Spanish Sahara
Encyclopedia
Spanish Sahara was the name used for the modern territory of Western Sahara
when it was ruled as a territory by Spain
between 1884 and 1975. The territory represented one of the last remnants of the Spanish Empire
, and was abandoned following international pressure, mainly UN
decolonisation resolutions, as well as internal pressure from native populations and the external claims of Morocco
and Mauritania
. Its sovereignty remains under dispute.
, and began establishing trading posts and a military presence. In the summer of 1886, under the sponsorship of the Spanish Society of Commercial Geography (), Julio Cervera Baviera
, Felipe Rizzo (1823–1908), and Francisco Quiroga (1853–1894) traversed the colony of Rio de Oro
, where they made topographical and astronomical observations in a land whose features were barely known at the time to geographers. It is considered the first scientific expedition in that part of the Sahara
.
The borders of the area were not clearly defined until treaties between Spain and France
in the early 20th century. Spanish Sahara was then created from the Spanish territories of Río de Oro
and Saguia el-Hamra
in 1924. It was not part of, and administered separately from, the areas known as Spanish Morocco
.
Entering the territory in 1884, Spain was immediately challenged by stiff resistance from the indigenous
Sahrawi tribes. A 1904 rebellion led by the powerful Smara
-based marabout
, shaykh Ma al-Aynayn, was put down by France in 1910, but it was followed by a wave of uprisings under Ma al-Aynayn’s sons, grandsons and other political leaders.
Because of tribal uprisings, Spain found it difficult to control parts of the country's hinterland until 1934. With its independence in 1956, Morocco laid claim on Spanish Sahara as part of its alleged pre-colonial territory. In 1957, the Moroccan Army of Liberation
nearly occupied the small territory of Sidi-Ifni, north of Spanish Sahara, during the Ifni War
. The Spanish sent a regiment of paratroopers from the nearby Canary Islands and were able to repel the attacks. Control was soon re-established in the entire area, including the actual Spanish Sahara which was also threatened, with the assistance of the French. Later several punitive actions were undertaken to prevent future military actions. Some of the previously nomad
ic inhabitants of Spanish Sahara were forced to settle in certain areas, and the urbanization
of towns and villages was sped up. In the same year, Spain united the territories of Saguia el Hamra and Río de Oro to form the province of Spanish Sahara, and ceded the provinces of Tarfaya
and Tantan (Cape Juby
strip) to Morocco.
In the 1960s, Morocco continued to claim Spanish Sahara and succeeded in having it added to the list of territories to be decolonized; and while in 1969 Spain returned Ifni to Morocco, still withheld the whole Spanish Sahara.
In 1967, Spanish rule was further challenged by a protest movement secretly organized by the Moroccan government, the Marcha Verde or Harakat Tahrir
. After its suppression in the 1970 Zemla Intifada
, Sahrawi nationalism
reverted to its militant origins, with the 1973 formation of the Polisario Front
. The Front’s guerrilla
army grew rapidly, and Spain had lost effective control over most of the countryside in early 1975. An attempt at sapping the strength of Polisario by founding a modern political rival, the Partido de Unión Nacional Saharaui (PUNS), met with little success.
Spain proceeded to co-opt tribal leaders by setting up the Djema’a, a political institution loosely based on traditional Sahrawi tribal leaderships. The Djema’a members were hand-picked by the authorities, but given privileges in return for rubber-stamping Madrid’s decisions.
Immediately before the death of Francisco Franco
in the winter of 1975, however, Spain was confronted with an intensive campaign of territorial demands from Morocco, and to a lesser extent Mauritania
, culminating in the Green March
. Spain then withdrew its forces and settlers from the territory, after negotiating the Madrid Accords
, a tripartite agreement, with Morocco and Mauritania in 1975, under the terms of which the latter countries took control of the region. Mauritania later surrendered its claim after fighting an unsuccessful war against the Polisario. Morocco engaged in a war with the Algeria-backed Polisario Front, although a cease-fire came into effect in 1991, and the sovereignty of the territory remains under dispute.
The United Nations
considers the former Spanish Sahara a non-self-governing territory, with Spain as the formal administrative power, and Morocco
as the current administrative power since the 1970s. UN peace efforts have aimed at holding a referendum
on independence among the Sahrawi population, but this has not yet taken place. The African Union
and at least 81 governments
consider the territory a sovereign, albeit occupied, state under the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
(SADR), with an exile government backed by the Polisario Front
.
Western Sahara
Western Sahara is a disputed territory in North Africa, bordered by Morocco to the north, Algeria to the northeast, Mauritania to the east and south, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. Its surface area amounts to . It is one of the most sparsely populated territories in the world, mainly...
when it was ruled as a territory by Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
between 1884 and 1975. The territory represented one of the last remnants of the Spanish Empire
Spanish Empire
The Spanish Empire comprised territories and colonies administered directly by Spain in Europe, in America, Africa, Asia and Oceania. It originated during the Age of Exploration and was therefore one of the first global empires. At the time of Habsburgs, Spain reached the peak of its world power....
, and was abandoned following international pressure, mainly UN
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
decolonisation resolutions, as well as internal pressure from native populations and the external claims of Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
and Mauritania
Mauritania
Mauritania is a country in the Maghreb and West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest...
. Its sovereignty remains under dispute.
Colonization
In 1884, Spain was awarded the coastal area of present-day Western Sahara at the Berlin ConferenceBerlin Conference
The Berlin Conference of 1884–85 regulated European colonization and trade in Africa during the New Imperialism period, and coincided with Germany's sudden emergence as an imperial power...
, and began establishing trading posts and a military presence. In the summer of 1886, under the sponsorship of the Spanish Society of Commercial Geography (), Julio Cervera Baviera
Julio Cervera Baviera
Julio Cervera Baviera was a Spanish engineer, pioneer in the development of radio, educator, explorer, and military man. He also authored various scientific and geographic books and articles.-Education:...
, Felipe Rizzo (1823–1908), and Francisco Quiroga (1853–1894) traversed the colony of Rio de Oro
Río de Oro
Río de Oro , is, with Saguia el-Hamra, one of the two territories that formed the Spanish province of Spanish Sahara after 1969; it was originally taken as a Spanish colonial possession in the late 19th century...
, where they made topographical and astronomical observations in a land whose features were barely known at the time to geographers. It is considered the first scientific expedition in that part of the Sahara
Sahara
The Sahara is the world's second largest desert, after Antarctica. At over , it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as Europe or the United States. The Sahara stretches from the Red Sea, including parts of the Mediterranean coasts, to the outskirts of the Atlantic Ocean...
.
The borders of the area were not clearly defined until treaties between Spain and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in the early 20th century. Spanish Sahara was then created from the Spanish territories of Río de Oro
Río de Oro
Río de Oro , is, with Saguia el-Hamra, one of the two territories that formed the Spanish province of Spanish Sahara after 1969; it was originally taken as a Spanish colonial possession in the late 19th century...
and Saguia el-Hamra
Saguia el-Hamra
Saguia el-Hamra, in Arabic الساقية الحمراء, al-Saqiyah al-Hamra'a , is, with Río de Oro, one of the two territories that formed the Spanish province of Spanish Sahara after 1969. Its name comes from a waterway that goes through the capital....
in 1924. It was not part of, and administered separately from, the areas known as Spanish Morocco
Spanish Morocco
The Spanish protectorate of Morocco was the area of Morocco under colonial rule by the Spanish Empire, established by the Treaty of Fez in 1912 and ending in 1956, when both France and Spain recognized Moroccan independence.-Territorial borders:...
.
Entering the territory in 1884, Spain was immediately challenged by stiff resistance from the indigenous
Indigenous peoples
Indigenous peoples are ethnic groups that are defined as indigenous according to one of the various definitions of the term, there is no universally accepted definition but most of which carry connotations of being the "original inhabitants" of a territory....
Sahrawi tribes. A 1904 rebellion led by the powerful Smara
Smara
Smara, also Semara , is a city in the Moroccan-Administered Western Sahara, with a population estimated at 42,056.-History:The largest city in its province, Smara was founded in the Saguia el-Hamra as an oasis for travellers in 1869. It is the only major city in Western Sahara that was not founded...
-based marabout
Marabout
A marabout is a Muslim religious leader and teacher in West Africa, and in the Maghreb. The marabout is often a scholar of the Qur'an, or religious teacher. Others may be wandering holy men who survive on alms, Sufi Murshids , or leaders of religious communities...
, shaykh Ma al-Aynayn, was put down by France in 1910, but it was followed by a wave of uprisings under Ma al-Aynayn’s sons, grandsons and other political leaders.
Modern history
Army of Liberation
The Army of Liberation was a force fighting for the independence of Morocco....
nearly occupied the small territory of Sidi-Ifni, north of Spanish Sahara, during the Ifni War
Ifni War
The Ifni War, sometimes called the Forgotten War in Spain , was a series of armed incursions into Spanish West Africa by Moroccan insurgents and Sahrawi rebels that began in October 1957 and culminated with the abortive siege of Sidi Ifni.The war, which may be seen as part of the general movement...
. The Spanish sent a regiment of paratroopers from the nearby Canary Islands and were able to repel the attacks. Control was soon re-established in the entire area, including the actual Spanish Sahara which was also threatened, with the assistance of the French. Later several punitive actions were undertaken to prevent future military actions. Some of the previously nomad
Nomad
Nomadic people , commonly known as itinerants in modern-day contexts, are communities of people who move from one place to another, rather than settling permanently in one location. There are an estimated 30-40 million nomads in the world. Many cultures have traditionally been nomadic, but...
ic inhabitants of Spanish Sahara were forced to settle in certain areas, and the urbanization
Urbanization
Urbanization, urbanisation or urban drift is the physical growth of urban areas as a result of global change. The United Nations projected that half of the world's population would live in urban areas at the end of 2008....
of towns and villages was sped up. In the same year, Spain united the territories of Saguia el Hamra and Río de Oro to form the province of Spanish Sahara, and ceded the provinces of Tarfaya
Tarfaya
- References :CitationsBibliography* Didier Daurat, , France: Édition Dynamo, 1954....
and Tantan (Cape Juby
Cape Juby
Cape Juby is a cape on the coast of southern Morocco, near the border with Western Sahara, directly east of the Canary Islands.Its surrounding area, called Cape Juby strip or Tarfaya strip, while making up presently the far South of Morocco, is in a way a semi-desertic buffer zone between Morocco...
strip) to Morocco.
In the 1960s, Morocco continued to claim Spanish Sahara and succeeded in having it added to the list of territories to be decolonized; and while in 1969 Spain returned Ifni to Morocco, still withheld the whole Spanish Sahara.
In 1967, Spanish rule was further challenged by a protest movement secretly organized by the Moroccan government, the Marcha Verde or Harakat Tahrir
Harakat Tahrir
The Movement for the Liberation of the Saguia el Hamra and Rio de Oro, sometimes referred to as the Movement for the Liberation of the Sahara or simply the Liberation Movement was created in 1969 by Muhammad Bassiri, a Smara-based Sahrawi quranic teacher, to work for the independence of Western...
. After its suppression in the 1970 Zemla Intifada
Zemla Intifada
The Zemla Intifada is the name used by the Algerian-backed Polisario movement to refer to disturbances of June 17, 1970, which culminated in a massacre by Spanish forces in the Zemla district of El-Aaiun, Western Sahara .Leaders of the hitherto secret organization Harakat Tahrir, among them its...
, Sahrawi nationalism
Nationalism
Nationalism is a political ideology that involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms, i.e. a nation. In the 'modernist' image of the nation, it is nationalism that creates national identity. There are various definitions for what...
reverted to its militant origins, with the 1973 formation of the Polisario Front
Polisario Front
The POLISARIO, Polisario Front, or Frente Polisario, from the Spanish abbreviation of Frente Popular de Liberación de Saguía el Hamra y Río de Oro is a Sahrawi rebel national liberation movement working for the independence of Western Sahara from Morocco...
. The Front’s guerrilla
Guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare and refers to conflicts in which a small group of combatants including, but not limited to, armed civilians use military tactics, such as ambushes, sabotage, raids, the element of surprise, and extraordinary mobility to harass a larger and...
army grew rapidly, and Spain had lost effective control over most of the countryside in early 1975. An attempt at sapping the strength of Polisario by founding a modern political rival, the Partido de Unión Nacional Saharaui (PUNS), met with little success.
Spain proceeded to co-opt tribal leaders by setting up the Djema’a, a political institution loosely based on traditional Sahrawi tribal leaderships. The Djema’a members were hand-picked by the authorities, but given privileges in return for rubber-stamping Madrid’s decisions.
Immediately before the death of Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco y Bahamonde was a Spanish general, dictator and head of state of Spain from October 1936 , and de facto regent of the nominally restored Kingdom of Spain from 1947 until his death in November, 1975...
in the winter of 1975, however, Spain was confronted with an intensive campaign of territorial demands from Morocco, and to a lesser extent Mauritania
Mauritania
Mauritania is a country in the Maghreb and West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest...
, culminating in the Green March
Green March
The Green March was a strategic mass demonstration in November 1975, coordinated by the Moroccan government, to force Spain to hand over the disputed, autonomous semi-metropolitan Spanish Province of Sahara to Morocco.-Background:...
. Spain then withdrew its forces and settlers from the territory, after negotiating the Madrid Accords
Madrid Accords
The Madrid Accords, also called Madrid Agreement or Madrid Pact, was a treaty between Spain, Morocco, and Mauritania to end the Spanish presence in the territory of Spanish Sahara, which was until the Madrid Accords' inception a Spanish province and former colony. It was signed in Madrid on...
, a tripartite agreement, with Morocco and Mauritania in 1975, under the terms of which the latter countries took control of the region. Mauritania later surrendered its claim after fighting an unsuccessful war against the Polisario. Morocco engaged in a war with the Algeria-backed Polisario Front, although a cease-fire came into effect in 1991, and the sovereignty of the territory remains under dispute.
Present status
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
considers the former Spanish Sahara a non-self-governing territory, with Spain as the formal administrative power, and Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
as the current administrative power since the 1970s. UN peace efforts have aimed at holding a referendum
Referendum
A referendum is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. This may result in the adoption of a new constitution, a constitutional amendment, a law, the recall of an elected official or simply a specific government policy. It is a form of...
on independence among the Sahrawi population, but this has not yet taken place. The African Union
African Union
The African Union is a union consisting of 54 African states. The only all-African state not in the AU is Morocco. Established on 9 July 2002, the AU was formed as a successor to the Organisation of African Unity...
and at least 81 governments
Foreign relations of Western Sahara
Western Sahara, formerly the Spanish colony of Spanish Sahara, is a disputed territory claimed by both the Kingdom of Morocco and the Polisario Front...
consider the territory a sovereign, albeit occupied, state under the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic is a partially recognised state that claims sovereignty over the entire territory of Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony. SADR was proclaimed by the Polisario Front on February 27, 1976, in Bir Lehlu, Western Sahara. The SADR government controls about...
(SADR), with an exile government backed by the Polisario Front
Polisario Front
The POLISARIO, Polisario Front, or Frente Polisario, from the Spanish abbreviation of Frente Popular de Liberación de Saguía el Hamra y Río de Oro is a Sahrawi rebel national liberation movement working for the independence of Western Sahara from Morocco...
.
See also
- List of colonial heads of Spanish Sahara
- International Court of Justice Advisory Opinion on Western SaharaInternational Court of Justice Advisory Opinion on Western SaharaOne of the main functions of the International Court of Justice is to provide Advisory Opinions - non-binding legal interpretations admitted by United Nations organs. In the summer of 1975, the court considered two questions regarding the disputed territory of Western Sahara...
- History of Western SaharaHistory of Western SaharaThe history of Western Sahara can be traced back to the times of Carthaginian explorer Hanno the Navigator in the 5th century BC. Though few historical records are left from that period, Western Sahara's modern history has its roots linked to some nomadic groups such as the Sanhaja group and the...
- Saharan Liberation Army
- Southern ProvincesSouthern ProvincesThe Southern Provinces or Moroccan Sahara are the terms used by Morocco for Western Sahara, in reference to the part of Western Sahara that lies to the west of the Moroccan Berm...
- Tarfaya Strip
- Tiris al-GharbiyyaTiris al-GharbiyyaTiris al-Gharbiyya was the Mauritanian name for the area of Western Sahara under its control between 1975 and 1979.-Background:...
- Sahrawi Arab Democratic RepublicSahrawi Arab Democratic RepublicThe Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic is a partially recognised state that claims sovereignty over the entire territory of Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony. SADR was proclaimed by the Polisario Front on February 27, 1976, in Bir Lehlu, Western Sahara. The SADR government controls about...
- Spanish MoroccoSpanish MoroccoThe Spanish protectorate of Morocco was the area of Morocco under colonial rule by the Spanish Empire, established by the Treaty of Fez in 1912 and ending in 1956, when both France and Spain recognized Moroccan independence.-Territorial borders:...