Speaking at a press briefing at the end of the talks, Fassi Fihri said that the Resolution” consolidated the achievements of the previous Resolutions and added to them other requirements that meet the aspirations of Morocco and the international community”.

“Resolution 1979 recalled the primacy of Morocco’s autonomy initiative as a basis for negotiation, given its democratic character in line with the international legality,” the Minister added.

This Resolution also confirms the Security Council’s appreciation of the efforts undertaken by Morocco since 2006, he noted, adding that “these efforts continue to be geared towards finding a consensual solution respectful of the Kingdom’s territorial integrity.”

Through this Resolution, the Minister said, the Security Council continues to stress the need for negotiation as the only way to settle this dispute and call for the spirit of compromise and realism to be shown in negotiating.

Concerning the new aspects brought by Resolution 1979, Fassi Fihri recalled the “call made by the Security Council upon Algeria to allow a census by the UNHCR of the population in Tindouf camps, in conformity with Algeria’s international obligations as a party to the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees.”

This call, which has been made by Morocco, “aims at bringing the truth about the exact number of the camps’ population, and the individual intentions within the framework of registrations for individual interviews and the principle of voluntary return.” In this respect, he added, the Security Council called on Algeria to fulfil its responsibilities regarding the International Humanitarian Law.

Fassi Fahri also drew attention to the call made by the Security Council on Algeria to show serious engagement in the negotiation process and hence cooperate with Morocco to put an end to the regional dispute.

On human rights, the Minister noted that resolution 1979 called on Algeria, as a territorial State hosting the polisario-run Tindouf camps and as the state that has control over the camps’ population, to meet its obligations, while welcoming the establishment by the Kingdom of the National Council on Human Rights (CNDH) and its local component in the Moroccan Sahara.

“The international community recognizes and appreciates Morocco’s commitments and the concrete credible measures to implement them, on the other hand, it ignores  completely the present and future intentions of the other parties,”  the Moroccan official made it clear, saying that  the near future will tell whether the other parties responded positively to the Security Council’s call.

In this regard, Fassi Fihri wondered about the law applied in the camps of Tindouf and the legal void marking the situation there. “This leaves the door open for all sorts of violations and abuses.”

“According to Internatinal Law, Algeria is the only responsible for the human rights violations that take place in its territory,” Fassi Fihri stressed.

The Minister pointed that “the innovative proposals discussed during the talks pertain to the contribution of legitimate representatives of the population of the Sahara region to finding a lasting political solution as well as the mode of governance, the inclusion of which was at the request of the Moroccan delegation”.
These innovative aspects, Fassi Fihri explained, are in line with the autonomy initiative.

Concerning the representativeness of the population and after refuting the claims of the polisario to be representative of the Sahara population, the Minister underlined “that the legitimacy of representation is closely linked to organizing free elections on a regular basis at all levels. This requirement is met in the Moroccan Sahara whereas it is dubious and denied in the camps.”

In relation to the mode of governance, the Minister said that it is “the basis of the autonomy initiative and the regionalization plan”, whose implementation was recently accelerated, with the Sahara region to feature prominently.

On the same occasion, Fassi Fihri reiterated Morocco’s commitment to continue its active engagement with the UN Secretary General’s Personal Envoy with a view to finding a rapid political solution respectful of Morocco’s sovereignty, which solution, he said, will pave the way for a strong, stable and economically integrated Maghreb.