The Canarian Association of Victims of Terrorism (ACAVITE) has called on the Spanish People's Party to reverse what it described as a «sudden shift» in its stance, following a meeting held by several of its deputies in Gran Canaria with representatives of the Polisario Front. The association considers this meeting a serious retreat from previous commitments to the victims of attacks attributed to the front. In a strongly worded statement, the association described the People's Party's initiatives in support of the Polisario leadership as «inconsistent and flawed», asserting that this perpetuates the abandonment of around 300 Canarian victims of attacks that occurred during the 1970s and 1980s, which the Polisario denies responsibility for, according to the Spanish news agency EFE. ACAVITE clarified that it had previously met with the same deputies last October at the parliament headquarters in Madrid, where they received an explicit commitment to «not whitewash the attacks» and full support for the ratification of the Canarian law on reparation, assistance, and support for victims of terrorism and its financing. The association reminded that the People's Party is part of the Canarian government led by Fernando Clavijo, considering that this contradiction in positions necessitates public clarifications about the reasons for this shift, «which contributes to the continued polishing of the image of the Polisario leadership and its political surroundings». This comes after deputies from the Spanish Popular Party met in Gran Canaria with representatives of the Polisario Front last week, during which they affirmed their support for the front and called on the Spanish government to retract its supportive stance towards Morocco.
