聽In an exclusive broadcast, US-based independent news outlet 聽broke the media blockade and visited the occupied Western Sahara in the northwest of Africa to document the decades-long Sahrawi struggle for freedom and occupying power Morocco鈥檚 violent crackdown.
Morocco has occupied the territory since 1975 in defiance of the United Nations and the international community. Thousands聽 of Sahrawi people have been tortured, imprisoned, killed and disappeared while resisting the Moroccan occupation. A 1700-mile wall divides Sahrawis who remain under occupation from those who fled into exile.
The international media has largely ignored the occupation鈥攊n part because Morocco has routinely blocked journalists from entering Western Sahara. But in late 2016, Democracy Now! managed to get into the Western Saharan city of Laayoune, becoming the first international news team to report from the occupied territory in years. You cn also read 麻豆传媒 Weekly's reporting from Sahwari refugee camps and also from Morocco-occupied Laayoune聽here, here and here.
Democracy Now!'s video report is below, followed by the transcript.
Transcript
This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Today a聽Democracy Now!聽exclusive: 鈥淔our Days in Western Sahara: Africa鈥檚 Last Colony.鈥
Western Sahara, where peaceful protesters, led by women, are beaten in the streets. Thousands have been tortured, imprisoned, killed and disappeared while resisting the Moroccan occupation.
厂鲍尝罢础狈础听碍贬础驰础:聽[translated] He jabbed right at my eye with his baton. I was yelling at him, 鈥淗ey, you Moroccan! You pulled out my eye!鈥
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Where natural resources are plundered, from phosphates to fish.
贬惭础顿听贬础惭惭础顿:聽[translated] I say that our damnation comes from the natural resources we have here. If it wasn鈥檛 for these natural resources, Morocco never would have invaded Western Sahara.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Where a massive wall divides a people, the Sahrawi, the native population, denied a vote for self-determination.
贰尝骋贬础尝滨础听顿闯滨惭滨:聽[translated] If we don鈥檛 speak out, especially us, as victims who have suffered all of this, if we don鈥檛 speak out and defend our cause, this problem will remain.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Western Sahara鈥攖he center of a 4-decades-long struggle for independence from Morocco, its neighbor to the north. Morocco has occupied the territory since 1975 in defiance of the United Nations and the international community.
The story of Western Sahara is one of colonialism, plunder and resistance. It鈥檚 also a story rarely told in the international media.
And it鈥檚 here in Western Sahara where the scholar Noam Chomsky says the Arab Spring first began in late 2010, before the uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt.
狈翱础惭听颁贬翱惭厂碍驰:聽The Moroccan forces came in, destroyed tent cities, a lot of killed and wounded and so on. And then it spread.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽But the struggle in Western Sahara dates back much longer. For nearly a century, Western Sahara was colonized by Spain. But the Spanish occupation ended in 1975, setting off a regional fight. On October 31st, 1975, both Morocco from the north and Mauritania from the south invaded Western Sahara as Spain withdrew.
Days after Moroccan troops invaded, King Hassan II ordered hundreds of thousands of Moroccan citizens to enter Western Sahara in what became known as the Green March. Mauritania would withdraw less than four years later, but Morocco has remained to this day.
Just days after the Moroccan invasion, Secretary of State Henry Kissinger privately told President Gerald Ford he hoped for a, quote, 鈥渞igged UN vote鈥 at the Security Council to confirm Morocco鈥檚 claim over Western Sahara.
About half of the Sahrawi population fled the invasion to neighboring Algeria, where they settled in refugee camps in the middle of the desert. The Moroccan invasion set off a 16-year-long war with the Sahrawi liberation movement known as the Polisario Front. Morocco鈥檚 army, with the help of U.S. military aid, drove the Polisario to Western Sahara鈥檚 Eastern Desert. Morocco then created the world鈥檚 longest minefield and built the second-longest wall on Earth, with the help of U.S. weapons companies Northrop and Westinghouse.
The nearly 1,700-mile wall divides Sahrawis who remain under occupation from those who fled into exile.
The Moroccan government began decades of torture, disappearances, killings and repression against pro-independence Sahrawis living in the occupied territory.
In 1991, the U.N. sponsored a ceasefire and promised Sahrawis a referendum on self-determination, organized by its peacekeeping mission known as聽MINURSO. Since then, Morocco has blocked attempts to organize the vote, and the U.N. Security Council has refused to implement its own referendum plan or allow聽MINURSO聽to monitor the human rights situation in the territory.
Today, no country recognizes Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara, one of the most inaccessible places in the world. And the international media has largely ignored the occupation, in part because Morocco has routinely blocked journalists from entering Western Sahara.
But in late 2016,聽Democracy Now!聽successfully broke the news blockade. We were in Marrakech, Morocco, for the United Nations Climate Change Conference. With U.N. credentials and U.S. passports, we decided to take a chance and attempt to do what no foreign television crew has done in years: report from Africa鈥檚 last colony.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽I鈥檓 Amy Goodman. This is聽Democracy Now!聽We鈥檝e just landed in Laayoune, the capital of Western Sahara, Africa鈥檚 last colony, hoping to report from here, occupied by Morocco for more than 40 years. We鈥檙e at the airport now. We鈥檒l see what happens.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽I鈥檓 speaking quietly on the plane because journalists, even Western journalists, are rarely allowed into Western Sahara. We don鈥檛 know if this is the moment we鈥檒l be turned back, as so many others have been.
Maybe it鈥檚 the U.N. press badges around our necks. Maybe it鈥檚 our U.S. passports. Or maybe it鈥檚 just that our arrival was so unexpected. But after a check of our documents and a few questions, we鈥檙e waved through customs.
Outside the airport, we climb into a car driven by Jamal, our translator and guide.
JAMAL:聽It鈥檚 very nice to meet you.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽So, who are the plainclothes officers at the airport?
JAMAL:聽Those are security officers. Some of them belong to different departments.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Jamal says we鈥檝e been observed by local police, the Moroccan secret service and intelligence agents.
JAMAL:聽So, welcome to Laayoune. This is Laayoune. Actually, the airport is so close, so nearby, that you could walk.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽We arrive at the Hotel Salwan, knowing that the receptionist is obliged to inform the police of our presence. We check in quickly and immediately prepare to interview Sahrawi activists in one of our rooms. We don鈥檛 know how many hours鈥攐r minutes鈥攚e鈥檒l have to record before the authorities arrive.
Soon, a small contingent of Sahrawis enters.
Our first interview is with journalist Mohamed Mayara. He speaks in hushed tones about the torture and murder his family faced at the hands of the Moroccan authorities.
惭翱贬础惭贰顿听惭础驰础搁础:聽My father was among four brothers who were kidnapped directly when Morocco invaded the Western Sahara. So, he was arrested on February 27th, 1976. I was 2 months [old]. He was kidnapped, and then they sent him to a secret jail, well known by the Sahrawis, Agdz in Southern Morocco. He spent one year and six months, and he was killed under torture.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽What kind of risk do you take speaking to a Western journalist like me?
惭翱贬础惭贰顿听惭础驰础搁础:聽I have a daughter who is 7 years old. So, I told her when she asked me about my father. So, I tried to tell her that my father was kidnapped and tortured and etc., but I tried to teach her that one day I will face the same fate. So, I鈥檓 always waiting.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Why do you take that risk?
惭翱贬础惭贰顿听惭础驰础搁础:聽Because I think this engagement, this is the duty of freedom.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽The work of Mohamed Mayara鈥檚 citizen journalist group Equipe Media is documented in the film聽3 Stolen Cameras. It shows the gruesome fate of a Sahrawi cameraman who was pushed off a rooftop by police after he was spotted filming a bloody crackdown on a peaceful protest.
厂础贬搁础奥滨听颁础惭贰搁础惭础狈:聽[translated] Suddenly, an undercover policeman had detected me on a rooftop. They suddenly appeared and pushed me over the edge. As I fell down on the street, I broke my leg. Other policemen dragged me on the ground. A bit further down the street there was a burning tire. They pulled me over it. It was no accident. They wanted to demonstrate their power and show what happens to those who try to break the media blockade.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Facing this kind of violence against those who document Morocco鈥檚 crackdown on dissent, it鈥檚 remarkable that these Sahrawis were willing to speak with us.
We also meet journalist Hayat Khatari.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Can media operate here in Western Sahara? Can you have your own media?
贬础驰础罢听碍贬础罢础搁滨:聽[translated] We are very much harassed. The most recent episode was when my sister Nazha al-Khalidi had her camera confiscated. And then they arrested her. And she was brutally treated by the authorities over 24 hours in the police station. That鈥檚 apart from when she was trying to videotape a peaceful demonstration at the beach of Foum el-Oued.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽It鈥檚 now past midnight. Not long after we finish our interviews, we get a phone call. The hotel receptionist tells us the police are in the hotel lobby, demanding to see us. We make our way downstairs. Two men in plainclothes tell us to sit down and warn us against reporting in Western Sahara. We go back upstairs, and, soon after, we learn a pro-Moroccan government website called Sahara Zoom had published details about our trip, including information about the interviews we had done in our hotel room that night. The message was clear: We鈥檙e watching you.
This is a聽Democracy Now!聽special, 鈥淔our Days in Western Sahara: Africa鈥檚 Last Colony.鈥
[break]
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽That is Sahrawi singer聽聽from her album 鈥淓l Aaiun on Fire鈥 (鈥淓l Aaiun Egdat鈥). This is a聽Democracy Now!聽special, 鈥淔our Days in Western Sahara: Africa鈥檚 Last Colony.鈥 I鈥檓 Amy Goodman.
It鈥檚 day two of our trip to Laayoune, the capital of Western Sahara. Despite warnings against reporting from here, we set off for the offices of a human rights group. We carry all our possessions with us, assuming our hotel rooms could be searched or we could be deported at a moment鈥檚 notice. Everywhere we go, we鈥檙e followed.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽We just left our hotel. And a man with a motorcycle just outside, as we came out, he started texting. And now he鈥檚 a little bit behind us, keeping a careful distance. We鈥檝e got security on our tail. We鈥檝e made a right and a left and a right. We made a U-turn, and the man on a motorcycle is right behind.
Everywhere we drive are the posters, the billboards of the king. That鈥檚 the Moroccan king, King Mohammed VI.
JAMAL:聽Right here. Right here. This is the door, so鈥
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽We have arrived at the only Moroccan-accepted nonprofit here in Laayoune. There鈥檚 clearly security sitting right next to the door. And the motorcyclist, the so-called security, is right behind us.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽The human rights organization has a long name.聽ASVDH聽stands for the Sahrawi Association of Victims of Grave Human Rights Violations Committed by the Moroccan State. The walls of its office are lined with posters and photographs showing the names and faces of the imprisoned, the disappeared, the now dead.
贰尝骋贬础尝滨础听顿闯滨惭滨:聽[translated] My name is Elghalia Djimi. I鈥檓 a former victim of forced disappearance. I鈥檓 the vice president of the Sahrawi association here. That鈥檚 where we are right now. It鈥檚 our association that traces the files of Sahrawi disappearance victims. Today, November 20th, marks the anniversary of my forced disappearance, which took place in 1987.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Elghalia Djimi, describe what happened to you.
贰尝骋贬础尝滨础听顿闯滨惭滨:聽[translated] What happened to me happened to all the victims. Specifically, the pictures that I saw from Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq, they made me feel that I lived the same thing, that I underwent the same conditions, but in darkness. At that time, there was nobody to take pictures of us. There was nobody to talk about us.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Elghalia Djimi shows us her arm, left scarred after her captors unleashed a dog on her.
贰尝骋贬础尝滨础听顿闯滨惭滨:聽[translated] I still bear the marks of the dog bites, right here.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Who did this to you?
贰尝骋贬础尝滨础听顿闯滨惭滨:聽[translated] It was the Moroccan state and the Moroccan police, the secret police. The same thing they did to me, they did to my grandmother before, in 1984, when she was kidnapped. And so far we don鈥檛 know anything about what happened to her. I was stripped naked completely. The worst part of the torture, as a Muslim and an Arab, was that I was stripped naked. I lost all my hair because of the chemicals they used on my head, which they left on me for two months and 27 days.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Elghalia Djimi sinks to the floor as she continues to describe her torture in Moroccan police custody.
贰尝骋贬础尝滨础听顿闯滨惭滨:聽[translated] One of the torturers would put water onto my face, which was covered with a rag, until I started asphyxiating. And then he would slap my face until I would breathe again.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Are you saying they waterboarded you?
贰尝骋贬础尝滨础听顿闯滨惭滨:聽[translated] Yes. They poured water on my face until I asphyxiated. And then one of them who was at my feet would beat me with a baton. Then, in the same area, they had a small hole filled with water where they put me. And then they would bring an electric generator, and they would electrocute me using that technique, in my fingers and in my ears. They threatened me with rape, to kill me with a pistol to the head, and to brainwash me.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽You were tortured 30 years ago. Do you feel you are taking a risk when you speak out?
贰尝骋贬础尝滨础听顿闯滨惭滨:聽[translated] I am not afraid. I took a vow that we have to talk about this issue. If we don鈥檛 speak out, especially us, as victims who have suffered all of this, if we don鈥檛 speak out and defend our cause, this problem will remain.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Our interview is interrupted when our guide Jamal receives an urgent phone call. We鈥檝e been summoned to appear before the most powerful man in Laayoune. We get back into our car and head for his residence. Once again, we鈥檙e followed by a man on a motorcycle. Are we about to be deported?
Time after time, journalists are turned back as they try to enter Western Sahara, like 12 Spanish reporters deported from Laayoune鈥檚 airport after their arrival in 2010, including the renowned radio reporter 脌ngels Barcel贸.
脌NGELS BARCEL脫:聽[translated] Every time they turn us away, we should go and tell the story on air, go and say, 鈥淭oday we have tried it again, and today the Moroccans have sent us away again.鈥
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽And the Spanish journalist Bernard Millet.
叠贰搁狈础搁顿听惭滨尝尝贰罢:聽[translated] They inspected all my gear鈥攃ameras, photographs鈥攁nd they made me erase photos that, according to them, were incriminating.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽And human rights observers are deported, as well, like European parliamentarian Willy Meyer, Spanish lawmaker Xabier Ron, a Norwegian delegation held on a bus and expelled in 2016, and many others. All of them tried and failed to do what we had somehow managed鈥攖o make it into Western Sahara to report on the occupation.
JAMAL:聽We鈥檙e going to see the governor of Laayoune. His name is Yahdih Bouchaab. He鈥檚 the wali. Actually, we call him the wali. It鈥檚 a much superior position to the governor. He鈥檚 appointed by the king.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽The wali is a Sahrawi and former member of the Polisario Front. He now works for the Moroccan monarchy, overseeing a security apparatus that seeks to crush the Sahrawi independence movement. We arrive at his fortified compound and are escorted inside by armed guards鈥攁fraid we鈥檙e about to be expelled from the territory.
JAMAL:聽So, this is the residency of the governor, the wali. OK, let鈥檚 go please.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Inside the wali鈥檚 residence, we鈥檙e seated, served tea, dates and nuts, as the wali tells us, in no uncertain terms, we鈥檙e not allowed to practice journalism in Western Sahara.
驰础贬顿滨贬听叠翱鲍颁贬础础叠:聽If you have the authorization, I would be more than glad to provide this interview. Second position, if I am retired, I can even come to your station in the U.S. and to deliver that interview. I would be more than glad. But now, as far as you have no authorization.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Despite the wali鈥檚 warnings, I continue to question him.
I quote from a Human Rights Watch聽聽titled 鈥淜eeping It Secret,鈥 about Morocco鈥檚 efforts to block access to聽MINURSO. That鈥檚 the U.N. mission for a referendum on the status of Western Sahara.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽鈥滿INURSO聽staff members, including military observers, are subjected to constant surveillance by Morocco. This, and internal pressure from聽MINURSO, made them reluctant, even frightened, to speak to our organization鈥濃攚hich is Human Rights Watch鈥斺漞xcept on the explicit condition of anonymity.鈥
驰础贬顿滨贬听叠翱鲍颁贬础础叠:聽Very exciting.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽鈥淢oroccan security forces鈥濃攖his is Human Rights Watch.
驰础贬顿滨贬听叠翱鲍颁贬础础叠:聽Very exciting. Human Rights Watch鈥攊s that Bible?
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽No, but I鈥檓鈥攁re you鈥
驰础贬顿滨贬听叠翱鲍颁贬础础叠:聽Is that Qur鈥檃n?
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Are you鈥攏o, I鈥檓 asking: Are you disagreeing with this?
驰础贬顿滨贬听叠翱鲍颁贬础础叠:聽I disagree completely.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽They say鈥
驰础贬顿滨贬听叠翱鲍颁贬础础叠:聽They are working for an agenda here.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:听鈥淢辞谤辞肠肠补苍鈥浓赌
驰础贬顿滨贬听叠翱鲍颁贬础础叠:聽Wait, wait. What they have said about the other party?
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽鈥淢oroccan security forces tried鈥濃
驰础贬顿滨贬听叠翱鲍颁贬础础叠:聽About the Polisario?
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽鈥斺漷o prevent Human Rights Watch鈥濃
驰础贬顿滨贬听叠翱鲍颁贬础础叠:听翱碍.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽鈥斺漟rom entering the U.N. headquarters, stating that entry was forbidden to non-MINURSO聽staff unless it had been cleared with local Moroccan authorities first. Moroccan authorities鈥 harassment of Human Rights Watch, as well as their strict surveillance of its activities鈥濃
驰础贬顿滨贬听叠翱鲍颁贬础础叠:聽Very important. Very exciting. [laughs]
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽鈥斺漣mpeded the organization鈥檚 ability to conduct a thorough investigation of human rights in鈥濃
驰础贬顿滨贬听叠翱鲍颁贬础础叠:聽Anything. They say just anything just to make鈥攖o make things exciting.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Well, let me ask you one other question, which is of concern to many people in the human rights community, which is the issue of the protests here being cracked down on and people being beaten or arrested.
驰础贬顿滨贬听叠翱鲍颁贬础础叠:聽That鈥檚 a good thing. If you are talking about peaceful demonstration, I am with. Completely, I am. I appreciate to see people demonstrating and to give their鈥攖o provide their opinions.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽But people got injured.
驰础贬顿滨贬听叠翱鲍颁贬础础叠:听厂辞谤谤测?
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽People got injured. People鈥
驰础贬顿滨贬听叠翱鲍颁贬础础叠:聽You will see by yourself.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽So you鈥檙e saying people are not being hurt in the demonstrations?
驰础贬顿滨贬听叠翱鲍颁贬础础叠:聽You will see who was hurt by those demonstrations. It鈥檚 not demonstrations. It鈥檚 completely the anarchy.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽As I continue to press him on human rights, the wali loses his temper.
驰础贬顿滨贬听叠翱鲍颁贬础础叠:聽You talk about鈥攁bout鈥攁bout human rights? Human rights, even in United States you don鈥檛 have them. You have more than 1 million people living just in the underground in New York. And they are eating rats. And yeah鈥
JAMAL听搁补迟蝉.
驰础贬顿滨贬听叠翱鲍颁贬础础叠:听搁补迟蝉. And when they are sick, they are eaten by the rats.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽That鈥檚 true.
驰础贬顿滨贬听叠翱鲍颁贬础础叠:聽鈥淒emocracy Now鈥? You have to work on it in Guant谩namo and everywhere.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽That鈥檚 a very important point.
驰础贬顿滨贬听叠翱鲍颁贬础础叠:聽That鈥檚 it.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:听罢丑补迟鈥檚鈥
驰础贬顿滨贬听叠翱鲍颁贬础础叠:聽I think I was very happy to see you, because鈥
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽With that, we鈥檙e dismissed鈥攁nd warned against continuing to report from Western Sahara.
During our discussion, the wali repeatedly mentioned the close U.S.-Moroccan relationship, which dates back to 1777, when Morocco became the first nation to recognize the United States. While the U.S. has never recognized Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara, Washington has played a pivotal role in shoring up Morocco鈥檚 occupation.
In addition to Secretary of State Henry Kissinger hoping for a rigged vote at the United Nations Security Council regarding Western Sahara, President Jimmy Carter鈥檚 State Department in 1979 gave $200 million to the U.S. company Northrop Page Communications to build an 鈥渋ntrusion detection system鈥 for the nearly 1,700-mile wall Morocco built in Western Sahara, which is lined with an estimated 7 million land mines. A year later, Carter provided Morocco with $230 million in military aid. It鈥檚 been a bipartisan affair ever since.
King Hassan II with President Reagan in 1982.
碍滨狈骋听贬础厂厂础狈听滨滨:聽Moroccan people and American people will be ready always to mix their blood for the dignity of man.
笔搁贰厂滨顿贰狈罢听搁翱狈础尝顿听搁贰础骋础狈:聽His majesty briefed me on the latest developments in his efforts to reach a peaceful settlement of the conflict in the Western Sahara, and I expressed my admiration for his support.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽After the Cold War ended, Morocco became a key U.S. ally in the so-called war on terror. In 2004, President George W. Bush designated Morocco to be a major non-NATO聽ally of the United States, opening the door for more military deals. And the money has flowed both ways. The state-owned Moroccan phosphate company聽OCP, which operates in Western Sahara, donated as much as $12 million to the Clinton Foundation prior to the 2016 election.
And the wali proudly pulled up a photo on his cellphone from January of 1992, showing Donald Trump, his soon-to-be wife Marla Maples and Moroccan King Hassan II at Trump鈥檚 prime property, The Plaza Hotel in New York.
Jump forward a quarter of a century to now-President Trump鈥檚 disgraced Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt. Prior to his resignation, Pruitt took a controversial $100,000 trip to Morocco in December of 2017, where he met with the head of Morocco鈥檚 state-owned mining company. Pruitt鈥檚 trip was arranged by a lobbyist, Richard Smotkin, who accompanied Pruitt and helped set up meetings for him.
As we drive through the streets of Laayoune, everywhere are signs of occupation. The city was built up under Spain鈥檚 fascist dictator Francisco Franco and has been occupied by Morocco since the mid-鈥70s.
We pass the United Nations鈥櫬燤INURSO聽compound, where just over 200 U.N. peacekeepers monitor the 1991 ceasefire between Morocco and the Polisario, but are legally prevented from intervening to stop human rights abuses.
And we drive past the high walls of the notorious Black Prison, where generations of Sahrawis have been detained, tortured and disappeared.
One of them is Sahrawi independence activist Hmad Hammad, who welcomes us into his home. Over tea, he describes his torture at the hands of the Moroccan authorities during his years spent as a political prisoner.
贬惭础顿听贬础惭惭础顿:聽[translated] They linked electrodes to my ears, and something to my underarms and to my tongue, and then other sensitive parts. I was bound. And when they used that manual generator, I would hear it cranking.聽Rrr. Rrr. Rrr.聽Each time they cranked that generator up, I felt that my heart was going to burst out of my body.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽The U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called the Moroccan presence in Western Sahara an occupation. What was your response?
贬惭础顿听贬础惭惭础顿:聽[translated] My answer is clear. We are a people. We have a homeland. We have a culture. We have all these things that constitute a country. We are very different from the Moroccans. It鈥檚 impossible for us to be Moroccans. We have no common history. There is nothing that links us to them whatsoever. I say that our damnation comes from the natural resources we have here. If it wasn鈥檛 for these natural resources, Morocco would never have invaded Western Sahara, with the support of Spain and France.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Western Sahara is a territory rich in natural resources, which Morocco has exploited since the 1975 invasion, despite international court rulings establishing that the kingdom has no sovereignty over the territory. Morocco controls the majority of the world鈥檚 reserves of phosphates, a mineral used in fertilizers that鈥檚 critical to feeding the world.
Phosphate is transported more than 60 miles along the world鈥檚 longest conveyor belt, from mines in the desert to the port of Laayoune, where it鈥檚 loaded onto cargo ships bound for the U.S., Canada and countries around the world.
Western Sahara鈥檚 fishing waters are among the richest on Earth, supplying the European Union with much of its seafood.
Foreign energy companies continue to explore for offshore oil鈥攅ven though the U.N. says the prospecting violates international law.
Even Western Sahara鈥檚 sand is sold, loaded onto ships bound for European resorts.
A pair of recent rulings by Europe鈥檚 highest court declared Western Sahara is not a part of Morocco and that European Union trade deals cannot include products from the occupied territory.
Ships carrying phosphates from Western Sahara have been held up in ports in Panama and South Africa, after the Polisario challenged ownership of the cargo, claiming it belongs to the Sahrawi people.
Sahrawis are fighting the plunder through peaceful demonstrations and through the courts.
When they hold protests in their refugee camps in Algeria, thousands turn out to oppose foreign companies profiting from the occupation鈥攍ike the European oil and gas driller San Leon Energy.
But when Sahrawis protest in occupied Western Sahara, they鈥檙e routinely met with violence by Morrocan authorities.
It鈥檚 still day two of our trip to Western Sahara. As we cross town to meet with more Sahrawi independence activists, once again we鈥檙e followed by a man on a motorcycle. We arrive, making our way past pro-independence graffiti, and meet an icon of the Sahrawi resistance.
Sultana Khaya drapes herself in the red, white, black and green flag of Western Sahara. Just holding this flag in public is enough to get an activist beaten and arrested.
厂鲍尝罢础狈础听碍贬础驰础:聽[translated] My name is Sultana Khaya. I was born under Moroccan rule in the occupied city of Bojador. I live just like any other Sahrawi woman who was subjected to torture and beatings. And in my opinion, my case was milder than many others.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽In 2007, Sultana was peacefully protesting with fellow college students at a university in Marrakech, Morocco, when police surrounded her.
厂鲍尝罢础狈础听碍贬础驰础:聽[translated] May 9th was an anniversary that all Sahrawis should celebrate. We were a group of 500 Sahrawi students. We left the university campus marching, peacefully, waving flags and chanting, 鈥淭here are no alternatives to self-determination!鈥 They sealed off the street, and we were besieged in it.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽As tear gas spread, Sultana was beaten by police, one of whom singled her out for more abuse.
厂鲍尝罢础狈础听碍贬础驰础:聽[translated] One of them recognized me. And he jabbed right at my eye with his baton. When he did that, I bent over, and I could feel my eyeball in my hand. I was yelling at him, 鈥淗ey, you Moroccan! You pulled out my eye!鈥
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Sultana鈥檚 ordeal continued in an ambulance as she was tortured on her way to the hospital.
厂鲍尝罢础狈础听碍贬础驰础:聽[translated] I told them I had a hemorrhage in my eye. He tried to put his finger into my eye socket. I didn鈥檛 get any medical treatment 鈥檛il the next morning at 11, when a group of Moroccans came to me telling someone to sew up my eye, because when I was in the ambulance, another woman was crying and telling me, 鈥淵our eye is gone!鈥 They were trying to sew up my eye so other women could see it and think twice before getting involved in activism. They wanted to make an example of me.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Do you have confidence that Western Sahara will become an independent nation?
厂鲍尝罢础狈础听碍贬础驰础:聽[translated] That鈥檚 for sure, because the determination of the people is invincible. What we鈥檝e got is true. We鈥檝e lost many men and women over this. One day it shall be liberated.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Even losing her eye has not stopped Sultana Khaya from continuing her protests for Western Saharan independence鈥攁s we will witness for ourselves even during our short stay in Western Sahara.
This is a聽Democracy Now!聽special, 鈥淔our Days in Western Sahara: Africa鈥檚 Last Colony.鈥
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础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽That is Sahrawi singer聽聽from her album 鈥淓l Aaiun on Fire鈥 (鈥淓l Aaiun Egdat鈥). This is a聽Democracy Now!聽special, 鈥淔our Days in Western Sahara: Africa鈥檚 Last Colony.鈥
On day three of our trip to Laayoune, the capital of Western Sahara, we invite a Sahrawi activist to our hotel. Hamma el-Qoteb is stopped by the hotel鈥檚 receptionist as he tries to enter. She calls authorities to report an unregistered visitor, forbidding him from coming upstairs. After we push hard and threaten to leave the hotel, she relents, saying he could speak to us 鈥渇or five minutes.鈥
Hamma el-Qoteb arrives clutching a photo of his brother, who was forcibly disappeared in 1992. He鈥檚 been searching for him ever since.
贬础惭惭础听贰尝-蚕翱罢贰叠:聽[translated] This is my brother Hafed el-Qoteb, who was abducted November 7th, 1992, by Moroccan plainclothes police at 5 in the morning. It was because of his involvement in the demonstration at the Nagjir Hotel, November 6th. They woke us up very early in the morning. And the situation was very ugly. Plainclothes policemen came to our house, and they abducted him.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Where was he taken to?
贬础惭惭础听贰尝-蚕翱罢贰叠:聽[translated] The information that we have is inconclusive, because we didn鈥檛 see anything. And the rest of the people who were abducted with him鈥攁round 500 people鈥攚ere blindfolded. My brother and our neighbor鈥檚 son鈥攚e don鈥檛 know anything about them. Hundreds were released, but about 200 were kept there.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽How did Hafed鈥檚 disappearance affect your family?
贬础惭惭础听贰尝-蚕翱罢贰叠:聽[translated] It was a land mine that exploded within the family. His presence was the glue that united us. My father had diabetes. And because of the insults he heard on that day of the abduction, he became paralyzed鈥攁nd remained that way for the rest of his life. My mother would not dare to enter the home again, and she stayed with my other siblings for a year.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽How were your brothers and sisters affected by Hafed鈥檚 disappearance?
贬础惭惭础听贰尝-蚕翱罢贰叠:聽[translated] It deeply affected them and had a great impact on them emotionally, because they were very young at that time. They witnessed all the atrocities related to the abduction. They鈥檝e always had this fear inside of them鈥攖hese bad memories that have been left in the backs of their minds.
Also, I was a victim of this, too, because when I was getting ready to go to Geneva to participate in the U.N. Human Rights Council, they confiscated my passports. For five years I couldn鈥檛 recover my passport.
I call upon all the free world and all the people in the world to help us reveal the truth about my brother鈥檚 whereabouts. I call upon the Moroccan government to reveal the fate of all of our sons.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽On October 9th, 2010, tens of thousands of Sahrawis, fed up with decades of occupation, erected a large protest encampment in the desert outside Laayoune. Known as Gdeim Izik, the camp preceded the Arab Spring and quickly grew to include whole families living among thousands of tents. This is human rights activist Naama Asfari laying out the protesters鈥 demands.
狈础础惭础听础厂贵础搁滨:聽[translated] Freedom of speech, freedom to demonstrate, the right to housing, the right to work, but in the legal context of the territories of Western Sahara as nonautonomous territories.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Speaking on聽Democracy Now!, renowned author and activist Noam Chomsky called the Gdeim Izik uprising the start of the Arab Spring.
狈翱础惭听颁贬翱惭厂碍驰:聽The current wave of protests actually began last November in Western Sahara, which is under Moroccan rule after a brutal invasion and occupation. The Moroccan forces came in, carried out鈥攄estroyed tent cities, a lot of killed and wounded and so on. And then it spread.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽On November 8th, 2010, Moroccan forces used tear gas, clubs and water cannons to force the protesters from their tents, before firing live rounds and setting the camp on fire. The Polisario says the raid killed 36 people, with many hundreds more injured and arrested. Many were tortured in custody, including 23 activists who were accused of contributing to the violence. They were tried, convicted and given harsh sentences in July of 2017. It was the latest chapter in a long history of repression against Sahrawis at the hands of Moroccan forces.
Many of those detained were represented by the Sahrawi lawyer Mohamed Lahbib Erguibi. He鈥檚 a former activist who was disappeared in Moroccan prisons for 16 years. He鈥檚 also the brother of the recently deceased Polisario leader Mohamed Abdelaziz. Erguibi is one of just four Sahrawi lawyers permitted by Morocco to try cases in court.
惭翱贬础惭贰顿听尝础贬叠滨叠听贰搁骋鲍滨叠滨:聽[translated] The first stage of the arrests were made there, and they were brutal beyond imagination. They used an extensive number of strange tools for torture and beatings. Some of the prisoners were even forced to drink their own urine. They showed up before the interrogation judge covered in blood.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Why was Gdeim Izik such a turning point? What happened? Why were people protesting?
惭翱贬础惭贰顿听尝础贬叠滨叠听贰搁骋鲍滨叠滨:聽[translated] Gdeim Izik was a turning point because it was a very genuine form of mass protest like Western Sahara has never witnessed, nor has the rest of the world.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Some have called it the first Arab Spring, before Tunisia and before Egypt.
惭翱贬础惭贰顿听尝础贬叠滨叠听贰搁骋鲍滨叠滨:聽[translated] Yes, without any doubt, this was the beginning of the Arab Spring. Every media outlet, after Gdeim Izik, could only talk about how well organized, well managed and well prepared the protest in Western Sahara was. And from here it spread to Tunisia and Egypt. So, of course, when the American academic noted that this was the beginning of the Arab Spring, he was correct.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽After leaving Mohamed Erguibi鈥檚 office, we drive to a restaurant near the airport for dinner. As usual, we鈥檙e followed.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽So, we set down here at a restaurant near the airport in Laayoune. We came into a vast, empty restaurant. And within about 15 minutes after we ordered, about a hundred, mainly men, some women, dressed in traditional West Saharan dress, carrying Moroccan flags, all came in, and they sat down all around us. One has an English sign that says, 鈥淪hame on you.鈥 When our translator Jamal got up to see what was going on, plainclothesmen, not in traditional dress, came up to him and said they want to speak to Amy Goodman when we鈥檙e done. Our car has been hemmed in by a number of cars, and we also hear there was a protest in another part of the city where one of the people we interviewed was beaten up.
JAMAL:聽He just called me. He said that he was beaten up now at the peaceful demonstration in Smara Boulevard.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:听奥丑辞?
JAMAL:聽Hamma el-Qoteb.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Who we talked to yesterday?
JAMAL:聽Yes. He was now participating in a peaceful demonstration, and he was beaten up.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Some of the people here came over very close to us and took pictures.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽We鈥檙e eager to leave, so we can find out what happened to Hamma el-Qoteb and other protesters across town. But the moment we stand up, we鈥檙e followed out of the restaurant by the crowd. Outdoors, we鈥檙e surrounded on all sides and prevented from driving away. The pro-Morocco protesters unfurl large, custom banners printed on vinyl. They鈥檙e starkly reminiscent of a banner photographed at a Moroccan state-sanctioned protest against U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in March of 2016, after he used the word 鈥渙ccupation.鈥
Back at the restaurant, one of the vinyl banners with red and black lettering has a photo of me interviewing a Sahrawi activist, with the caption 鈥淪hame on you.鈥
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽We鈥檙e standing here outside of a restaurant that we came to near the airport called Omaima. And a group of 50, 60, 70 people in West Saharan dress have descended on the restaurant carrying signs that say 鈥淪hame on you,鈥 鈥淛ournalist are a person of Algeria,鈥 鈥淵es for the American-Moroccan friendship鈥 and 鈥淒ismembering countries goes hand in hand with strengthening the聽ISIS.鈥
I thought we鈥檇 start by talking to one of the organizers, who is a freelance journalist who trained in Rhode Island. So, if you could tell us your name?
叠础厂贬贰贰搁听顿础贬驰:聽Yeah, by the way, I鈥檓 not one of the organizers. So, I鈥檓 just volunteering with the people, my fellow Sahrawis, to talk to you about what they think of your visit and about general issues related to the issue of Western Sahara.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽And how did you know that I was at this restaurant?
叠础厂贬贰贰搁听顿础贬驰:聽Well, you know, this is a small town, and everybody knows everybody. Whenever a foreign delegation comes to the area, so everybody is aware of this.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽It was an empty restaurant. We just came in five minutes before.
叠础厂贬贰贰搁听顿础贬驰:聽No, this is a鈥攖his is a restaurant which is well known to the people. And, for example, when maybe one of my cousins was there, he would notice foreigners, he would immediately check why they are here. And鈥
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽And you were just sitting with 60 people in West Saharan dress?
叠础厂贬贰贰搁听顿础贬驰:聽No, no, the people are gathering. They told me to volunteer with them for the interpretation.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽As we speak with Basheer Dahy, a number of men in plainclothes stand on the perimeter, taking photos and video, speaking on cellphones. A local activist would later identify some of them as members of the Moroccan Interior Ministry, including at least one official who has been accused of torturing many Sahrawis.
叠贰狈听础叠顿听础尝-厂贰尝碍础:聽[translated] I鈥檓 Ben Abd Al-Selka, regional coordinator for the National Front for the Defense of National Integrity in Laayoune. I came here to represent my organization, to say that we Sahrawis are in our territory, and we will do anything to defend it.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Right. But how did you know I was here?
叠贰狈听础叠顿听础尝-厂贰尝碍础:聽[translated] Because I鈥檓 always following the news, and this is something that concerns me. I鈥檓 required to know this.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Was I in the news at this restaurant?
叠贰狈听础叠顿听础尝-厂贰尝碍础:聽[translated] No. This is normal. We are always aware of who comes to our territory when it comes to the national cause.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Who told you that I was here?
叠贰狈听础叠顿听础尝-厂贰尝碍础:聽[translated] This is the main restaurant in my city. I came to visit it, and suddenly I saw you.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽And you carry Moroccan flags with you everywhere you go? It鈥檚 very customary to be giving out Moroccan flags in the restaurant?
叠贰狈听础叠顿听础尝-厂贰尝碍础:聽[translated] Of course. I鈥檓 representing an organization whose main goal is to defend the national interest. The flags are always in our homes, always on our persons. Our flags are always ready, thank God. Always prepared.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽I saw one person carrying all the flags and giving them out.
叠贰狈听础叠顿听础尝-厂贰尝碍础:聽[translated] No, no. We were basically helping him. Do you understand me? Some of us are responsible for the national flags, others for communication. Our work is always organized and ready.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Now it鈥檚 getting dark. We鈥檙e getting increasingly nervous. The sun sets on the restaurant Omaima as the pro-Morocco protesters prevent us from leaving for over an hour. It鈥檚 a clear effort to intimidate us and to keep us away from the protest across town.
When we鈥檙e finally able to escape, Jamal receives a call. A number of Sahrawi activists have been badly beaten. We race to the home where they鈥檙e gathered to recover from their injuries.
Inside, we find a number of women tending to an activist named Aziza Biza, who鈥檚 retching and vomiting from her injuries.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Should she go to a hospital?
JAMAL:聽She said she can鈥檛 go to a hospital, because they will not admit her, and she鈥檚 also too scared to go there.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽The activists have recorded video of their protest鈥攁nd the subsequent beatings by Moroccan forces鈥攐n cellphones and camcorders.
What our cameras couldn鈥檛 capture, citizen journalists鈥 could.
We begin downloading their footage, as activist Mina Bali describes what happened.
惭滨狈础听叠础尝滨:聽[translated] Because of your presence here, we wanted to have a protest and show you how things are here鈥攁nd how we are treated.
It鈥檚 been about two years since any journalists have accessed the territory.
We came chanting slogans, making peace signs with our fingers, as usual. And then they intervened against us in the street.
They were a large group. They pushed us into a narrow street. They took me. One of them grabbed my hair, and he started beating me. He wounded me here, under my nose. He grabbed my breast and continued beating me against the wall.
Aziza was with me, and he struck her in the kidney and hit her head against the wall. And then she fell on the ground at my feet.
And Ghalia Yimani was being dragged there. And Sultana Khaya.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽I鈥檓 going to go with the women to see their bruises. They鈥檙e going to show me. And then we鈥檒l see what we can show the camera.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽We follow Sultana Khaya into a small bedroom. She pulls back her melhfa鈥攈er traditional Sahrawi robe鈥攁nd shows me fresh bruises on her leg, both arms and on her breast.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Sultana, describe what happened to you?
厂鲍尝罢础狈础听碍贬础驰础:聽[translated] All of us were participating as Sahrawis in the peaceful demonstrations for our right to self-determination. I was trying to gather my sisters for the protest at 5:00. And the whole area was besieged.
They were insulting us, beating us, dragging us and using violence, to let us know that we weren鈥檛 going to be able to protest.
They tried to single us out, and pushed us into narrow streets where they could beat us without anyone observing.
What you saw today is nothing compared to what we鈥檝e witnessed, over and over, since 1975. But the news never gets out.
As Sahrawi women, we鈥檙e not backing off until we get our final victory and liberate our homeland. The beatings will not deter us from continuing the fight. And even if we die, it will be a sacrifice, so that our sons and future generations can live in the freedom that we鈥檝e been denied.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Other Sahrawis have been injured, as well. Mahfouda Lafkir shows us black-and-blue bruises on her arms.
惭础贬贵翱鲍顿础听尝础贵碍滨搁:聽[translated] They hit me on the thighs, slapped me on the face and beat me underneath my eye.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Ghalia Yimani pulls back her melhfa to show us gruesome injuries. Both her arms and both breasts are badly bruised. Like a number of these women, she鈥檚 been sexually assaulted.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Down your arm, you have black-and-blue marks, and on your breast, right up to the nipple. The police grabbed her, and you see all of the marks, of the black-and-blue blue marks and the red marks.
骋贬础尝滨础听驰滨惭础狈滨:聽This one. Ow!
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Very, very painful.
骋贬础尝滨础听驰滨惭础狈滨:聽[translated] Once they intervened against us, one of them pulled and twisted me by my breast. And I was screaming out loud, 鈥淗ey! You鈥檙e hurting my breast!鈥 But he didn鈥檛 care.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Next, we meet the man who risked his safety to film the assault on protesters from a nearby rooftop. Hamoud Lili is a citizen journalist with the group Equipe Media.
贬础惭翱鲍顿听尝滨尝滨:聽My name. Hamoud Lili.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Can you describe what you鈥檙e watching here?
贬础惭翱鲍顿听尝滨尝滨:聽[translated] This is Ghalia Yimani, when a man in plainclothes was pulling her into a narrow street where they could beat her up. This street, where they usually beat people, has never been recorded before. They forced them here because they knew people were using their cameras to document everything on the main street. So I was lucky to get a clear shot of what was happening to Mina Bali and Aziza Biza. But unfortunately, this informer saw me and then notified all the others.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽And then what happened?
贬础惭翱鲍顿听尝滨尝滨:聽[translated] I tried to move to the next window, out of sight, but my hiding place was revealed. When they saw me, they tried to break down the door, and they stormed the building. The house owner went outside, and they beat him up. I fled the house. I closed the door to the rooftop and jumped to another house to save the camera gear. And that was my exit.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Why are you a media activist? Why do you video?
贬础惭翱鲍顿听尝滨尝滨:聽[translated] Because there鈥檚 a total media blackout across the region, and there is no international media to cover everything that鈥檚 happening to the Sahrawis. And we volunteer as activists, so we can transmit the suffering to the outside world through our cameras.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Back in the living room, Aziza Biza has stopped vomiting from her injuries and is propped up on pillows. She鈥檚 able to speak with us, with her husband and teenage son sitting beside her.
础窜滨窜础听叠滨窜础:聽[translated] They started beating me up out there and kicking my stomach. Then they tried to strangle me by my melhfa. I felt something around my throat, and I couldn鈥檛 breathe. Then I fainted. I don鈥檛 remember anything. I just remember that I found myself here.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽You said they kicked you in your kidney?
础窜滨窜础听叠滨窜础:聽[translated] Yes. And also they kicked me in my head, which already had stitches from a previous beating, and then kicked my ribs.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽And yet you still came out for another demonstration. Why is it so important to you?
础窜滨窜础听叠滨窜础:聽[translated] It is very important for me, because I want the liberation of my country, because I want to live like other women in the world, in freedom, and to see my children and my country free.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽What are you calling for?
础窜滨窜础听叠滨窜础:聽[translated] I call on the free world to help us free our country, to get liberated, so that we can live our lives like normal women around the world.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽After leaving the activists, we return to our hotel. It鈥檚 dark. We鈥檙e certain we鈥檙e under heavy surveillance.
顿贰狈滨厂听惭翱驰狈滨贬础狈:聽There goes another new car. Should we turn off the light?
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Soon there鈥檚 a commotion outside our room on the boulevard below. Cars are making U-turns outside of our hotel, their drivers clearly alarmed over something happening further up the street. Jamal gets a phone call from Mohamed Mayara of Equipe Media. He describes the police violence he鈥檚 witnessing nearby.
惭翱贬础惭贰顿听惭础驰础搁础:聽I鈥檓 seeing police throwing stones and raiding houses. It鈥檚 not far from you.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽Let鈥檚 go upstairs.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽We climb a set of stairs to the hotel鈥檚 rooftop. We spot protesters on a sidewalk below, a few hundred feet away. They begin to scatter just as the hotel鈥檚 night manager demands we leave.
JAMAL聽He says you鈥檙e not allowed to be here on the roof.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽We quietly descend and return to our room. From our window, we spot about a dozen men throwing stones, then turning and running away. Moments later, police in riot gear arrive, charging the protesters and throwing rocks of their own.
As the night wears on, the confrontation between Sahrawi activists and the police winds down. We heard later there had been arrests.
We spend our few remaining hours at the hotel taking precautions to protect the footage we had recorded over our trip to occupied Western Sahara, then make our way to the airport.
JAMAL:聽All right, now we鈥檙e leaving the hotel.
础惭驰听骋翱翱顿惭础狈:聽At the gate, we pass through a final gauntlet of Moroccan Mukhabarat, or intelligence agents. As we head to the plane, one of them says, 鈥淚 hope you had a good time in Moroccan Sahara.鈥 鈥淢oroccan Sahara,鈥 the term the Moroccan government uses, but no country in the world officially recognizes. Morocco occupies Western Sahara, Africa鈥檚 last colony.
贵辞谤听Democracy Now!, I鈥檓 Amy Goodman, with John Hamilton, Mike Burke and Denis Moynihan.
This has been a聽Democracy Now!聽special. 鈥淔our Days in Western Sahara: Africa鈥檚 Last Colony鈥 was directed by John Hamilton and produced with our news director Mike Burke and Denis Moynihan. Special thanks to Julie Crosby, Miriam Barnard, Brendan Allen, Hugh Gran and all those who helped us along the way.