Political Quotes

“last week, while most of the world was focused on our elections--myself included--and the pending results, a very significant action was taking place halfway around the world in Western Sahara. Simply put, Morocco chose that time--likely purposely, when everyone was occupied doing other things--to threaten to push back on protests by Western Saharans on their own land. There they are. These are the protesters. These are people who owned the land, have been there for generations, and are protesting the problems they have with Morocco trying to eject them from their land. It seems simple, but you have to remember how we got here. While the status of the Sahrawi people is still in question, what we need to do to is create a lasting solution. How we got here, as West Africa was being decolonized, Western Sahara was clear and declared itself an independent nation a long time ago. That was despite Morocco's attempt to claim it as a territory. In 1966, the United Nations General Assembly resolution agreed that a referendum of self-determination should be held. That is a referendum of self-determination of the people of Western Sahara. Everyone agreed and planned to hold that in 1975. Self-determination--merely letting the Sahrawi people decide for themselves the imperative principle of action--the right to judge for themselves to be independent or to be a part of Morocco. This was just the first promise of a referendum. That was 1975. To date, none have been kept.…”