Third International Conference for Dialogue and Peace in Western Sahara
The Movement Saharawi for Peace (MSP) is organising the International Conference for Dialogue and Peace in Western Sahara for the third time. As with the first edition of the Conference, the event will take place on 27 February 2025 in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, this time at the Caja Canarias Initiative Centre (CICCA).
The event will feature appearances, some of them via teleconference, by prominent Saharawi tribal leaders such as Ergueibi Hassena El-Idrisi; political figures such as the former President of the Spanish Government, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero; experts from various countries, such as the Spanish journalist Javier Fernández Arribas, who will present a paper on the media's view of the Sahara problem, and Rafael Esparza, lecturer at the University of Las Palmas; as well as representatives of many of the political parties belonging to the Socialist International.
On this occasion, members of more than 130 political parties associated with the Socialist International from more than 70 countries will gather. ‘The Saharawi Movement for Peace represents a qualitative change in the political landscape related to the Sahara issue. This Movement has achieved significant international recognition, as demonstrated by its membership of the Socialist International, the world's largest political organisation. This fact reflects the relevance of the MSP's vision and objectives on the international stage,’ explained Mohamed Chérif, head of International Relations for the MSP.
As on previous occasions, the Conference will provide an opportunity to promote dialogue as the only means of resolving the conflict over Western Sahara, rejecting all forms of violence.
‘This Movement has a distinctive character, unlike the Polisario Front, the MSP rejects violence and advocates for a lasting political solution to the Sahara conflict. Recent geopolitical changes in the region have profoundly affected the dynamics around this issue, contributing to the further isolation of the Polisario,’ Chérif continued.
This Conference will serve as a new opportunity for the MSP to explain and defend a proposal where the only protagonist is dialogue. Since the Movement emerged in 2020, the organisation has always presented itself as ‘the third way’ to solve the existing conflict in the Saharawi dispute.
Programme of the International Conference for Dialogue and Peace in Western Sahara
The event will begin at 8:30 in the morning with an address by the spokesperson for the Movement Saharawi for Peace, Salek Mohamed Rahal. The speech will mark the beginning of the Conference and will give way to the first table where the professor from the University of Las Palmas, Rafael Esparza, will speak about the importance of the MSP as a space of reference for Saharawi dialogue and peace in the Sahara.
This will be followed by speeches from notable Saharawi tribesmen such as Ergueibi Hassena El-Idrisi; the former Spanish President of the Government J. L. R. Zapatero, who will do so via telematic means; the first secretary of the MSP, Hach Ahmed Bericalla; José Bono, former Minister of Defence and of the Spanish Congress of Deputies; and the representative of the Socialist Union of Popular Forces (USFP), Machi El Karkri. These speeches will take place between 9:15 and 11:15 in the morning.
The event will continue with the first presentation: ‘Necessity and Opportunity of a Political Solution to the Problem of Western Sahara’. In it, the former Director General of International Legal Cooperation and Relations with Confessions, and former magistrate of the Provincial Court of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Ángel José Llorente, will explain the importance of the MSP in the search for and achievement of a peaceful solution to the Western Sahara conflict. During the presentation, which will end at 12:15, Juan Fernando López Aguilar, former Minister of Justice and MEP, will participate via telematic means.
Immediately afterwards, the journalist and director of the newspaper ‘La Discrepancia’, Álvaro Frutos, will present the paper ‘Spain's position in relation to the problem of Western Sahara’ in which he will explain the importance of the Spanish position in the conflict due to its historical importance in the territory. This presentation will end at 12:25.
After short break, the Conference will continue at 13:30 with the presentation: ‘The Sahara problem in the media’, presented by Javier Fernández Arribas, international expert, where the Spanish journalist and expert will analyse the media's view of the conflict in relation to the reality suffered by the Saharawis due to the interference of the Polisario Front. After the presentation there will be a break for lunch until 15:30.
During the afternoon there will be interventions by Adalberto Agozino, director of the International Institute for Strategic Studies; Pablo Zardini, academic and executive director of the Miami Technology & Art University (MTA Univerty); Germano Dottori, Italian political scientist and director of the Centre for Strategic Studies and International Politics; the former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Peru, Miguel Ángel Rodríguez Makcay; the president of the International Committee of Support for the People's Socialist Movement, Graciela Lucía; and María Esther Álvarez, coordinator of the Argentine Committee of Support for the People's Socialist Movement. These speeches will take place between 3:30 and 5:15 in the afternoon.
Next, the president of the Fórum Canario Saharaui, Nacho Ortiz, will speak in the presentation: ‘War, exile and trauma in Saharawi society’. In it, Ortiz will explain the consequences suffered by the Saharawi populations due to the prolongation of the conflict. Afterwards, Dario Rivolta, a former MEP, will speak.
At 18:00 the reading of the open letter from the Movement Saharawi for Peace to the leadership of the Polisario Front will begin, together with speeches from Saharawi dignitaries. This will be preceded by a discussion on ‘The role of dignitaries and civil society in favour of peace’.
After the reading of the letter, the event will end with the reflections and conclusions of the official spokesperson of the MSP; and will close at 19:15 with the words of El-Haja Baboit, member of the Permanent Political Commission of the Movement Saharawi for Peace.