Sahrawi students enrolled in Algerian universities put an end to their studies to enlist in the army of the Polisario Front. They organize themselves to join the Chahid El Ouali military school, in the refugee camps of Tindouf, in order to follow a period of training and fight the Moroccan forces.
Friday, November 13, 2020, marked the return of the armed conflict in Western Sahara with the events of Guerguerat and the incursion of Moroccan forces into the demarcation zone between the territories under the authority of the Polisario Front and those under Moroccan administration. This date also marks the end of studies for the Sahrawi community in Algeria.
For several days, hundreds of students have flocked to the Sahrawi embassy to register on the list of conscripts.
Three decades of waiting
Sputnik went to meet Ahmed, Damba, Kamel, and Salek, four student volunteers. They all decided to freeze their course to fight in the ranks of the Saharawi army.
Ahmed Abdelkader, 25, and Damba Mohamed Enajem, 26, are almost inseparable. They were in college and high school together and then each followed their own path after the baccalaureate: Damba left to study French literature in Tlemcen and Ahmed enrolled in Spanish literature in Oran. They came to Algiers to register at the Sahrawi embassy and try to find a means of transport to quickly reach the refugee camps of Tindouf (1,900 kilometers south-west of the Algerian capital).
“The attack on Guerguerat by the Moroccans changed my life in a few hours. My goal from a young age was to study and earn a degree. Now, this is all secondary, the priority is to liberate my country. If there are people who can speak with pride about peace, it is the Saharawi people. We have waited three decades for a self-determination referendum without firing a single bullet and making a long series of concessions. Today, we must be proud to go to war because it is the only legitimate right we have, ”said Ahmed Abdelkader calmly.
Ahmed has a brother and three cousins who are already in the fighting zones. “My father was wounded during the first war, in the 1980s, today he encourages me to join them”, he underlines. Before going to the front, Ahmed will have to go through a period of training at the Chahid El Ouali military school, in the Tindouf camps.
Nothing to lose
Damba has a certain lead over the other members of the group since he has already done his military service. “ I joined the Chahid El Ouali school just after the baccalaureate. After the investigation phase, I was transferred to Mhiriz in the 4th Military Region, “says Mohamed Damba Enajem.
Chahid El Ouali military school in the Sahrawi refugee camps of Tindouf.
For now, the most complex mission for all student volunteers will be to reach the refugee camps of Tindouf. Since the start of the pandemic, Air Algérie has no longer provided service between regions. Authorities have also banned long-distance coaches and taxis. The only solution, for students, is to rent a car with a driver to cross all of Algeria.
Optimistic, Damba believes that he will find a means of transport in the coming days. He is part of the overwhelming majority of young Sahrawis impatiently awaiting the return of the war.
“Morocco and its allies must understand that the Saharawi people have nothing to lose. We have neither tourism, nor agriculture, nor any industry. We have been very patient in waiting for the United Nations to design to hold a referendum. Now the guns must speak. Three of my uncles died as martyrs during the first war. My father was taken prisoner by the Mauritanians. He told me everything he had suffered, he also told me how difficult the war is. But he encourages me to volunteer because he considers that it is my generation that must reclaim our land, ”insists the young student in French literature.
Salek Laabid Mohamed Dada, 23, a science and technology student at the University of Bab Ezzouar in Algiers, recognizes that the issue of resuming the conflict against Morocco has always been a generational problem within Sahrawi society. Young people have often reproached the Polisario Front officials for their refusal to take up arms again.
“ I was born a refugee, I haven’t known war, but I don’t know what life is like in a free country. Like many young Sahrawis, I have long held a grudge against our leaders for not having resumed the conflict because anyone who entered by arms must leave by arms. Today I have to admit that they have shown wisdom in giving peace a chance. And they are now demonstrating that they were able to take a responsible decision by putting an end to the ceasefire agreement on November 14, after the Moroccan assault, ”Salek notes.
From pacifism to combat
Kamel Abbès Abdelouadoud, 30, doctoral student in strategic studies at the Faculty of Political Science in Algiers, has a totally different background from the other members of the small group. Unlike thousands of Sahrawi students, he did not go to college and high school in Algeria. Kamel was born and raised in Lâayoune, in Western Sahara under Moroccan administration. He lived there until the age of 20.
“From an early age, I campaigned underground against the colonial administrative system. I was arrested and suffered violence four times. In 2010, I decided to leave the occupied territories and go to Mauritania to join the refugee camps of Tindouf. I was welcomed by members of my family and by the Polisario Front which allowed me to continue my studies in Algeria. ”
Kamel declares that he has no resentment towards Moroccans. “ I must say I have nothing against them. The main problem is the Makhzen, this system which tries to crush the Saharawi people ”, he says.
Married and father of a little boy, this student admits to having been a pacifist for a long time. “ Unlike the vast majority of young Sahrawis who called for the resumption of arms, I have always campaigned for a peaceful and political solution to the Sahrawi question. Unfortunately, the return to war is imposed on us by Morocco which has refused, for three decades, to recognize our right to self-determination, ”adds Kamel. Like Ahmed and Saleh, he has no experience with weapons and combat techniques.
It is difficult to have precise data on the number of students who have decided to join the Sahrawi army. The phenomenon of volunteers does not only concern Algeria, but also Mauritania, Europe – in particular Spain – as well as Cuba. Asked about this, Mahdjoub Chérif, responsible for culture and education at the Embassy of Western Sahara in Algiers, preferred not to give details on this issue.
“I can just say that the list of conscripts is very long and we also have many female students who are ready to sign up.”
