Morocco: Update to Response to Information Request MAR15191 of 8 September 1993 on the treatment of Front Polisario Militants
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 January 1997 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | MAR25958.E |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Morocco: Update to Response to Information Request MAR15191 of 8 September 1993 on the treatment of Front Polisario Militants, 1 January 1997, MAR25958.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6ab299a.html [accessed 20 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
Amnesty International's 1996 Annual Report states that eight Sahraoui youths... were arrested in May 1995 following a peaceful pro-independence demonstration in Laayoune, Western Sahara (1996, 28). The youths were accused of participating in a demonstration in support of the ... Polisario Front, carrying Polisario Flags and Leaflets, and calling for the independence of Western Sahara. They were sentenced by a military Court in June to between 15 and 20 years' imprisonment on charges of threatening the external security and territorial integrity of Morocco (ibid.)
The attached document from the Association de soutien à un référendum libre et régulier au Sahara Occidental (ARSO) provides the testimony of a former Polisario Front fighter on the time he spent in Moroccan prisons and forced labour camps.
Further information on the above-mentioned topic could not be found among the sources consulted by the DIRB.
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the DIRB within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
Reference
Amnesty International. 1996. Amnesty International Annual Report 1996. London: Amnesty International.
Attachment
Association de soutien à un référendum libre et régulier au Sahara Occidental (ARSO). n.d. "Human Rights Abuses in Western Sahara: The Testimony of Mohamed Bouya." [Internet] < URL : http://heiwww.unige.ch/arso/08-8.htm >[Accessed: 22 January 1997].
Additional Sources Consulted
Amnesty International periodical reports and press releases.
Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 1995. 1996.
Critique: Review of the Department of State's Country Reports on Human Rights Practices. Yearly.
Foreign Broadcast Information Service (FBIS) Daily Reports.
Human Rights Watch (HRW). Yearly. Human Rights Watch World Report. New York: Human Rights Watch.
Material from the Indexed Media Review (IMR) or country files containing articles and reports from diverse sources (primarily dailies and periodicals) from the Weekly Media Review.
Monde Arabe Magreb-Mashrek [Paris]. Monthly.
On-line search for news articles (NEXIS).
