South Africa favours balanced solution in Western Sahara

Oct 26, 2007, 17:27 GMT

New York - South Africa on Friday denounced a plan by some UN Security Council members to support Morocco in its conflict with the Polisario for a resolution over the disputed Western Sahara.

Both Morocco and the armed Polisario Front claimed Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony, until 1975. But this year, Morocco dropped its demand to take over the territory and instead proposed to give it autonomy. The Polisario wanted an independent Western Sahara.

South Africa's UN Ambassador Dumisani Kumalo emerged from a closed-door session of the 15-nation council to say that Western nations that side with Morocco's autonomy plan are 'desperate' for a resolution of the conflict.

'We want the two sides to negotiate based on the two plans presented to the council,' Kumalo said. 'So any desperate attempt to try and elevate the Moroccan plan is a waste of time because negotiations between the two sides are the most important thing.'

Kumalo denounced Morocco's 'big friends' in the UN Security Council for siding with one side in the conflict. He did not name them, but the European members in the council and the United States appeared to support the autonomy plan.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has called on both sides to negotiate an end to the dispute over the territory.

Kumalo said a majority of the council's 15 members was in favour of negotiations for what he called a 'balanced solution' to end the state of limbo over Western Sahara.