By deciding to take the case of the «Cherry Blossom» ship to a different level, the South African court has made a highly political decision and committed a serious abuse of power, OCP said on Thursday in a statement reported by MAP news agency, denouncing what the company called a «serious political interference». «Not only does it (the court) assume jurisdiction to act which contradicts the basic principles of international law but, moreover, its decision is a political interference to the process conducted by the United Nations Security Council», states the OCP. OCP and its subsidiary Phosboucraa also deny the legitimacy of the South African court to pronounce a ruling regarding the case, said the statement. On the 1st of May, following a request by the Polisario, a South African judge ordered the seizure of a shipment of phosphate from Phosboucraa, resulting in the vessel being immobilized in Port Elizabeth. This request was based on purely political allegations, the same source said. «The allegations of the petitioners are unfounded and are initiated to divert the international political process handed to the United Nations Security Council». The OCP and its subsidiary consider that the cargo seized in South Africa is the subject of an act of «political piracy». A denunciation letter has been filed by the Moroccan company in the South African court's register, the same source concludes.
