*** Spanish below ***The unresolved question of the self-determination of the Saharawi people and respect for the human rights of its citizens is back in the news these days because of the return of the war in Western Sahara between the Kingdom of Morocco and the Polisario Front.It is important to remember that, from the point of view of international law, Western Sahara is a non-self-governing territory pending a referendum on self-determination.

The right to self-determination is a fundamental right, and all UN resolutions reiterate that the final status of the Saharawi territory can only be decided through the right to self-determination of the Saharawi people.The Western Sahara issue and the violence perpetrated by the Moroccan security forces against Saharawi militants is a paradigm of the violent and authoritarian patterns of the repressive mechanism of the Moroccan state and government.Over time, the Sahrawi activist has become, perhaps in spite of herself, the symbol of the struggle of an entire people.Sultana Khaya is President of the League for the Defence of Human Rights and Against the Despoilment of Natural Resources in Boujdour, a town in the north of Western Sahara.She first lost an eye when she was attacked by the police at the University of Marrakech, and then suffered several “aggressions” against her and her family members, all for demanding respect for human rights.Sultana Khaya has been under house arrest since November 2020, a period in which, among other things, as both Amnesty International and the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders have denounced, she has been subjected to repeated acts of violence.Among this heinous harassment that Amnesty denounces, one must also include the fact that she, her sisters and her 80+ year old mother were raped by Moroccan security forces.This is unacceptable and so odious that even the immovable and unsuspecting United Nations, through Mary Lawlor, the UN Special Rapporteur, has threatened international sanctions against the Moroccan monarchy.In view of all this, the Party of the European Left considers it necessary and a priority that the European governments intervene forcefully and immediately, to put pressure on the Moroccan government and monarchy at the institutional and international level, so that, as the UN representative has also requested, they fulfil their obligation to protect the Saharawi activist, because in matters of human rights, any kind of timidity is absolutely unacceptable.The Party of the European Left, reiterating its friendship and closeness to both the Saharawi and Moroccan people, invites the various local authorities to pass motions and agendas of solidarity with Sultana Khaya and her struggle for the people of Western Sahara. It is the right of Sultana Khaya to claim her right to self-determination.LET’S SUPPORT THE RIGHTS OF SULTANA KHAYA AND THE SAHARAWI PEOPLE!***ES***EL PARTIDO DE LA IZQUIERDA EUROPEA SE SOLIDARIZA CON LA ACTIVISTA SAHARAUI SULTANA KHAYA, ENCARCELADA, VIOLADA Y CONSTANTEMENTE ATERRORIZADA POR LAS FUERZAS DE SEGURIDAD MARROQUÍESLa cuestión no resuelta de la autodeterminación del pueblo saharaui y el respeto de los derechos humanos de sus ciudadanos vuelve a ser noticia estos días por la vuelta de la guerra en el Sáhara Occidental entre el Reino de Marruecos y el Frente Polisario.Es importante recordar que, desde el punto de vista del derecho internacional, el Sáhara Occidental es un territorio no autónomo a la espera de un referéndum de autodeterminación. El derecho a la autodeterminación es un derecho fundamental, todas las resoluciones de la ONU reiteran que el estatus final del territorio saharaui sólo puede decidirse a través del derecho a la libre determinación del pueblo saharaui.La cuestión del Sáhara Occidental y la violencia perpetrada por las fuerzas de seguridad marroquíes contra los militantes saharauis es un paradigma de los modelos violentos y autoritarios del mecanismo represivo del Estado y el gobierno marroquíes.Con el paso del tiempo, la militante saharaui se ha convertido, quizás a pesar de ella misma, en el símbolo de la lucha de todo un pueblo.Sultana Khaya es Presidenta de la Liga para la Defensa de los Derechos Humanos y contra el Expolio de los Recursos Naturales en Boujdour, ciudad del norte del Sáhara Occidental.Primero perdió un ojo al ser agredida por la policía en la Universidad de Marrakech, y luego sufrió varias “agresiones” contra ella y sus familiares, todo por exigir y seguir exigiendo el respeto de los derechos humanos.Sultana Khaya lleva en arresto domiciliario desde noviembre de 2020, periodo en el que, entre otras cosas, como han denunciado tanto Amnistía Internacional como el Relator Especi