Saharawi Women are very pleased that several world-wide human rights organizations have organized a work-visiting tour to what is known as the Africa´s last colony: Western Sahara.
An important delegation of worldwide human rights organization has visited Western Sahara from August 25th to 29th 2012. The international delegation has just been in both sides of the norther-african country: the moroccan occupied saharawi capital, El-Aayoune and the Saharawi Refugee camps (south-east of Algeria).
The delegation was led by of the President of the american foundation, RFK Center for Justice and Human Rights, Kerry Kennedy, and composed also by other relevant human rights defender leaders like Mary Lawlor, Director of Front Line Defenders; Margarette May Macaulay, Judge of the Inter American Court of Human Rights; Eric Sottas, former Secretary-General, World Organization Against Torture; Maria del Río, Board of Trustees of the Jose Saramago Foundation; and Marialina Marcucci, President of the RFK Center - Europe. RFK Partners for Human Rights Director Santiago A. Canton, Advocacy Director Marselha Gonçalves Margerin, and Advocacy Associate Stephanie Postar.
Before visiting the Sahrawi refugee camps, the U.S. delegation was arrived on Friday-night August 24th 2012 in the occupied territories of Western Sahara, where it had a series of interviews with representatives of associations of Saharawi human rights.
The interviews took place at the home of the Saharawi Human Rights activist, Ms. Aminatou Haidar, El Aaiun (occupied capital of Western Sahara) focused on the humanitarian situation of the Sahrawi population and violations of human rights, abuses committed by the Moroccan occupying forces.
The delegation met with, among others, members of the Saharawi Committee for defending the right of the Saharawi people to self-determination. The talks between the two sides focused on serious violations of human rights which is subject the Saharawi people.
The members of the delegation also met with representatives of the Support Committee for UN settlement plan and protection of natural resources of Western Sahara, who reiterated their call on this occasion to the protection of resources of Western Sahara from illegal exploitation by the Moroccan occupation.
The international delegation also met with the head of the section of the Moroccan Association of Human Rights in El Aaiun and the Saharawi collective of human rights Defenders (CODESA).
The arrival of Mrs. Kennedy in El Aaiun was marked by a "black out" and total "impressive device" characterized by "massive presence of officers in plainclothes of Moroccan intelligence".
It has also been an eyewitness to the police aggression against the human rights activist, former political prisoner, Soukeina Jeddehlou, who participated in a peaceful demonstration denouncing the gross violations of human rights in Western Sahara under Moroccan occupation.
Kennedy has declared that the delegation " will seek to assess the human rights situation on the ground by speaking to human rights defenders, government authorities, and ordinary families split apart by this conflict," said Kerry Kennedy.
"We hope to raise attention to this issue and support the establishment of a human rights mandate for the UN Mission." said the President of Kennedy´s Foundation.
Head of the Robert-Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights Kerry Kennedy, who leads a delegation made up of international human rights defense organizations hailed Wednesday in the Wilaya of Boujdour "Sahrawi women determination and contribution", mainly in the organization of everyday life in refugee camps.
"It is moving to see women who have too terrible stories on human rights violations committed against them or their relatives (in the occupied territories of Western Sahara) does not admit or broken and remain determined to build the institutions of their society and organize their lives in refugee camps, especially in the areas of education and health," said Kennedy during a meeting with Sahrawi women.
Kerry Kennedy has announced that she agreed during her stay in the occupied territories of Western Sahara, with the Saharawi activist Aminatu Haidar, to collect the testimonies of women who suffered from violations of human rights to which they are mentioned in mission final report.
In this sense, she urged the concerned women to send their testimony as soon as possible to Haidar. In addition, Kennedy said her center annually awards prize to a personality that defends human rights, noting that this distinction was granted a few years ago to Haidar.
"Haidar is a hero to all of us ," said the RFK Center for Justice and Human Rights, Kerry Kennedy in a meeting with more than a hundred women in the saharawi refugee camps las wednesday.
"It is moving to see women who have too terrible stories on human rights violations committed against them or their relatives (in the occupied territories of Western Sahara) does not admit or broken and remain determined to build the institutions of their society and organize their lives in refugee camps, especially in the areas of education and health," said Kennedy during a meeting with Sahrawi women.
Kerry Kennedy has announced that she agreed during her stay in the occupied territories of Western Sahara, with the Saharawi activist Aminatu Haidar, to collect the testimonies of women who suffered from violations of human rights to which they are mentioned in mission final report.
In this sense, she urged the concerned women to send their testimony as soon as possible to Haidar. In addition, Kennedy said her center annually awards prize to a personality that defends human rights, noting that this distinction was granted a few years ago to Haidar.
"Haidar is a hero to all of us ," said the RFK Center for Justice and Human Rights, Kerry Kennedy in a meeting with more than a hundred women in the saharawi refugee camps las wednesday.
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