The future of Maghreb depends on the solution of a conflict which has been rocking Western Sahara for decades. A conflict forgotten by many which appears to have no end and dates back to a long time ago. What kind of divergences have opposed Morocco to Algeria, halting the self-determination of the Saharawi population? In which way has the Cold War influenced the balance of power in the North African region? And, most of all, what are the origins of the conflict in Western Sahara? Moroccan journalist and analyst Ali Bahaijoub has attempted to find answers to these questions by examining local as well as Spanish, French and British documents. His book ‘Western Sahara Conflict: Historical, Regional and International Dimensions’ ( North-South Books, 2013) was presented Thursday in Rome. The book, its author said, was first published in Britain in 2010 and then translated into Italian by cultural association Arabismo and represents the continuation of his Phd thesis completed in 1987 at the London School of Economics.
The analysis focuses on the history of the war – from the beginning of the 19th century until 2010 – along with its regional and international dimensions – the balance of power in Maghreb and differences between Algeria and Morocco which perhaps will never be overcome. The only way to go, the book’s author said, ‘is the autonomy of the Saharawi people’. It is the only solution Morocco could accept, he said.
The journalist also questioned whether the parties involved have an interest in ending the conflict given that no solution has been found since the mid 1970s. ‘I have no proof of what I am saying but I know that it is more convenient for Algeria and the Algerian army in particular, the country’s true power which controls camps in Tindouf organized by the Polisario Front, to preserve the status quo’, he said.
Bahaijoub also noted that the Western Sahara issue doesn’t only concern the two countries involved but the security of the entire area. ‘After the resurgence of terrorist activities in Sahel and the insecurity currently reigning in Libya, it is key to understand that the conflict in Sahara threatens security in the Mediterranean’, concluded the writer. (ANSAmed)
