Publications /
Policy Paper

Back
Download PDF
No ‘Military Occupation’ in Saharan Provinces
Authors
Matsumoto Shoji
November 9, 2020
Related topics: 
International Relations
Geopolitics
International Law
International Organisations
Africa
Maghreb

The word ‘occupation’ was used twice specifically to the Saharan Provinces in UN General Assembly resolutions in 1979 and 1980. Though the word has not been used by the General Assembly since, it has appeared in court rulings in the EU, the UK and South in a detrimental conclusion regarding Morocco’s sovereignty over the Saharan Provinces. This paper shall start with a consideration of international law in order: to differentiate occupation of a nonself- governing territory from occupation of a territory under the sovereignty of a State. The conclusion of no ‘military occupation’ in the Saharan Provinces shall, however, remain the same. Then, the context within which the word ‘occupation’ was used in General Assembly resolutions shall be considered. This paper shall also examine why the courts had no choice but to use the extraordinary word. Drawing on examples including imprudent use of the word in 2016 by former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and a controversy in 2020 over South Africa’s use of the word, it shall be concluded that the word was not used as a legal term, but rather abused for political or ideological purposes.

RELATED CONTENT

  • Download PDF
    Cuando la política oculta la independencia de la justicia sudafricana
    Authors
    Mohammed Loulichki
    July 21, 2017
    La decisión del 15 de junio de 2017 del Tribunal Supremo de Sudáfrica, ordenando mantener el embargo del cargamento del fosfato marroquí con destino a Nueva Zelanda y remitir el caso a un juicio sobre el fondo, plantea tanto la cuestión de la capacidad del Polisario para entablar una acción ante una jurisdicción internacional como la de la independencia de la justicia Sudafricana en relación a las posiciones adoptadas por el gobierno de dicho país. ...
  • Download PDF
    Développement et/ou sécurité : Enjeux de la relation entre l’Union Européenne, le Maghreb et le Sahel
    Authors
    Abdelhak Bassou
    July 7, 2017
    Ce Policy Brief traite de l’articulation entre le développement et la sécurité dans le bassin méditerranéen, ainsi que de l’implication des pays des deux rives, nord et sud, dans un partenariat assurant la sécurité nécessaire à un développement socio-économique conjoint. Les pays du Sahel prennent également part à l’analyse et conditionnent le succès des stratégies sécuritaires au Maghreb et au sein de l’Union Européenne. Le papier revient sur des exemples de pays riches mais frappé ...
  • Download PDF
    Challenges for Transatlantic Counterterrorism Cooperation in North Africa
    Authors
    Christopher S. Chivvis
    June 20, 2017
    The United States and Europe share a common interest in addressing the growing terrorist threats from North Africa. The emergence of ISIL as a force in the region — notably in Libya, but also in Egypt and to a lesser degree in Tunisia, Algeria, and Mali — is cause for genuine concern. The ISIL challenge is compounded by the persistence of older terrorist organizations, both local ones such as the region’s various Ansar al Sharias as well as al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), al ...
  • Download PDF
    Europe in North Africa: Fighting Short-Termism
    Authors
    Tobias Borck
    May 17, 2017
    Europe and North Africa are bound in a strategic relationship. The stability, security and prosperity of both regions are inextricably linked. European countries - both individually and collectively (inside and outside the framework of the European Union) - have to develop a more strategic approach to their southern neighbourhood in order to overcome the current migration crisis, work with the North African states to counter violent extremism, and make the most of the many economic ...
  • Economic Diplomacy Elevating Morocco into a Continental ‘Soft Power’
    Authors
    Michael N Mulikita
    May 6, 2017
    1. Background & Context Perhaps the most noteworthy highlight of the 2017 African Union Summit in Addis Ababa Ethiopia was the decision by the majority of AU member states to welcome back into the organization the Kingdom of Morocco after a thirty-three year absence.  It should be remembered that the Kingdom of Morocco was a founding member of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in 1963. Morocco played an assertive role in the OAU by firmly ba ...
  • Download PDF
    Relations entre le Maroc et l’Afrique subsaharienne : Quels potentiels pour le commerce et les investissements directs étrangers ?
    Authors
    Rim Berahab
    February 1, 2017
    L’analyse des relations commerciales entre le Maroc et l’Afrique subsaharienne fait ressortir un volume des échanges croissants, reflétant ainsi une dynamisation continue des leurs relations commerciales. Une tendance similaire est observée au niveau des investissements directs étrangers, qui ne cessent de croître au cours des dernières années, traduisant la volonté du Maroc à devenir un acteur majeur dans le développement du continent africain. Ce Policy Brief présente dans un prem ...
  • Download PDF
    De la Méditerranée à l’Atlantique: le couloir de vulnérabilité face au terrorisme
    Authors
    Abdelhak Bassou
    February 23, 2016
    Deux des plus grands producteurs d'hydrocarbures en Afrique, le Nigeria sur l'Atlantique et la Libye sur la Méditerranée font face aux deux groupes terroristes les plus violents sur le continent. Daech version libyenne et Boko Haram semblent avancer pour se rejoindre dans un espace constitué par trois Etats qui présentent des vulnérabilités favorables à l'extension du terrorisme. Au Cameroun, le chao est à craindre dans l'après Biya. La battle fatigue peut atteindre l'Etat tchadien ...