Morocco denies dumping refugees
2005-10-14 22:17
Madrid - The Western Sahrawi independence movement, Polisario Front, has located 50 illegal immigrants from west and central Africa in an area of the disputed desert territory scattered with landmines, said reports on Friday.
Polisario said the immigrants had been abandoned there by Morocco - a charge the Moroccan government had denied, saying they must be newly arrived refugees.
Two helicopters of the United Nations mission to Western Sahara (Minurso) had been searching for several dozen migrants reportedly abandoned near a mined defensive wall built by Morocco during its war with Polisario.
That war lasted from Morocco's 1975 annexation of Western Sahara to a 1991 ceasefire.
50 migrants found 'in a deplorable state'
Thousands of illegal immigrants had been arrested in Morocco, while attempting to reach the Spanish outposts of Ceuta and Melilla on Morocco's Mediterranean coast.
The Minurso helicopters didn't locate any immigrants, but El Pais quoted Polisario sources as saying the movement had found 50 migrants "in a deplorable state" on its side of the wall and given them food and shelter.
"Responsible sources" quoted by the Moroccan state news agency, MAP, said the reports were "lies".
The sources said Morocco hadn't left any refugees in the desert, adding that anyone wandering in the Sahara must have arrived there by himself.
The reports said that, under pressure from Spain to stem the tide of refugees, Morocco had arranged for about 550 Senegalese to be flown home and was in the process of repatriating about 660 Malians.
Refugees regrouped in camps
El Pais said Morocco was planning to fly 2 000 other would-be immigrants home from Guelmine in the south of the country.
The immigrants had initially been regrouped in military camps in southern Morocco and Western Sahara. African diplomats were asked to help identify their nationalities.
Morocco had stepped up pressure against illegal immigrants after thousands staged massive attempts to storm Ceuta and Melilla - causing the deaths of at least 14 migrants and bringing Spanish immigrant reception centres to the brink of collapse.
The European Union said 30 000 would-be immigrants were waiting in Morocco and Algeria for an opportunity to enter the Spanish enclaves.
Both Spain and Morocco had been accused of violating immigrants' rights during attempting to keep them from illegally entering their territory.
- SAPA