Issue 4 – Wednesday 2 August
Saharawis are here at last
Staff writiers
There were smiles on the faces of the residents of Village 15 last night as five more members of the delegation from Western Sahara arrived at Global Village following a grueling five-day journey.
The group left their refugee camp last Friday and travelled on to Argelia, where they had to wait until Sunday for visas to be granted. After catching the first available flight, the group reached site yesterday evening.
The group represent UJSARIO, an organisation that works with young people living in the refugee camps in Western Sahara. It aims to help with day-to-day life especially in terms of assisting with education, which is difficult to access for young Saharawi people. The organisation also provides activities for young people to do in their free time by running workshops on health and education topics.
Whilst at camp, the six delegates will act as ambassadors promoting the cause of independence for the Saharawi people. Previously a Spanish colony, the country was invaded by Morocco in 1975, leading to thousands of people fleeing to camps in the Algerian desert one of the most difficult environments on Earth.
Delegation member Zahra Abdaulahi, who arrived at Global Village a few days ago, was happy to see her colleagues. It is the first time I have had the chance to experience a camp like this, with young people from all over the world, she said. Zahra was also looking forward to meeting a lot of enthusiastic young people, and to taking part in an event where young people work together and are actively involved in the decision-making process.
Zahra is also looking forward to working with others to influence decision makers and taking action as well as simply talking about the Global Village themes.
The newly arrived delegation spent their first evening presenting a series of short films in the Global Village cinema, informing others about the situation in Western Sahara something they hope to continue throughout the festival.