Spanish artists call on Mr. Zapatero to support "justice" and "legality"
29/05/2007- Sahara Press Service

Spanish artists called on the President of the Spanish Socialist government, Mr. José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, to stand by the side of "justice" and "legality" with regard to the conflict of Western Sahara by supporting the Saharawi people’s right to self-determination and independence.

"We admired the courage of Zapatero when he knew how to withdraw from an illegal and coward war and we supported him and believe in his social policies. We ask the president of our government to put an end to the causes of political injustice", to which the Saharawi people are victims, these artists underlined in an opinion published on Monday in the Spanish newspaper, El Pais (close to the socialists).

The appeal is signed by some 50 actors, and producers including the famous director Pedro Almodovar, and famous Spanish actors such as Rosa Maria Sarda, Pilar Bardem, Veronica Forque, Carmelo Gomez and José Coronado.

The signatories asked Zapatero to support the international legality in the conflict of the Western Sahara, and to be courageous in "abandoning ambiguity". "We ask you to open the eyes and stand by the Saharawi people adopting the same position adopt for 30 years by the Spanish people", which is supporting the Saharawi cause.

"We believe that we should not be ambiguous in the face of the Moroccan government’s repression and the forced exile to which the Saharawi people are subjected. It is a question of the existence of a people, its destiny, its right to live in its land, to have a future not as refugee, nor as a colonised and punished people, but as free men and women", affirmed the Spanish artists. (SPS)