Western Sahara: Sahrawi Activists Demand End to Moroccan Occupation at UN Human Rights Council

"Jaimitna" Art Installation at UN Human Rights Council

• ⛺ "Jaimitna", a human rights storytelling project, is an art installation erected at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, representing a mini-version of Sahrawi refugee camp tents.
• 👗 The installation is uniquely constructed from "malfas", the traditional 3-meter-long women's dresses of the Sahrawi people, with 19 human rights defenders contributing their clothing.
• 🩸 One malfa, belonging to human rights defender Zabu, bears a blood stain from a demonstration where she was violently beaten by Moroccan police, highlighting the harsh realities faced by Sahrawi women.
• 🖼️ QR codes attached to each malfa link to the biographies and stories of the women, aiming to showcase their strength, artistry, and resilience beyond just their suffering.

The Plight of the Sahrawi People

• 🌍 Western Sahara, located in North Africa, has been under Moroccan occupation since 1975, despite UN resolutions and international calls for self-determination.
• 🇪🇸 Spain, the former colonizer, left in 1975, after which Morocco invaded with support from countries like the United States and France.
• ✈️ Following a war and a 1991 UN-brokered ceasefire, a referendum on self-determination for the Sahrawi people has never taken place, with Morocco impeding the process.
• 🇺🇸 The US, under the Trump administration, was the first country to recognize Morocco's sovereignty over Western Sahara as part of the Abraham Accords.

Resistance and International Support

• ✊ Sahrawi women are on the front lines of resistance, enduring systemic human rights violations, including torture, beatings, and rape, as a deliberate strategy to instill fear.
• 🗣️ The installation and side panel event at the UN Human Rights Council serve as a voice for Sahrawi women who are often denied the right to leave their occupied territories or speak at international forums.
• 🇿🇦 South Africa, through its ambassador to the UN Human Rights Council, Ambassador Nkosiyana, strongly supports the Sahrawi people's struggle for self-determination and condemns the violence against Sahrawi women.
• ⚖️ Key demands from the Sahrawi people include respect for human rights, the establishment of a UN human rights monitoring system in Western Sahara, and the long-awaited referendum on self-determination.
• 🎬 FiSahara, the Sahara International Film Festival, plays a role in raising awareness about the Sahrawi people's story through film.