The Chilean parliament adopted with a sweeping majority a resolution supporting Morocco’s initiative to grant the Sahara a substantive autonomy. This outspoken support for the autonomy initiative, which Morocco presented to the UN in 2007 as a lasting solution to the Sahara dispute, is reflective of a steady Chilean position in favor of Morocco’s territorial integrity. The Chilean executive has always backed Morocco’s stance on the regional dispute over the Sahara but the Parliament has deviated from the government’s position. Chilean MPs underscored in the resolution the pre-eminence of the autonomy initiative, which, they said, offers a “serious and credible solution” for a lasting settlement of the regional dispute. They also said that such an initiative will enable the local population in the Sahara to run their own affairs democratically through their elected bodies under Morocco’s national sovereignty.

Source: The North Africa Journal January 05, 2018 12:00 UTC