that the process to identify voters for the referendum has already been concluded but
the actual holding of the referendum has not been carried out.
ii.)
Right to freedom of association and expression
29. Sahrawis in the refugee camps generally expressed concern about the situation of their
kith and kin in the Occupied Territory whom they worried were subjected to frequent
harassment from the Moroccan authorities and Moroccan settlers. Many of the reported
violations were attributed to the Moroccan occupying military and security officers who
have a very heavy presence in the Territory.
30. The delegation was informed that Sahrawis are not allowed by the Moroccan authorities
to assemble freely and any form of peaceful demonstration is usually violently
suppressed by the authorities. Many instances of peaceful demonstrations organized by
Sahrawis against their marginalization and the stalemate on the question of the
referendum were reportedly brutally suppressed.
31. Allegations of suppression of freedom of expression and constant censorship of the
media as well as surveillance of persons and entities that seek to advocate for the
independence of Western Sahara and bring the reality of the plight of the Sahrawi
people in the Occupied Territory to light, were also brought to the attention of the
delegation.
iii.)
Right to freedom of movement
32. The Moroccan government in 1981 built a 2,700 kilometer long wall known as the Berm
or the Wall of Shame cutting Western Sahara in two from North to South. It acts as a
separation barrier between the Moroccan-controlled Occupied Territory (80 per cent of
Western Sahara) and the Polisario-controlled Liberated Territory. Visits between the
camps and the Occupied Territory are impossible, with the Moroccan Wall hindering
movement between the two parts of Western Sahara. Thousands of families have been
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