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March 21, 2019

Morocco Begins New Round of Talks over Status of Western Sahara
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The United Nations has convened a new round of talks between the Kingdom
of Morocco and the Western Saharan liberation movement known as the
Polisario Front, aimed at resolving the 43-year-old conflict. Morocco
has occupied Western Sahara since 1975, and no other country on Earth
recognizes its sovereignty over the territory. Thousands of Western
Sahara's indigenous people-the Sahrawi-have since been tortured,
imprisoned, killed and disappeared while resisting the Moroccan
occupation. On Wednesday, Moroccan authorities assaulted a peaceful
assembly of women in the streets of the Western Saharan capital Laayoune
as they demonstrated in favor of a referendum on the status of the
territory. Two years ago, Democracy Now! was able to break the Moroccan
media blockade and report from Western Sahara; you can go to our website
at democracynow.org to watch our special report, "Four Days in Western
Sahara: Africa's Last Colony."


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