Morocco, Polisario Front poised to hold third round talksa
12/08/2007- Afriquenline

Washington DC – (United States) The United Nations led two-day meeting between Morocco and the Polisario Front held in Manhasset, about 25 miles east of New York City, which ended Saturday with the promise of another meeting in the near future.

The Moroccan Interior Minister, Chakib Benmoussa, was heading his country’s delegation to the talks while Mahfud Ali Veiba, a member of the Polisario leadership, lead his delegation.

At the end of the meeting, Ahmed Boukhari, the Polisario U.N. representative told the press that Morocco and the Polisario Front independence group agreed to more talks on the fate of Western Sahara but did not elaborate on their separate demands.

Peter van Walsum, the Secretary-General’s personal envoy for Western Sahara, was leading the negotiations, which were attended by representatives of the parties, Morocco and the Polisario Front, and the neighbouring countries Algeria and Mauritania.

The participants continued the discussions they initiated in June, and had meetings in plenary as well as separate discussions between Van Walsum and each of the four delegations.

The UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) has been in place since September 1991 to monitor the ceasefire between Morocco and the Polisario Front, which contest the territory.

He also said Morocco rejected the two UN confidence-building proposals to promote an end to the 32-year dispute over the sparsely populated region in northwest Africa .

The first, he said, involved eliminating land mines in Western Sahara and the second dealt with human rights.

Boukhari regretted the fact that Morocco had rejected the proposals on the table to discuss ways to create confidence building.

According to Boukhari the two-day talks was a repeat of the first meeting that took place in June. But he added that it was important to continue the negotiations and would like the U.N. to remain engaged. He also and encouraged all parties to remain engaged.

Both parts are not changing their positions and Morocco is still proposing limited autonomy for Western Sahara under Moroccan sovereignty. The Polisario Front is still demanding a referendum with a choice of autonomy or independence for the Saharawi people who live there.

A statement released by U.N. mediator Peter van Walsum at the end of the meeting acknowledged that the latest discussions included confidence-building measures but did not specify them.

According to the U.N. statement negotiating parties also received presentations on the topics of natural resources and the local administration of the region.

The statement also states that the parties acknowledge that the current status quo is unacceptable and they have committed to continue these negotiations in good faith."

A date and venue for a third session of talks have yet to be determined, the statement said.

NK/ad/APA

2007-08-12

African Press Agency