European Parliament Urged to Investigate Aid Diversion in Tindouf Refugee Camps

The parliamentary group chaired by Noureddine Mediane suspects Polisario Front officers of diverting a good part of the aid, reports the daily Al Massae, stating that the Istiqlal elected officials say they are awaiting the Algerian government to open an independent investigation to find out about this drift and punish the guilty, and especially the necessary measures so that the aid that would be sold on the black market actually reaches the beneficiaries, indicates the same source.

In the same letter, the parliamentary group stresses that, as Algeria is the only one responsible for the well-being of Sahrawi refugees on its territory, delegating the management of the camps to a so-called liberation movement is illegal and unacceptable, under international law.

Relying on the Geneva Convention which highlights the right of refugees to be identified, to move freely in the host country, to engage in a lucrative activity, to settle in a third country if they so wish, the Istiqlal members hammer that Algeria is in flagrant violation of this international law.

Algeria, which, the parliamentary group points out, has a duty to proceed with the identification and census of the refugee population, as required by the UN Security Council in its annual report on the Sahara.

Also, the President of the European Parliament is being called upon for prompt measures, in order to get Algeria to assume its responsibilities and apply the Geneva Convention, to the Sahrawi refugee camps, concluded the same source.