Conference 'The Western Sahara Problem and the Role of Europe'

12-03-2016

Crowne Plaza Promenade Hotel, The Hague, 13 and 14 March, 2016

This conference of one and a half days is primarily intended for academics, MPs, civil servants and NGOs, but we also reserved 100 places for students.

The entrance is free but subject to registration. On Sunday 13 March a light lunch and two coffee breaks will be served and on Monday 14 March a coffee break. A carrying case with the abstracts of the presentations and a copy of the books 'The East Timor Problem and the Role of Europe' and 'International Law and the Question of Western Sahara' will be given to every participant.

To register, please send an email to thehaguewsconference@gmail.com with your name, nationality, title/profession, institution/organisation/university, town of residence, mobile number and email address. Please inform us upon registration if you wish to attend both days, or only day 1 or 2.

All registrations are subject to availability. Registration is accepted on a first-come, first-served basis. You will receive a confirmation email from us when registration is accepted.

Sunday, 13 March

08.30-09.15 – Registration
09.15-09.30 – OFFICIAL OPENING
09.30-11.00 – WESTERN SAHARA, THE LAST COLONY OF AFRICA
Emhamed Khadad (MINURSO Coordinator, POLISARIO Front, SADR)
The latest developments on the question of Western Sahara
Joaquim da Fonseca (Ambassador of Timor-Leste to the United Kingdom)
Western Sahara, the East Timor of Northwest Africa
Prof. Lauri Hannikainen (Emeritus Professor of International Law, Finland)
Why do the people of Western Sahara have the right of self-determination under international law?
José Nascimento (Attorney, Johannesburg, South Africa)
The position of the African Union on the question of Western Sahara
11.00-11.30 – Coffee break


11.30-13.00 – THE SERIOUS VIOLATIONS OF HUMAN RIGHTS
Prof. Carlos Martín Beristain (Professor of Psycho-Social Health, Deusto University, Spain)
Historical memory and mass graves in the Western Sahara
El Mahjoub Maliha (Saharawi activist, Member of CODESA, Western Sahara)
The United Nations and the human rights violations in Western Sahara
Kerime van Opijnen (Student Int’l Environment and Development, Norwegian University of Life Sciences)
Arrested and deported by Moroccan police in the Western Sahara
Abeida Mohamed Buzeid (President of NOVA Group and Member of AFAPREDESA, Western Sahara)
The enforced disappearances situation in the occupied territory
13.00-14.15 – Lunch break


14.15-15.45 - THE PILLAGE OF NATURAL RESOURCES
Erik Hagen (Board member of Western Sahara Resource Watch, Norway)
European companies that are involved in the plundering
Maître Gilles Devers (Lawyer at the Bar of Lyon, France)
Some remarks on the recent judgment of the General Court of the European Union
15.45-16.15 – Tea break


16.15-18.00 – ROUND TABLE
Prof. Christine Chinkin (Professor of International Law, London School of Economics, UK)
Prof. Roger Clark (Board of Governors Professor at Rutgers School of Law, USA)
Monday, 14 March

09.30-11.00 THE CONFLICTING POSITIONS IN EUROPE
Frank Willems (Coordinator, Stichting Zelfbeschikking West-Sahara, the Netherlands)
The Coleman leaks
Julia Finér (President of Emmaus Stockholm, Sweden)
The Swedish position on the question of Western Sahara
Prof. Manfred Hinz (Professor in Law and African Studies, University of Bremen, Germany)
The position of Germany on the question of Western Sahara
11.00 – 11.30 – Coffee break


11.30-13.00 – EUROPE'S NEEDED CONTRIBUTION TO A RIGHT OUTCOME
Helena Olsson (Postgraduate education administrator, University of Uppsala, Sweden)
The solidarity of the Swedish civil society with the cause of the Sahrawi people
Prof. Clive Symmons (Research Associate, School of Law, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland)
Duties of non-recognition arising from denial of self-determination and related developments in the Western Sahara dispute
Prof. Jeffrey Smith (Professor of Law, Norman Paterson School of International Affairs, Ottawa, Canada)
Statu nascendi: the character of the Sahrawi state and international law
13.30 – Final declaration and end of the conference


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