"EU - and Denmark - can not on the one hand support the UN\'s criticism on Marocco\'s illegal occupation of Western Sahara and simultanously, on the other hand, make a fisheries agreement with Marocco that totally ignores Western Sahara's rights to their own resources" states member of European Parliament\'s Development Committee, Socialist People’s Party's Margrete Auken.
By Margrete Auken,
SF/The Green 16.05.06
A fisheries agreement between the EU and Marocco is being put to a vote in the European Parliament tuesday at noon. The problem with the treaty is that it includes Western Saharan waters and thereby disregards a UN resolution critisizing Morocco's occupation of Western Sahara.
"EU - and Denmark - can not on the one hand support the UN's criticism on Morocco's illegal occupation of Western Sahara and simultanously, on the other hand, make a fisheries agreement with Morocco that totally ignores Western Sahara's rights to their own resources. Western Saharan waters ought to be excluded from the fisheries agreement between the EU and Morocco as has been suggested by The Green," states member of European Parliament's Development Committee, Socialist People’s Party's Margrete Auken.
Sweden and Finland are already aware of the problem with recognizing an agreement that includes Western Sahara. Therefore both the Danish government and the Parliament ought to support the Green Group's suggestion exempting Western Sahara from the agreement.
The EU can not just legitimize Morocco's administration of Western Sahara as long as Western Sahara's future is unresolved. Recently the US has exempted Western Sahara from their trade agreement with Morocco.
It is irritating that this should overshadow an otherwise sensible fisheries agreement with Morocco. In the agreement Morocco's revenue will be used to establish sustainable fisheries.
For further comment contact Margrete Auken phone no.: (+45) 27 26 53 27
Translated from Danish by Western Sahara Resource Watch.
Here is the EU Council's legal advice on fishing in occupied waters
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Notwithstanding four consecutive rulings of the EU's highest Court calling such a practice illegal, the European Parliament has just now voted in favour of the EU-Morocco Fisheries Agreement that will be applied to the waters of occupied Western Sahara.