Morocco’s ambassador to South Africa, Youssef Amrani, strongly refuted the false allegations made by South African Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Alvin Botes, in an op-ed piece on the Moroccan Sahara issue which was published in the African National Congress’ magazine “ANC Today”.
In his response to these derogatory, unfounded, and misplacfalged allegations, the Moroccan diplomat deconstructed the South African rhetoric on the Moroccan Sahara issue and rectified the spurious allegations and intellectual shortcomings of an ideologically biased and narrow vision.
Amrani added that such blind alignment with Algerian theses raises legitimate questions about its purpose and usefulness, and betrays the very essence of the ambition, vision, and ideal of building a strong and unified African continent, recalling Morocco’s historical commitment to the struggle against colonization and apartheid which was instrumental in the establishment of the liberation movement in South Africa.
The Moroccan ambassador added that denying this historical truth, admitted by the late Nelson Mandela himself, is an insult to the sacrifices of Moroccans in their struggle against colonialism and overlooks their unwavering voluntary support to the brotherly African peoples to achieve the same goal.
Pointing out the contradictions in the South African position, Amrani further questioned how South Africa, which had, during its tenure in the Security Council in 2007, voted in favor of the Resolution on the Moroccan Sahara issue, can still promote outdated theses, noting that this bygone idea which was abandoned by the United Nations (UN) and the international community is only kept alive by continuing to view the referendum as a solution to the Moroccan Sahara issue.
Addressing these unjustified and unfounded semantics on the human rights issue, the ambassador explained uncompromisingly that Morocco has nothing to hide and has no complexes, no taboos, and no lessons to learn. Morocco, a thousand-year-old country, whose DNA is marked by the values of peace, tolerance, and openness, has irreversibly enshrined human rights principles, in their universality, in the Moroccan Constitution. The large-scale participation of the Southern provinces’ populations in the general and local elections of September 2021 unequivocally reflects their full commitment to the process of developing democracy in the Kingdom.
In his letter, the Moroccan ambassador also regretted that the article endorses the false assertions made about the alleged “activist” Sultana Khaya and even deviated from the main topic to simply disseminate the propaganda of the “polisario.” Amrani recalled that following the exposure of Khaya’s intentions, lies, and dishonest methods, several officials and United Nations (UN) bodies have consciously distanced themselves from her insidious allegations and deceptions.