The referendum for the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara, to be conducted by the United Nations in cooperation with OAU, should have taken place in January 1992. However, major differences in the interpretation of the main provisions of the settlement plan resulted in delays. None the less, agreement was reached on the interpretation of the criteria for eligibility to vote, which enabled the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) to commence the identification and registration of potential voters on 28 August 1994. Also according to the plan, the cease-fire has been in effect since 6 September 1991.
During my visit to the mission area in late November 1994, the parties -- Morocco and the Frente Popular para la Liberación de Saguia el-Hamra y de Río de Oro (Frente POLISARIO) -- assured me of their commitment to the settlement plan. The two neighbouring countries, Algeria and Mauritania, also continued to support it firmly.
In my report to the Security Council of 14 December (S/1994/1420), I noted that, given the large number of applications received, the only way to complete the identification and registration process within a reasonable time-frame would be through a major reinforcement of personnel and other resources. In its resolution 973 (1995) of 13 January, the Council approved my recommendation to expand MINURSO and requested me to report by 31 March to confirm 1 June 1995 as the date for the start of the transitional period. The Council also decided to extend the mandate of MINURSO until 31 May 1995.
On 30 March, I informed the Council that, while the rate of identification and registration was increasing steadily, the progress achieved as at that date did not permit me to recommend 1 June 1995 as the start of the transitional period. I explained that problems relating, in particular, to the timely availability of tribal leaders had caused interruptions in the identification operation. At the same time, some progress had been achieved in the implementation of other aspects of the Settlement Plan. I concluded that, if the parties made it possible to raise the rate of identification to 25,000 per month, and if they cooperated in resolving expeditiously the remaining issues in the Settlement Plan, it might be possible for the transitional period to begin in August 1995 and to hold the referendum in January 1996.
In a presidential statement of 12 April (S/PRST/1995/17), the Security Council called upon both parties to cooperate fully with the United Nations to ensure prompt and full implementation of all aspects of the Settlement Plan. The Council hoped to see continuous and rapid progress by the time of my next report, in May 1995.
In that report (S/1995/404), I recommended that the mandate of MINURSO be extended for a period of four months. Following my report, the Security Council decided by its resolution 995 (1995) of 26 May to extend the mandate of MINURSO for only one month and to send a mission to the region in order to accelerate the implementation of the Settlement Plan. The Mission held consultations with senior government officials at Rabat, Algiers and Nouakchott and with the POLISARIO leadership at Tindouf, and visited MINURSO headquarters at Laayoune.
In its report presented to the Council on 20 June (S/1995/498), the Mission indicated that, given the complexity of the tasks to be performed, the continuing delays caused by the two parties and the constraints imposed by the limited resources and local conditions, there was a real risk that the identification process might be extended beyond the time previously envisaged and that the referendum might not be held in January 1996.
On 23 June, the Frente POLISARIO announced its decision to suspend its participation in the identification operation, because of the sentencing to 15-20 years in prison, by a Moroccan military tribunal, of eight Saharan civilians who had participated in a demonstration at Laayoune and because of the Moroccan authorities' declared intention to have 100,000 applicants residing in Morocco take part in the voter identification operation. Following POLISARIO's decision, the Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Morocco addressed a letter dated 26 June to the President of the Security Council. In the letter, he claimed that the Frente POLISARIO was displaying bad faith, said that its decision could have most serious consequences and requested the Security Council to take all the necessary steps to ensure the resumption of the process with a view to holding the referendum on schedule.
On 12 July, the Frente POLISARIO informed the President of the Security Council that it had decided to continue to participate in the identification process. In announcing its decision, POLISARIO cited efforts made by certain States Members of the Security Council to induce Morocco to reconsider the sentences imposed on the Saharan civilians, the adoption of Security Council resolution 1002 (1995) and the positive discussion at the thirty-first session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of OAU. On 27 July, the identification process resumed in the identification centres in Western Sahara and the Tindouf area. As at mid-August 1995, some 50,000 persons had been identified by MINURSO.
On 30 June, the Security Council adopted resolution 1002 (1995), by which it extended the mandate of MINURSO until 30 September 1995. The Council also expected, based on the report I would present by 10 September on the progress achieved, to confirm 15 November as the start of the transitional period, to allow the referendum to take place in early 1996.
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