- Rights group appeals to ACHPR
ADDIS ABABA – An urgent appeal has been submitted to the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR), calling for immediate intervention on behalf of nine Sahrawi political prisoners who have launched an open-ended hunger strike in Moroccan prisons.
The prisoners, all members of the Gdeim Izik group, reportedly began what they describe as a “Battle for Dignity” hunger strike on September 23, citing prolonged detention, solitary confinement, alleged medical neglect and continued incarceration outside Western Sahara.
The appeal identifies the hunger strikers as human rights defender Naâma Asfari, alongside Mohamed Bani, Abdallah Abhah, Mohamed Lamine Haddi, Bashir Khadda, Sidi El Bachir Boutengiza, Ahmed Sbaai, Hussein Zaoui and Hassan Dah.
According to the petition addressed to the ACHPR, the prisoners have spent nearly 16 years in detention and are protesting what supporters describe as arbitrary imprisonment and deteriorating prison conditions.
The appeal alleges that the detainees are being held in Ait Melloul 2, Tiflet 2 and Kenitra prisons and that authorities have failed to respond adequately to their humanitarian and medical concerns.
Supporters argue that Morocco’s continued detention of the prisoners outside Western Sahara violates provisions of international humanitarian law, including the Fourth Geneva Convention, which they say prohibits the transfer of protected persons outside occupied territories.
The petition further cites findings by various United Nations mechanisms, including the UN Committee Against Torture and the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, which have previously raised concerns about the prisoners’ convictions and detention conditions.
Calling the situation life-threatening, the appeal urges the ACHPR to use its mandate under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights to intervene and prevent further deterioration in the prisoners’ health.
Among the measures sought are immediate access to independent medical care for all nine prisoners, pressure for their unconditional release, the transfer of detainees to locations within Western Sahara, and the deployment of an urgent fact-finding mission to assess the conditions of Sahrawi political prisoners held in Moroccan facilities.
The petition argues that the continental human rights body has a responsibility to protect human rights defenders and investigate allegations of rights violations, warning that prolonged inaction could place the lives of the hunger-striking prisoners at greater risk.
The ACHPR has not yet publicly responded to the latest appeal.
Background
The Gdeim Izik group comprises Sahrawi activists arrested after authorities dismantled the Gdeim Izik protest camp near Laayoune in 2010. Their detention and convictions have remained a subject of international scrutiny, with human rights organisations and Sahrawi advocacy groups frequently raising concerns over prison conditions, fair trial standards and the treatment of detainees.
