Meeting on Tuesday, April 16, in Laâyoune, the chioukhs of the Laâroussiyine, Rguibat, Cheikh Maoulaynine, Tidrarine, and Aït Lahcen tribes denounced Washington's decision to support the expansion of MINURSO's prerogatives to the issue of human rights.

These chioukhs, who draw their legitimacy not only from Sahrawi customary law but also through their appointment by Dahir in order to watch over the interests of the populations of our Southern provinces and by the trust placed in them by the UN mission which had tasked them with supervising its identification operation, published a communiqué in which they announced "without fear, nor hesitation and in all confidence" their "unwavering position which consists of rejecting the initiative that aims to expand the prerogatives of MINURSO which was supported, recently by the USA".

They also recalled that "at a time when the efforts made from Tangier to Lagouira for the consolidation of human rights are praised by all components of the international community and by our various international partners, this kind of unilateral initiative and without prior consultation is incomprehensible and can in no way be admissible".

Furthermore, they added, no Moroccan Sahrawi "can forget or deny that our ancestors pledged allegiance to the Alaouite Kings".

Moreover, they indicate, "no one can ignore or deny that Morocco has been committed for some years to finding a political solution to the Sahara conflict. In this sense, it has engaged in a positive dynamic via its initiative of broad autonomy for the Sahara region, within the framework of Moroccan sovereignty, its territorial integrity, and its national unity". "This initiative, add the Sahrawi chioukhs, enters into the framework of the construction of a modern democratic society, based on the rule of law and freedoms and social and economic development", which is "promising of a better future for the inhabitants of the Southern provinces" and which "will put an end to the suffering caused by the scattering of families while allowing the establishment of a climate of understanding between them".

They hope, finally, that "the dynamic adopted by Morocco on this subject offers a historic opportunity for a definitive solution" to the Sahara.