Morocco: A Series of Unfortunate Anniversaries - the Western Sahara Conflict 40+ Years On

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In testimony at the United Nations General Assembly Fourth Committee, Eric Jensen, former head of the Western Saharan mission and Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Western Sahara from 1993 to 1998, outlined a series of unfortunate anniversaries that have come to mark the Western Sahara conflict - and inhibit its resolution.

First, 2014 marks the 40th anniversary of the 1974 Spanish census that served as the basis for identifying the population of the Sahara. Jensen noted that the census is of historical interest but little else - and absent a new census in the Polisario-run camps in Tindouf, there is little hope of identifying the entire Saharan population. Second, 2014 marks 20 years since the process of identifying potential voters for a referendum began. As quickly became clear, such voters could not be accurately identified to the satisfaction of both parties, and the identification and referendum process broke down. This led to Jensen's third anniversary - the 2004 UN decision to move away from an unrealistic referendum toward a negotiated political solution between the two parties.

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