The plight of Saharawi political prisoners incarcerated in Moroccan jails has once again drawn international attention due to the initiation of hunger strikes by several inmates. According to the League for the Protection of Saharawi Prisoners in Moroccan Jails (LPPS), three individuals have commenced protests at various penitentiary facilities in the occupied Western Sahara and Morocco, citing harsh imprisonment conditions and what they term political persecution as the catalysts for their actions.
In Aït Melloul 1 prison located in Agadir, Saharawi students Brahim Babit and Salah Eddine Sabbar have been on an indefinite hunger strike since March 31. The LPPS reports that both students opted for this extreme measure after exhausting all means of dialogue with the prison administration, which yielded no improvements to their living conditions. The organization has expressed deep concern regarding the deterioration of their health, particularly given the uncertainty surrounding their access to adequate medical care and the severed contact with their families.
These hunger strikes are a protest against several issues, including the lack of educational access within the prison, restrictions on communication with the outside world, insufficient healthcare, and the deplorable conditions of their cells. Additionally, they demand recognition as Saharawi political prisoners, aligning with their history of activism advocating for the self-determination of the Saharawi people.
The LPPS contextualizes this situation within a broader framework of what it describes as a "systematic persecution" of Saharawi students, which reportedly begins with police harassment and progresses to judicial proceedings lacking guarantees, designed to punish individuals for their political stances.
Systematic Harassment and Further Protests
Adding to the troubling situation, Saharawi political prisoner El Wali Mohamed Ali Aina has initiated a 48-hour hunger strike as a warning, commencing on April 6 at the prison in El Aaiún. This protest targets what the LPPS characterizes as a "discriminatory and systematic harassment" policy implemented by the Moroccan prison administration.
Reports from the LPPS indicate that Aina has been subjected to overcrowded conditions alongside common prisoners, viewed as retribution for his political views, in addition to having essential hygiene items confiscated in what is perceived as an attempt to humiliate him and exert psychological pressure. Aina was sentenced to ten years in prison in 2022 following a trial that the organization criticizes as "summary" and based on fabricated charges related to his student activism at Ibn Zohr University in Agadir.
In light of these events, the LPPS holds the Moroccan occupying state and the prison authorities directly accountable for the physical integrity of the three Saharawi political prisoners. It has urged international bodies, including the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross, to intervene urgently to safeguard their fundamental rights, such as access to medical care, contact with family members, and adherence to international standards regarding the treatment of individuals deprived of liberty.
The ongoing hunger strikes underscore a systemic situation of human rights violations in occupied Western Sahara and Moroccan prisons, within a context characterized by the repression of voices advocating for the self-determination of the Saharawi people.
As reported by arainfo.org.
