The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, once again ignored the positions of the Polisario during the opening of the 57th ordinary session of the Human Rights Council, being held from September 9 to October 11 in Geneva. Instead, the Austrian focused his speech on restrictions on the exercise of freedom of expression in countries such as Azerbaijan, Mali, Uganda, Venezuela, Tunisia, Nicaragua, Vietnam, and China. The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights had already disappointed the Polisario during the opening of the 55th session of the HRC last March. In his report on the «55 conflicts» shaking various parts of the world, he did not mention the Polisario Front's «war» against Morocco or the «occupation of Western Sahara». At the 57th session of the UN HRC, the Polisario mobilized associations based in the Sahara. Over the past few days, they have been calling on the international community to «sanction the Moroccan authorities for committing human rights violations» in the territory. On Monday in Geneva, the Polisario organized a conference on «Western Sahara and Palestine». Morocco has held the presidency of the UN Human Rights Council since January 10, 2024.
