Morocco Expels Danish Activists En Route to Western Sahara

They are the two activists, Mille Neumann and Katinka Klinge Albrectsen. The two women arrived in the evening of Wednesday in Agadir (southern Morocco) on a flight from Copenhagen, before continuing their journey by bus to Laâyoune, reports La vanguardia.

However, to their great surprise, upon arriving at a checkpoint located 5 kilometers from the city, their final destination, the two activists, members of the Danish NGO Global action, were turned back by the Moroccan police and forced to return by taxi to Agadir.

Testifying to the situation, Mille Neumann said: "They took our passports and questioned us for more than two hours about the reason for our trip, our work and some of our photos on Facebook in the Sahrawi camps".

Thus, the two women were unable to complete their mission. Indeed, specifies the same source, in the agenda of the two Danish activists, a meeting with associations defending the rights of the Sahrawis was planned upon their arrival.

According to the EFE, the Moroccan authorities have already expelled Spanish and European lawyers and human rights defenders who are in favor of the independence of the Sahrawis on more than one occasion.

As an example, the media cites the case of Cristina Martínez, a Spanish lawyer, who had been expelled from the same city of Laâyoune on August 18, while she wanted to attend, as an observer, the trial of eight Sahrawi activists.

As a reason given by the Moroccan authorities to justify these expulsions, they regret that these lawyers and international observers "bring a hostile agenda to Rabat" and "come to do activism", concludes the EFE.