Morocco consolidates leadership in Western Sahara

(Luis Aguero Wagner, Siglo XXI) Some time ago the former Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said, with a heavy dose of common sense, that the solution to the problem of Western Sahara should be inevitably led by Morocco.

During a recent visit to Morocco, the Spanish politician proclaimed supporter of the alliance between civilizations, recognized the valuable legacy of Arab culture imparted to Spain, praised the interpretation of Moroccan Islam which he described as respectful and open ideas and predicted that soon the international community will end up accepting the inexorable Moroccan leadership in solving the problem of the Sahara.

A few months passed before the facts confirmed his prophecies.

According to El Hassan Boukantar, professor of international relations at the University Mohammed V in Rabat declared in international media that the strong participation in the southern provinces in the municipal elections of September 4 enhanced the relevance of the Moroccan proposal for solving the Sahara issue.

DrifNoureddine, a member of the Royal Advisory Council for Saharan Affairs (CORCAS), stressed that the participation of the people of the southern provinces of the Kingdom in this election consolidate and strengthen the process in the Sahara, and if there an infallible weapon to strengthen democratic structures is respect for the popular will.

Also he expressed the hope that the winners of these local and regional elections remain in tune with the aspirations of citizens.

CORCAS, the Royal Council for Saharan Affairs, appointed by the Moroccan government and composed of 141 members, including fourteen women and includes he father of Polisario chief Mohamed Abdelaziz. It is currently chaired by Khalihenna, he is a former leader of the Sahrawi National Union Party -

Sources close to the government also said that the massive influx of voters confirms the sense of belonging and unity of the people of Sahara, the preferential option for democracy, and more particularly to the fundamental issue of these elections, joining the country definitely through the Autonomy Plan.

A total of 2186 candidates ran in the election to fill 380 seats in the municipal councils and 39 of the Regional Council: the province of Laayoune (16 seats), province of Boujdour (9), province of Smara (9) and the province Tarfaya .The process was conducted under the watchful eyes of international and local observers, which exceeded four thousand.

The high turnout has shown that the people of the southern provinces of Morocco believe in the reasons that lead them to vote, and also reveals that they have confidence in their courts and electorates. Morocco has thus given faith that it has the potential, moral authority and it intends to drive the Sahara toward modernity and democracy while its counterpart and other dictatorship announces only more hindrances of the past. While this Kingdom introduced into the wilderness their democracy, encouragedpluralism, allow participation and alternating power of different parties, the counterpartsuffers a mummified leadership which seeks to perpetuate itself in power in Western Sahara as if there was anantimatterblack hole that exonerated them of time.

The opponents also know that democracy will cast light on the problem of the Sahara, and they will fail as fishermen in troubled waters whoseek to exploit and take advantage of fabricated confusion.

The die is cast and there is very little about which to deliberate. Leading democracy in the Maghreb, Morocco automatically gains the authority to lead the solution of the problem in Western Sahara.