THE STUBBORNNESS AND FAILURE
OF THE ALGERIAN PRESIDENT
BOUTEFLIKA’S COMMITMENTS TO THOSE WHO BROUGHT HIM
BACK TO THE POWER NOT TO ALLOW THE ISLAMIC
SALVATION FRONT IN THE POLITICAL SPHERE, NOT
TO INTERFERE IN THE OIL BUDGET, NOR IN THE
WESTERN SAHARA ISSUE
BY: TAOUFIQ GAZOULIT
Mr Abdelaziz Bouteflika seems to have respected up to now the three main commitments towards the generals of the Algerian intelligent army services, to remain the president of his country, while Moroccans have been optimistic that the son of Oujda would play a constructive role in order to help the process of reaching a political settlement to the Western Sahara conflict. Unfortunately Bouteflika surprised the Moroccan national opinion, when he embraced rather negative policies against the endless Moroccan attempts to put an end to such crisis that lasted over three decades.
Bouteflika became the seventh Algerian president on the 15th of April 1999, ever since he enjoyed the support of the army establishment which made out of him a fairly week head of state, he knows that the army was behind the coup d’etat against the former president Benjdid, and the elimination of President Boudiaf, the army even got rid of two other presidents Ali Kafi and Lyamin Zerwal.
BOUTEFLIKA AND WESTERN SAHARA
The present deadlock is basically a result to the Algerian non commitment to its explicit statement, which says that it does not consider itself as part of the conflict. Facts on the ground show unfortunately that Algeria is the main and strategic supporter of the non elected and non democratic polisario.
In his report of 19 February 2002,the former secretary general of the UN Kofi Anan informed the security council on the visit of the Algerian president to Houston on 2 November 2001during which he told the UN secretary general personal envoy James Baker that Algeria and the polisario are ready to discuss and negotiate the splitting of the territory as a political solution to the dispute over western Sahara. This initiative proves Algiers direct involvement in the conflict .In addition, Algeria continues under the leadership of Bouteflika to exert a direct control on the refugee camps, particularly by strictly controlling and limiting the movement of sahraoui refugees. Algeria and its president should be held responsible for the non-implementation of the convention on the refugees’ status of 1951, by virtue of which any contracting state, which is Algeria in the case of sahraoui refugees on its soil, gives the refugees living regularly in its territory the right to choose to remain, or to move freely. If Bouteflika is willing ,as he claims ,to help sahraoui refugees in its own territory in Tindouf, then he ought to instruct his army to lift the military and security blockade imposed around the camps, he would then find out that Sahraoui refugees will automatically exert the self –determination by walking from the camps and returning to their homeland in Morocco.
In the 28 February 2006 Algeria took part in the festivities of the Polisario for the 30th anniversary of its creation, there is no doubt that polisario would not organize such a big military parade in Tifariti without the approval of the army approval. For the same occasion Bouteflika seized the opportunity to send a message to the leadership of polisario where he described Morocco being “the colonizer country”.
When it comes to the recent developments concerning the Moroccan substantial autonomy proposal. The secretary general personal envoy for Sahara Van Walsum stated (in his press conference at the headquarter of the UN, after presenting his report to the UN chief) that the Moroccan proposal to grant substantial autonomy to the western Sahara “was the result of an extended political process of national and international consultations” .As to the role of Algeria in the conflict Mr Walsum recognized the pre-eminent role of Algeria, “Algeria has in this whole dossier (Sahara issue) played an absolutely pre-eminent dominant role ever since1975” this is the third time that a senior UN official dealing directly with the western Sahara issue that recognized in a diplomatic Worthing to what extent the Algerians are directly involved in the western Sahara dispute ,and even in the decision making on behalf of the separatist movement called polisario
Despite the Algerian continuous sabotage since the election of Abdelaziz Bouteflika ,as the president of his country sahraouis support the autonomy project whether they are in, Semara, Laayoun , boujdour, Dakhla, and the rest of the territory, and even in the Tindouf camps where the overwhelming majority of refugees back the Moroccan substantial autonomy plan seeing in it a solution that guaranties political ,economic, and social rights
BOUTEFLICA’S ALGERIAN OPPONENTS TO HIS POLICIES
TOWARDS THE WESTERN SAHARA CONLICT
During the last decade a number of Algerian politicians, and even former policy makers ,and military generals have expressed openly their total disagreement with Boutaflika’s politics towards the future of western Sahara .Anouar Haddam one of the leaders of the Islamic Salvation Front told “ALKHABAR” a daily Algerian newspaper “ Sahraouis would never agree to separate themselves from Morocco”, as to Abbassi Madani,who in a number of occasions expressed his refusal to the dispersion and the splitting of the north African countries, made it loud and clear when he was interviewed by “ALJAZIRA”network TV channel ,and said “as far as the western Sahara issue, we believe that Moroccans and Sahraouis are one people, we refuse what is called western Sahara”. In the same respect Louisa Hanoun the general secretary of the Algerian labour party said “the western Sahara issue is an artificial problem” she added “Morocco is the only Maghreban country that is facing external plans ton split its territories”.
The former Algerian prime minister Abdelhamid Ibrahimi, insists that the leadership of the army is behind the dispute over western Sahara dispute, in his latest interview with the daily newspaper “ATAJDID” on the 12 December 2006 he said “the autonomy plan was discussed when I was prime minister with president Benjdid, provided that Morocco preserves its sovereignty over its territory, including foreign and defence policies. The agreement was made, and president Benjdid did not refuse”
When it comes to the army leadership it is worth mentioning that the former general and defence minister Khalid Nezar advocates a political solution to the conflict, he said “the settlement of western Sahara conflict should be achieved through the application of such substantial autonomy as proposed by king Mohamed VI”
It seems that although the political leaders and most of the former generals of the Algerian army are explicitly against their president’s policy towards the Sahara, Bouteflika is determined to follow the instructions of the generals with the aim to achieving the strategic goals as seen by the Algerian army intelligence leadership which have nothing to do with the wellbeing of sahrauois
THE FAILURE OF BOUTEFLIKA AT HOME AND ABROAD
Bouteflika undoubtedly failed to promote democracy in his own country. He failed to put an end to “terrorism» in his country. This becomes now a threat to the whole area of North Africa. Bouteflika is not able to keep up with the new world changes, under his political leadership Algeria failed in the Sahara dispute, and Morocco under the leadership and the wisdom of his young King Mohamed vi managed to reverse the situation to its advantage, while Algeria is experiencing an embarrassing diplomatic fiasco in the western Sahara issue.
The Sahara conflict in my view is a result of the immature political practices by the regime in Algeria since 1975, which is obviously maintained by the present president .the most striking and dangerous side of the Algerian politics remains the transition from being an “observer” to being an aggressive partner, sabotaging any peace efforts initiated by Morocco.
Morocco is not forced nor obliged to deal directly with Algeria, or any other country giving itself the right to speak on behalf of sahraoui people. Morocco made its strategic choice for a substantial autonomy, based on dignity, fairness, and most of all on its legal and historical relationship with Western Sahara.
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Algeria should abandon its unconvincing non- stop allegations, in order to pave the way and help to create a healthy atmosphere towards a settlement to the Western Sahara. Having said that Algeria and the polisario more likely would continue to create obstacles to the peace process advocated by the UN Security Council, although the polisario agreed to enter direct negotiations with Morocco, and Algeria welcomed the Security Council resolution
