Ocupación S.A. is a documentary film that investigates how the Spanish ruling elite helps perpetuate Morocco’s little-reported, decades-long and illegal occupation of Spain’s resource-rich but impoverished former North African colony, Western Sahara. This never took place, leaving Western Sahara divided today by a 2,700-kilometre (1,700 mile)-long mined sand embankment. Courtesy of MundabatUrovesa has sold over 1,200 armoured vehicles to Morocco, many used to police Western Sahara, whilst military hardware producer Indra Sistemas provides a satellite for surveillance purposes. Spanish-German company Siemens Gamesa has illegally constructed wind turbines in Western Sahara, which provide energy to extract the country’s vast phosphate resources, a vital ingredient in synthetic fertilizer. In February, the Spanish government reaffirmed its decades-long policy that the country has “no international responsibility” regarding Western Sahara.

Source: The North Africa Journal April 30, 2021 00:33 UTC