Historical Context
7. A Spanish protectorate since 1884, the territory of Western Sahara was designated in
1963 as ‘non-autonomous’ by the United Nations.1 On 14 November 1975, a Declaration
of Principles on Western Sahara was concluded in Madrid between Spain, Morocco and
Mauritania (“the Madrid Agreement”), whereby the powers and responsibilities of
Spain, as the administering Power of the Territory, were transferred to a temporary
tripartite administration. The Madrid Agreement did not transfer sovereignty over the
Territory, nor did it confer upon any of the signatories the status of an administering
Power, a status which Spain alone could not have unilaterally transferred.2
8. The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic was proclaimed on 27 February 1976 in Bir
Lahlou by the The Frente Popular para la Liberacion da Saguia el Hamra y Rio del Oro
(Polisario Front) which claimed sovereignty over the territory of the Western Sahara.
However, this territory is also being claimed by Morocco which has been in control of 80
per cent of it since 5 August 1979 following the withdrawal of Mauritania from the
Territory upon the conclusion of the Mauritano-Sahraoui agreement of 19 August 1979
(S/13503).
9. In its Advisory Opinion of 16 October 1975, the International Court of Justice (ICJ)
concluded that the “materials and information presented to it do not establish any tie of
territorial sovereignty between the territory of Western Sahara and the Kingdom of
Morocco or the Mauritanian entity. The Court held that it found no legal ties of such
nature as might affect the application of General Assembly resolution 1514 (XV) of 14
December 1960 in the decolonization of Western Sahara and, in particular, of the
principle of self-determination through the free and genuine expression of the will of the
people of the Territory.”
1
United Nations Doc. A/5514, annex III
2
United Nations Doc. S/2002/161
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