Moroccan Sahara: Foreign Policy Committee of Andean Parliament Refutes Recent Statements of its President in Algeria

The Committee on Foreign Policy, International Relations and Parliamentary Diplomacy in the Andean Parliament reaffirmed its consistent position in favor of the Kingdom’s territorial integrity and the Moroccan Autonomy Plan, thus refuting the statements of its chairperson at the 17th Conference of the Parliamentary Union of Member States of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, held recently in Algeria. Following the intense contacts of speaker of the House of Advisors, Ennam Mayara, with the presidency and members of the Committee, the presidency of the House has received a statement from the Committee in which it reaffirmed, on February 3, its unchanging position supporting the political sovereignty, national unity and territorial integrity of the Kingdom, as well as the Moroccan autonomy plan in the Sahara, said Saturday a statement by the House of Advisors. The Committee also affirmed that it considers civilized dialogue to be the best way to achieve the consensus necessary for a climate of real and lasting peace, according to the same source. It recalled, in this regard, having held a meeting on July 3, 2022 in Marrakech, during which it had discussed support for the national sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Morocco, taking into account the preservation of national sovereignty and territorial integrity of sovereign states, as one of the constant values of the foreign policy of the Andean community, as well as of the Member States of the Andean Parliament, and in view of the status of observer member that Morocco enjoys in this parliamentary institution. The Committee also referred to the ordinary session of the Andean Parliament held on July 4, 2022 in Laayoune, with the participation of the Moroccan Parliament, represented by the speakers of the Houses of Representatives and Advisors, during which was adopted a position in favor of political dialogue and parliamentary cooperation, adding that during this session, the Andean MPs had seen in situ the climate of peace, stability and development that prevails in the region, through visits to socio-economic development projects and educational and health institutions. Recalling the last official resolution adopted by the Andean Parliament in this regard, the Committee indicated in its statement that it convened on October 27, 2022 in Bucaramanga, Colombia, where a majority of its members voted in favor of a resolution supporting the political sovereignty, national unity and territorial integrity of the sovereign states recognized by the United Nations, expressing its support for the Moroccan autonomy plan as a realistic, serious and credible solution to this regional dispute within the framework of United Nations resolutions. The Committee also recalled that members of the Andean Parliament had visited Morocco to participate in the Film Festival of Nador, whose opening ceremony was marked by the presence of the speaker of the House of Advisors, the representative of the House to the Andean Parliament, Abdelkader Salama, the representative of the House of Representatives, Fatine El Ghali, in addition to several government officials and MPs. During its participation in the 17th Conference of the Parliamentary Union of Member States of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, held from 26 to 30 January in Algeria, the Moroccan parliamentary delegation had denounced the incident that marred the opening session of this meeting, after the infringement of the territorial integrity of Morocco and interference in the internal affairs of a Muslim country member of this parliamentary Union, on the part of the representative of a non-member parliamentary organization, namely the Colombian MP Gloria Florez, who claimed to speak on behalf of the Andean Parliament, before the Committee categorically refutes these allegations through its statement which reaffirms the true position of the Andean Parliament supporting the territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Morocco.