Western Sahara: De Mistura faces the challenge of promoting openness and boldness in the political process

1. Mediation stalled after three years of efforts
2. Calls for calm and limited crisis management
3. Need for a more inclusive UN approach
4. The emergence of the Sahrawi Movement for Peace
5. Last chance to rectify and broaden consultations

Mediation stalled after three years of efforts

After three years of continuous efforts, his mediation remains stalled, amid the absence of an innovative vision or concrete steps to revitalise the political process, which has been paralysed for years.

Calls for calm and limited crisis management

Despite his calls for calm and warnings about the risks of escalation, De Mistura has not yet managed to move beyond the limits of ‘crisis management’ to ‘building a solution’. His meetings and consultations continue to revolve around the same traditional parties and approaches that have proven to be limited, while the UN's approach ignores the profound transformations taking place in the Sahrawi landscape.

Need for a more inclusive UN approach

Today, it is more necessary than ever for the UN envoy to adopt a more open and inclusive approach, based on the participation of all Sahrawi components without exception, rather than limiting himself to the specific parties that have monopolised representation for decades. Western Sahara is not a single bloc, but a mosaic of opinions and political visions that should find their way to the dialogue table.

The emergence of the Sahrawi Movement for Peace

In this context, the Sahrawi Movement for Peace (SMP) has emerged as a new voice expressing a growing trend within Sahrawi society, advocating for a realistic and pragmatic political solution that will end the suffering of the population and reject the military option, which has brought no benefits. Since its founding, the movement has presented practical ideas that could help break the current deadlock and revive hope for a fair and balanced solution.

Last chance to rectify and broaden consultations

The short time remaining before the envoy's report is presented and his mandate renewed is a last chance for De Mistura to rectify the course and broaden the circle of consultations, so that his mediation does not become a mere formal management of a chronic conflict. His success will ultimately be measured not by the number of visits or statements, but by his ability to bring all Sahrawi voices together around a realistic peace project that will end the longest conflict on the African continent.