Peru Reverses Course, Ends Recognition of Saharawi Arab Republic in Western Sahara

In a sudden reversal of policy, Peru on Thursday endorsed Morocco’s autonomy plan for Western Sahara, severing relations with the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) declared by indigenous Saharawis in the non-self-governing territory, which has UN support for an independence referendum.

Peru’s decision was announced on Thursday by the country’s foreign ministry, which said it had notified the United Nations of the change. The decision came following a meeting between Peruvian Foreign Minister Miguel Ángel Rodríguez Mackay and Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita.

Comunicado Oficial del Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores. pic.twitter.com/yXBWEHyYKM

— Cancillería Perú🇵🇪 (@CancilleriaPeru) August 18, 2022

“Because there is no effective bilateral relationship to date, the Government of the Republic of Peru decides to withdraw recognition of the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic and break all relations with this entity,” the statement by Peru’s Foreign Ministry said.

“The Government of the Republic of Peru, in accordance with International Law and the UN resolutions on the Sahara issue, values ​​and respects the territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Morocco and its national sovereignty, as well as the autonomy plan for this regional dispute,” it further stated.

Morocco has claimed Western Sahara since it seized the territory in 1976, following the exit of Spanish colonial troops and the declaration of the SADR by the Polisario Front, a liberation front that helped force the Spanish exit. Polisario fought a 15-year war against Morocco, winning a ceasefire and UN recognition in 1991 as the legitimate representatives of the Saharawi people and a promise to hold an independence referendum in the territory. That ceasefire collapsed in late 2020, but the UN reauthorized its mission, MINURSO, the following year.

However, Saharawi critics have noted that, unique among UN missions, MINURSO lacks a human rights monitoring component, allowing the Moroccan government to suppress journalists, activists, and prisoners’ rights with near-impunity.

A map of Western Sahara from August 2021, showing the sand berm built by Morocco and sites used by the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO)

© MINURSO

Saharawis ‘Very Surprised’ By Decision

Omeima Abdeslam, the Polisario Front’s representative in Geneva, Switzerland, told Sputnik on Thursday the liberation front was “disappointed” and “very surprised by this move from Peru.”

“We were not expecting it from the progressive government in Peru to give us this kind of declaration,” she said. “We hope that the different political forces in Peru will do all the best to correct the actual government in this decision and to implement international law also in Western Sahara.”

“We have to remember that the Saharawi people are not asking for anything except for international law to be respected, which says that Western Sahara is a non-self-governing territory and that the people are entitled to the right of self-determination. We need all the countries in the world to stick to this line and to avoid any other kind of statement or decisions, because the only good decision is to allow the Saharawi people to vote to choose their future. There is nothing else that can implement justice,” Abdeslam added.

A Year Ago, Peru Called for ‘Decolonization’

The suddenness of Peru’s move can be emphasized by noting that it restored relations with the SADR less than a year ago, following a 25-year hiatus.

In a September 9, 2021, ceremony in Lima, Peruvian President Pedro Castillo and SADR President Brahim Ghali announced their new relations and reaffirmed their "respect for international law and the principle of self-determination of peoples.” Then in November, Peru told the UN’s Committee on Special Policy and Decolonization it should "open a process that leads to a final and peaceful solution, which ensures the decolonization of Western Sahara."

Peruvian President Pedro Castillo attends a ceremony to promote a law that extends automatic graduation from university due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Lima, Peru, Monday, Nov. 22, 2021.

© AP Photo / Guadalupe Pardo

Castillo’s left-wing government, whose base of support is among the working class, upland farmers and indigenous groups, has been in crisis since his inauguration a year ago, and the right-wing has tried to obstruct its operation since before he was sworn in.

Peru first established relations with the SADR in 1984, under the liberal government of President Fernando Belaunde, who also notably called for Latin American unity against the United Kingdom in the war over the Malvinas Islands. However, under neoliberal dictator Alberto Fujimori, those relations were severed in 1996. His daughter, Keiko Fujimori, has remained a major player in Peruvian politics and continued to oppose recognition of the SADR.

Other Reversals

Spain, a longtime supporter of the UN-led peace process in Western Sahara, similarly made a sudden reversal in policy in March. Madrid endorsed Rabat’s autonomy scheme in order to win concessions on controlling migrants attempting to enter the Spanish exclaves of Melilla and Ceuta, cities on the Mediterranean coast that are surrounded by Moroccan territory.

The US similarly reversed its position on the MINURSO-led independence referendum in December 2019 as part of a deal to get Morocco to normalize relations with Israel.

In addition, the SADR is recognized by 34 nations, although dozens more have frozen or reversed their recognition. Many recognize Polisario as the legitimate representative of the Saharawi people, but not the declaration of the SADR.