The South African MK party shows its support for Morocco's Autonomy Plan for the Sahara

Morocco has achieved a new institutional victory with South Africa's acceptance of the Moroccan Autonomy Plan for Western Sahara proposed by King Mohammed VI of Morocco in 2007. 

The country's former president and MK party leader, Jacob Zuma, expressed his support for the Moroccan solution to the Western Sahara dispute to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccans Abroad, Nasser Bourita. ‘The Moroccan proposal will allow for the formation of a tangible local government by the people of the Sahara region, while guaranteeing Morocco's sovereignty over the Sahara,’ he said. 

For the former president, this proposal aims to achieve a concrete solution for the future of the region. Zuma also acknowledged that he ‘fully believes that Morocco's efforts are based on regaining its full territorial integrity and national unity.’ 

This meeting between the former president and Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita was preceded by an official publication by the MK party stating that South Africa's partnership with Morocco ‘is a symbol of African unity and territorial integrity.’ In this document, the MK party points out that Moroccan identity dates back to the late 19th century, before the Spanish colonisation of the region. 

Relations between the two countries have gone through different stages. Jacob recalled the importance of Morocco and Moroccan society in the formation of the most important person in South African history: Nelson Mandela. The former president and leader of the MK emphasised Morocco's importance in providing financial and military support that would later help the South African liberation movement in its struggle against the apartheid racial movement, which would end with Nelson Mandela becoming president of the country after spending 27 years in prison. 

More recently, while still president of the country, Jacob Zuma met with the King of Morocco, Mohammed VI, in 2017 at a summit in Ivory Coast that brought together all the leaders of the African Union and the European Union. 

With the MK party's recognition, more than 100 countries now support Morocco's Autonomy Plan for Western Sahara as the most ‘serious, credible and realistic’. During the official visit, the former South African president will meet with more Moroccan politicians and business leaders.