South Africa to keep supporting Western Sahara for self-determination:

Algiers ,May 26, 2010: South Africa will keep supporting the right of Western Sahara people to self-determination, South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Maite Nkoana Mashabane affirmed Tuesday in Algiers.

"South Africa will keep supporting Sahrawi people to exercise its unalienable right for self determination in a free, democratic, and independent way," Nkoana Mashabane said in her speech at the opening of the 5th session of Algeria-South Africa High commission of bilateral cooperation.

"We keep supporting UN special envoy in Western Sahara, Christopher Ross, and the efforts made by UN for a fair and equitable solution to this problem," she said.
Expressing her "concern" about the situation prevailing in Western Sahara, she deplored that Sahrawi people still fight for self-determination while "all Africans are free except our brothers and sisters in Western Sahara." South African minister said that Moroccan occupation obliges Sahrawi people to suffer from deplorable living conditions.

"We note with concern the violation of human rights in the occupied Saharawi territories," she said, urging the UN Secretary General to bring the Security Council "to expand the mandate of MINURSO to control and monitoring of human rights in the occupied Saharawi territories.

In the same wake, she deplored that Morocco continues looting natural resources of Western Sahara, including phosphate, "even as negotiations are ongoing."

According to the: (SPS)