Haidar was arrested on Nov. 13 in the disputed Western Sahara territory, which is controlled by the Moroccan government. She was returning to her home there from New York City where she was awarded the 2009 Civil Courage Prize.
While the details are still disputed, Moroccan officials claim Haidar refused to check the country box of her entry card and then renounced her Moroccan citizenship giving up her passport. She was then arrested and deported to the Canary Islands, where they had had a stop over.
Haidar claims the Moroccan government was attempting to coerce her to recognize the Moroccan rule over the Western Sahara territory, then confiscated her passport when she refused to do so.
While each side refutes the other’s claims, Haidar was granted asylum and citizenship by Spain and Spanish territories in attempt to resolve the tense situation. However, Haidar refused the offer in what Morrocan officials characterize as an attempt to force the government to grant her entry back into the Western Sahara.
Haidar now remains in what could be characterized as no man’s land, living in the Lanzarote Airport in the Canary Islands, reminiscent of Iranian refuge, Mehran Karimi Nasseri’s 18-year stay in the Charles de Gaulle International Airport in France—translated to a fictionalized film version in the Tom Hank’s film, “The Terminal.”
Haidar has been on a hunger strike since Nov. 17 in what her brother states is quite simply her attempt to be granted access to her homeland.
“She just wants to be able to get back to her homeland, her house, and her children, nothing more,” said Larosi Haidar.
While he does admit the difficulty and physical challenges of her hunger strike, Haidar’s brother says she is still determined.
“Anyone in her situation would be physically ill, however, she is a strong person. She is fully confident in what she is doing and she will resist to the maximum. She will go as far as her body can handle.”
Responsibility for Haidar Lies With Spain
While the situation is suspected to have been largely instigated by the Moroccan government, Haidar’s brother says that the responsibility for Haidar lies with Spain.
“The Spanish government should solve the problem. Whether Aminatou [Haidar] will come home depends on them. Whether or not the government had anything to do with the situation, they should solve the problem anyway,” said Haidar’s brother.
“However, the Spanish government is indeed directly responsible for Aminetu´s situation,” he said. “They allowed Aminetu to enter illegally into Spanish territory: when she was expelled from Morocco, Spain collaborated closely to finalize the expulsion, without passport and by force.”
“We need to remember that the Sahara was colonized by the Spanish and has never been decolonized up till now. Spain holds the responsibility to end this process of decolonization, to call on a referendum for the people of Sahara to decide,“ he added.
Human Rights Abuses in Western Sahara
The Western Saharan territory was divided between Morocco and Mauritania in 1976, however, Mauritania abandoned claim after clashes with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Saguia el-Hamra and Río de Oro rebel military, also known as the Polisario.
Once Mauritania pulled out, Morocco occupied the area and has retained control ever since.
Tens of thousands of Sahrawis (Western Saharan people), and tens of thousand of Algerians have been displaced in the process and currently occupy marginal land in the desert.
Outside of the existing problems of famine and extremely difficult living conditions, there have been many reports of violence and disappearances of the Sahrawis and Algerians within the territory.
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