Previously a Spanish colony, in 1975, on the eve of independence, Morocco brutally invaded. Thousands of Saharawis fled in terror and settled in refugee camps in the desert in Algeria, where today a new generation is growing up in exile.

Meanwhile, many other Saharawis face arrest, imprisonment, torture and death at the hands of the Moroccan security services, their escape blocked by a 1500 mile Moroccan army wall that divides Western Sahara in two. Courageous human rights activists continue to press the Moroccan authorities for truth and justice about the hundreds of cases of "disappearance" and torture that stain the Moroccan occupation.

Mariam and son, Saharawi refugee camps photo: Maurice Muller

In the desert refugee camps, schools, hospitals, workshops and even gardens have been created in one of the most inhospitable environments on earth as the Saharawis struggle to develop their society against the odds. Yet all they really want is to be able to return free to their country and claim the independence that is theirs by right.

The United Nations brokered a ceasefire in 1991 on the condition that they would hold a referendum of self-determination for the Saharawi people. But twelve years on, the referendum has still not taken place and senior figures in the UN talk of a "compromise" that would see Western Sahara become permanently part of Morocco. The Saharawi people must not be abandoned like this.

Solidarity Works

The Western Sahara Campaign UK has been at the forefront of international efforts to liberate Western Sahara for twenty years. We join in solidarity with the Saharawi people and are determined to ensure that their voice is heard by governments, the media and the general public.

Efforts by the Campaign have led to coverage by national newspapers, radio and television. Urgent actions by the Campaign have led to the release from imprisonment of "disappeared" Saharawis.

Remarkable motions of support have been made in the UK and European Parliaments; while the UK Government and the UN have acted in response to our representations.

In this critical time, with the referendum process stalled and world attention focused elsewhere, the Saharawi people need your support to keep up the pressure for a just solution.