Ali El Aallaoui Genesis and Evolution of Saharawi Nationalism
The Saharawi proverb “Sahara belonged neither to a king, nor to a devil, nor to a sultan” is inked in the Saharawi historical memory as a pledge of the independence of the Saharawi people against the authority of the Sultans of Morocco. Indeed, it somehow expresses the fact that Western Sahara had not been dominated before the arrival of Spain by any Moroccan king. It is this fact that characterizes modern Saharawi nationalism in terms of its discourse and arguments. That is to say, for the Saharawis the refusal of the Sultanian authority throughout history is the backbone around which the Saharawi cultural and political identity has crystallized.
With the wave of decolonization which shook all the territories of the African continent, Saharawi nationalism entered the arena of peoples who aspire to their independence by all possible and legitimate means. It should be understood from the outset that Saharawi nationalism falls into the historical category of African nationalism, having transformed a nomadic people into a people seeking its political identity within the international community. This was ultimately manifested in the creation of a new state in exile, called the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR). It is through a historical perspective that began with the movement of decolonization in Africa that we can understand the origins of Saharawi nationalism.
This prompts us to ask the question, how does a nation differ from another nation, in our case, the Saharawi from the Moroccan? In other words, what is the specificity of Saharawi nationalism, which is still developing under the colonial yoke? All this, to answer a fundamental question, how could Saharawi nationalism defend the Saharawi political identity in the quest for independence, despite the Spanish and Moroccan complicity against the Saharawi people?
The Saharawi proverb “Sahara belonged neither to a king, nor to a devil, nor to a sultan” is inked in the Saharawi historical memory as a pledge of the independence of the Saharawi people against the authority of the Sultans of Morocco. Indeed, it somehow expresses the fact that Western Sahara had not been dominated before the arrival of Spain by any Moroccan king. It is this fact that characterizes modern Saharawi nationalism in terms of its discourse and arguments. That is to say, for the Saharawis the refusal of the Sultanian authority throughout history is the backbone around which the Saharawi cultural and political identity has crystallized.
With the wave of decolonization which shook all the territories of the African continent, Saharawi nationalism entered the arena of peoples who aspire to their independence by all possible and legitimate means. It should be understood from the outset that Saharawi nationalism falls into the historical category of African nationalism, having transformed a nomadic people into a people seeking its political identity within the international community. This was ultimately manifested in the creation of a new state in exile, called the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR). It is through a historical perspective that began with the movement of decolonization in Africa that we can understand the origins of Saharawi nationalism.
This prompts us to ask the question, how does a nation differ from another nation, in our case, the Saharawi from the Moroccan? In other words, what is the specificity of Saharawi nationalism, which is still developing under the colonial yoke? All this, to answer a fundamental question, how could Saharawi nationalism defend the Saharawi political identity in the quest for independence, despite the Spanish and Moroccan complicity against the Saharawi people?
The Saharawi proverb “Sahara belonged neither to a king, nor to a devil, nor to a sultan” is inked in the Saharawi historical memory as a pledge of the independence of the Saharawi people against the authority of the Sultans of Morocco. Indeed, it somehow expresses the fact that Western Sahara had not been dominated before the arrival of Spain by any Moroccan king. It is this fact that characterizes modern Saharawi nationalism in terms of its discourse and arguments. That is to say, for the Saharawis the refusal of the Sultanian authority throughout history is the backbone around which the Saharawi cultural and political identity has crystallized.
With the wave of decolonization which shook all the territories of the African continent, Saharawi nationalism entered the arena of peoples who aspire to their independence by all possible and legitimate means. It should be understood from the outset that Saharawi nationalism falls into the historical category of African nationalism, having transformed a nomadic people into a people seeking its political identity within the international community. This was ultimately manifested in the creation of a new state in exile, called the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR). It is through a historical perspective that began with the movement of decolonization in Africa that we can understand the origins of Saharawi nationalism.
This prompts us to ask the question, how does a nation differ from another nation, in our case, the Saharawi from the Moroccan? In other words, what is the specificity of Saharawi nationalism, which is still developing under the colonial yoke? All this, to answer a fundamental question, how could Saharawi nationalism defend the Saharawi political identity in the quest for independence, despite the Spanish and Moroccan complicity against the Saharawi people?
The Saharawi proverb “Sahara belonged neither to a king, nor to a devil, nor to a sultan” is inked in the Saharawi historical memory as a pledge of the independence of the Saharawi people against the authority of the Sultans of Morocco. Indeed, it somehow expresses the fact that Western Sahara had not been dominated before the arrival of Spain by any Moroccan king. It is this fact that characterizes modern Saharawi nationalism in terms of its discourse and arguments. That is to say, for the Saharawis the refusal of the Sultanian authority throughout history is the backbone around which the Saharawi cultural and political identity has crystallized.
With the wave of decolonization which shook all the territories of the African continent, Saharawi nationalism entered the arena of peoples who aspire to their independence by all possible and legitimate means. It should be understood from the outset that Saharawi nationalism falls into the historical category of African nationalism, having transformed a nomadic people into a people seeking its political identity within the international community. This was ultimately manifested in the creation of a new state in exile, called the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR). It is through a historical perspective that began with the movement of decolonization in Africa that we can understand the origins of Saharawi nationalism.
This prompts us to ask the question, how does a nation differ from another nation, in our case, the Saharawi from the Moroccan? In other words, what is the specificity of Saharawi nationalism, which is still developing under the colonial yoke? All this, to answer a fundamental question, how could Saharawi nationalism defend the Saharawi political identity in the quest for independence, despite the Spanish and Moroccan complicity against the Saharawi people?