The saharawi women would like to congratulate the british NGO, Sandblast, for the excellent awareness work is doing in the United Kingdom informing the international public opinión and the official institution about the struggle for peace and justice of the saharawi people.Next thursday, On June 12th, Sandblast holds a multimedia launch at London-based Caravanserai Acting Studios to begin recruiting over 100 people for the 10th Saharamarathon in February 2010. Not to be confused with the Marathon de Sables, this cultural evening will inform about the sporting event in the Algerian desert in support of the Saharawi refugees. The Saharawi situation will be introduced by a short documentary, “Deserted” (2007), and the UK premiere of selected preview scenes from the first British-Saharawi play, “The Other Side of the Wall”, directed by Caravanserai founder, Giles Foreman.
The international sporting event takes place in the Saharawi refugee camps in the Algerian Sahara near Tindouf. A full 42-km marathon as well as shorter races of 5km, 10km and a half marathon are organized. Participants live with individual refugee families during their weeklong stay in the camps. The camp-based Saharawi government-in-exile and international volunteers have organized and hosted the event since 2000, to show solidarity with the Saharawi people and raise money for projects to improve the lives of the long-term refugees.
Sandblast is the official UK recruiter for the Saharamarathon in cooperation with the Polisario representation of the UK and Ireland. We aim to fill an entire Air Algerie plane (sponsor in our efforts) with UK participants. The funds raised through your participation go to our long-term goal to set up a professional mobile recording studio and train Saharawis to use and run it in the camps.gdom.
