser companies that buy phosphate from occupied Western Sahara. Furthermore, two additional corporations were dropped from its portfolio because they are linked with nuclear weapons production. Norwatch, 1 June 2010.
Published 08 June 2010
Image

"Since Morocco does not exercise internationally recognised sovereignty over Western Sahara, Western Sahara is not seen as a part of Morocco's territory in relation to this agreement. The Free Trade Agreement is thus not applicable to goods from Western Sahara", stated Norwegian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Jonas Gahr Store, 11 May 2010.

Published 12 May 2010
Image

The Moroccan-EFTA free trade agreement does not cover Western Sahara, according to Norwegian and Swiss authorities. This will have multi-million euro consequences for a firm that systematically mislabeled Western Sahara imports as Moroccan, and illustrates how the European Commission is on collision course with rest of the international community.

Published 12 May 2010
Image

Dutch seismic services firm Fugro NV, and its Norwegian subsidiary Fugro-Geoteam, state they do not want to undertake any more assignments in Western Sahara under the current political situation in the country.

Published 12 May 2010

The company of the most important person in Norwegian business life, the President of the Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise, is under investigation by Norwegian authorities. The reason is a failure to pay import tens of millions of euros on duties upon importing fish oil from occupied Western Sahara.

Published 12 May 2010

Paul-Christian Rieber, president of the Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise (NHO), has for years traded with a country that Norwegian authorities have asked the business community to avoid. That may have been the main reason he resigned yesterday. Aftenposten, 24 April 2010.

Published 12 May 2010

Kongsberg Seatex had hoped to sell an ocean surveillance system to the Moroccan navy but chose to refrain because of the Western Sahara conflict. “We could not be absolutely sure that it would not be placed in Western Sahara,” Even Aas, Executive Vice President, Public Affairs, told Norwatch.

Published 12 May 2010

Norwegian fish oil importer GC Rieber today announced that they have stopped all imports of fish oil from Morocco and occupied Western Sahara. After their biggest customer did not longer want to buy the controversial oil, the importer has chosen to stop further purchases from the region. Norwatch, 14 April 2010.

Published 14 April 2010
A Norwegian government owned company stops purchases from Morocco and Western Sahara, over ethical concern. The value of the purchases has amounted to around 10 million euros annually.
Published 11 April 2010
Image
The violations of human rights committed by the Moroccan authorities on the Sahrawis in the occupied territories continues. Polisario now urges the UN to start monitoring all the violations. They even welcome UN monitoring of the refugee camps they themselves administer.
Published 07 April 2010
Image

After revelations on Swedish and Norwegian TV, Cognis terminates all purchases of fish oil from Western Sahara and Morocco.

Published 02 April 2010
Image

An unknown number of Saharawis were injured when Moroccan police cracked down on a peaceful demonstration for self determination in occupied Western Sahara Monday night. Strong images.

Published 11 March 2010
Image
University of East Anglia, UK, looks for volunteers for a project in Western Sahara.
Published 08 March 2010

Clear message from Sahrawi human rights defender Elkouria Amidane to the new EU Fisheries Commissioner, Maria Damanaki, on Swedish national TV today.

Published 06 March 2010

Here is the 11 page statement from the European Parliament's Legal Service which slams the European Commission. The statement - concluding that EU fisheries in occupied Western Sahara under its current shape is in violation of international law - has been kept from the public for 7 months.

Published 24 February 2010
Image
During the Business Days at the University of Oslo yesterday, one exhibition stand was left empty. The Norwegan firm has carried out illegal oil exploration offshore occupied Western Sahara.
Published 05 February 2010
Image
Human Rights activist has been expelled from her home country, Western Sahara. She demands to be able to return.
Published 17 November 2009
Image
The human rights activist Brahim Dahane, human rights defenders in Western Sahara, is this year's winner of the Swedish Government's Per Anger award.
Published 03 November 2009
Image
The human rights activits Naama Asfari asks for Norwegian and international help to attend trials against Sahrawis. In August, Asfari was sentenced to jail for carrying a keyring with the Sahrawi flag.
Published 31 October 2009

The party congress of the Swedish Social Democratic Party demands that Sweden recognise the Western Sahara republic.

Published 30 October 2009
Irish Ministry of Foreign Affairs has discussed the matter over the 7 jailed Sahrawi human rights defenders, and says the issue is being discussed between the EU and Morocco.
Published 23 October 2009
Image
As the unemployed 32 year old Abdellah El Boukzati demonstrated against the plundering of Western Sahara, Moroccan police intervened.
Published 23 October 2009
Image

3 US Senators today sent a letter to Kind Mohamed VI, asking for the release of the 7 Sahrawis who were jailed for visiting their countrymen in the Sahrawi refugee camps.

Published 23 October 2009
Image

Leading human rights activists from Western Sahara were last week subjected to serious violations of their rights by Moroccan authorities. 18 Norwegian organisations, including all 8 political youth parties, ask the Norwegian Minister for Foreign Affairs to protest.

Published 19 October 2009
Image

Four Sahrawi students spoke before the UN committee for decolonisation this week. Read their talks here.

Published 10 October 2009
Image

The Norwegian Government Pension Fund has invested billions of Norwegian kroners in companies that participate in the plunder of Western Sahara. An examination carried out by Norwatch shows that Pension Fund companies are behind two-thirds of all phosphate purchases in the occupied country. Norwatch, 06.10.2009.

Published 09 October 2009
Image

The Norwegian seismic services company PGS has entered in on the ownership side of the Irish oil company San Leon Energy. The funds placed by PGS will help enable increased oil exploration in occupied Western Sahara.

Published 22 September 2009
Image

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees announced today that its annual Nansen Refugee Award will be awarded to the late Senator Edward Kennedy for his achievements as an unparalleled champion of refugee protection and assistance. For years Kennedy fought for the rights of the Saharawi people and refugees around the world. Press release, 15 Sept 2009.

Published 15 September 2009
Image
In a wave of arrests and harassments has in the last few weeks taken place in Western Sahara. Today 10 leading human rights activists were detained when they were going to attend a trial against a colleague.
Published 27 August 2009
Image
The Lion of the Senate and one of USAs most influential Senators, Edward M. Kennedy (77) died from cancer yesterday. Kennedy has for many years been one of the staunchest supporters of Western Sahara in American politics.
Published 26 August 2009
Image
The Sahrawi youth who were to attend a peace seminar in London - and who were refused exit from Morocco - have got a tough treatment. First they were forcibly expelled from Agadir airport. Thursday night they were taken in a police escort all the way back to the occupied territories of Western Sahara.
Published 07 August 2009

Statement from Amnesty International today demands investigations into the events surrounding the forcible expulsion of 6 young Sahrawis from Agadir airport to Western Sahara.

Published 07 August 2009
Image

Youth from Western Sahara and Morocco were this week to meet in London to discuss the Western Sahara conflict. Moroccan authorities have now sabotaged the talks, by denying the Moroccan and Sahrawi delegations exit from Morocco. "All the seven Moroccans had family problems", told the Moroccan ambassador to London.

Published 06 August 2009
Image

Polisario and the Moroccan government will meet in Vienna to start informal talks after new US intiative. The new UN Special Envoy, Christopher Ross, travelled the region last month and expressed optimism after talking to the governments of SADR, Algeria, Mauritania, Morocco and Spain.

Published 03 August 2009
Image
Madrid, Aug 03, 2009: Sahara Press Service reports the Polisario Front representative in Spain, Bucharaya Hamoudi Beyoun, describing the Moroccan autonomy plan for Western Sahara as "dead".
Published 03 August 2009
Image

Mohammed Abdelaziz, President of SADR and General Secretary of Polisario was the Guest of Honor at the 2009 IUSY festival in Hungary. He gave a speech before the participants of a conference on Western Sahara organised by IUSY at the festival. Read full transcript below.

Published 31 July 2009
Image

ZANKA, HUNGARY: The International Union of Socialist Youth (IUSY), met in Zanka, Hungary at the World Youth Festival under the theme ‘Development for Freedom - Our War on Poverty’ from June 15th to 21st. SADR President Mohammed Abdelaziz was invited as a Guest of Honor and IUSY passed a statement on Western Sahara for the occasion. 

Published 30 July 2009