EU trade agreements with North African state are unlawful
Date
10/6/2024 8:54:06 AM
(MENAFN) The European Union has been ruled to have violated the right to self-determination of the people of Western Sahara through its trade agreements with Morocco, according to a recent decision by the European Court of Justice (ECJ). This ruling, issued on Friday, serves as the final verdict on multiple appeals made by the European Commission regarding prior judgments that challenged the legality of these agreements.
The controversy centers around a four-year sustainable fisheries partnership agreement that the European Union signed with Morocco in 2019. This pact, which expired in July of the previous year, included provisions that encompassed agricultural products from Western Sahara, a territory that was formerly a Spanish colony and has been annexed by Morocco since 1975.
The Polisario Front, a separatist organization seeking independence for the Sahrawi people, has been actively contesting the inclusion of Western Sahara in the European Union-Morocco agreements through a series of legal challenges. They argue that the people of Western Sahara were not consulted in the formation of these agreements, thereby undermining their right to self-determination.
In its ruling, the ECJ emphasized that obtaining consent from the people of Western Sahara is essential for the validity of the decisions that led to the European Union Council approving these agreements. The court noted that while the European Union's executive branch conducted a consultation process, it failed to engage with the people of Western Sahara specifically. Instead, the consultation involved those currently residing in the territory, regardless of their actual affiliation with the Sahrawi population.
Furthermore, the court mandated that products such as melons and tomatoes originating from Western Sahara must be labeled accurately as coming from “Western Sahara” and must not reference Morocco. This stipulation aims to ensure that consumers are not misled about the true origin of these goods.
This ruling not only underscores the complexities surrounding the territorial dispute between Morocco and the Polisario Front but also highlights the European Union's obligations to respect international laws regarding self-determination and human rights in its foreign trade agreements.
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