NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Royal Advisory Council for Saharan Affairs

The Royal Advisory Council for Saharan Affairs (CORCAS) (French: Conseil royal consultatif pour les affaires sahariennes) is an appointed body of advisors to the Moroccan government working in the Southern Provinces, i.e. the Moroccan-controlled part of Western Sahara. It was originally devised by King Hassan II in the 1970s, but allowed to expire, and renewed by his son, Mohammed VI only in early 2006, in an attempt to gain Saharawi support for a Moroccan autonomy plan devised to replace the United Nations' Baker Plan. It is opposed by the Polisario Front, the main Sahrawi independence movement, which demands that the United Nations resolutions and Moroccan-Polisario agreements calling for a referendum on independence be implemented. This is a partial list of rulers of Morocco, including the historical precursors to the modern state. ... US President George W. Bush talks with His Majesty King Mohammed VI of Morocco in the Oval Office Tuesday, 23 April 2002 King Mohammed VI (Arabic: Ø§Ù„Ù…Ù„Ùƒ Ù…ØÙ…Ø¯ Ø§Ù„Ø³Ø§Ø¯Ø³ Ù„Ù„Ù…ØºØ±Ø¨), also King Mohammed Ben Al-Hassan is the current King of Morocco. ... Makhzen is a Moroccan Arabic term for the governing elite in Morocco, centered around the king and consisting of royal notables, businessmen, wealthy landowners, tribal leaders, top-ranking military personnel, security service bosses, and other well-connected members of the establishment. ... The Prime Minister is the head of the government of Morocco. ... Moroccan Prime Minister Driss Jettou Driss Jettou (Arabic: Ø¥Ø¯Ø±ÙŠØ³ Ø¬Ø·Ùˆ) (born May 24, 1945 in El Jadida) is the Prime Minister of Morocco. ... The Parliament of Morocco is located in Rabat, the capital of Morocco. ... The Parliament of Morocco has two chambers. ... The Parliament has two chambers. ... Political parties in Morocco lists political parties in Morocco. ... Elections in Morocco gives information on election and election results in Morocco. ... Regions of Morocco Regions of Morocco - As part of a 1997 decentralization/regionalization law passed by the legislature 16 new regions (provided below) were created (capitals in parentheses). ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Morocco. ... Morocco is a moderate Arab state which maintains close relations with Europe and the United States. ... // Background The Western Sahara area has never formed a state in the modern sense of the word. ... Information on politics by country is available for every country, including both de jure and de facto independent states, inhabited dependent territories, as well as areas of special sovereignty. ... The Moroccan name for Western Sahara. ... This is a partial list of Kings of Morocco. ... Hassan II (July 9, 1929-July 23, 1999) was King of Morocco from 1961 to his death. ... His Majesty King Mohammed VI (Arabic: الملك محمد السادس للمغرب) a. ... Sahrawi and Saharawi are terms most commonly used for the natives of the Morocco-administered Western Sahara. ... An autonomous (subnational) entity is a subnational entity that has a certain amount of autonomy. ... The United Nations (UN) is an international organization whose stated aims are to facilitate co-operation in international law, international security, economic development, and social equity. ... The Baker Plan A United Nations plan to grant Western Sahara self-determination. ... The Polisario, Polisario Front, or Frente Polisario, from the Spanish abbreviation of Frente Popular de LiberaciÃ³n de SaguÃa el Hamra y RÃo de Oro (Popular Front for the Liberation of Saguia el-Hamra and RÃo de Oro) is a Sahrawi movement working for the independence of... MINURSO is a UN peacekeeping mission, established in 1991 to monitor the ceasefire and to organize and conduct a referendum which would enable the people of Western Sahara to choose between integration with Morocco and independence. ... The Settlement Plan was an agreement between the Polisario Front and Morocco on the organization of a referendum, which would constitute an expression of self-determination for the Sahrawi people of the non-decolonized territory of Western Sahara, possibly leading to full independence. ... Ballots of the Argentine plebiscite of 1984 on the border treaty with Chile A referendum (plural: referendums or referenda) or plebiscite (from Latin plebiscita, originally a decree of the Concilium Plebis) is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. ...

Mission

The CORCAS is intended as a consultative body for proposals related to what Morocco regards as its Southern Provinces, but also to defend the kingdom's "territorial integrity" in the media and visavi international actors. It's main political purpose seems to be to provide a formal venue for Sahrawi backers of the Moroccan government's proposal for internal autonomy, excluding any option of independence for the contested territory. The Moroccan name for Western Sahara. ... In politics, a country (or in some cases, a group of countries) over which a king or queen reigns, is a kingdom, see: monarchy. ... Territorial integrity is the principle under international law that nation-states should not attempt to promote secessionist movements or to promote border changes in other nation-states. ...

The Council has been also tasked to "facilitate" dialogue with the Sahrawis in the refugee camps of Tindouf, Algeria, where Polisario is based, but Polisario har refused to hold any dialogue with it. Refugee camp for Rwandans located in what is now the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo following the Rwandan Genocide A refugee camp is a camp built up by governments or NGOs (such as the ICRC) to receive refugees. ... Tindouf, also written Tinduf, (Arabic: ØªÙ†Ø¯ÙˆÙ) is wilaya in the west of Algeria, population 30,000 (not including approximately 160,000 Sahrawi refugees). ...

Composition

The 141 members of CORCAS are Sahrawi and Moroccan political and traditional (tribal) notables (sheikhs), elected representatives for women and youth groups and civic society officials. All of them are appointed by the Moroccan government and all of them are sympathetic to the Moroccan claims on Western Sahara. Of these members 14 (10%) are women. Notably, the father of Polisario leader Mohamed Abdelaziz is a member of the CORCAS. http://www. ... For other uses, see Sheikh (disambiguation). ... ... Mohamed Abdelaziz, pictured c. ...

Its chairman, Khelli Henna Ould Rachid, is a former leader of the PUNS, a now-defunct political party operated by the Spanish colonial government to rally support for its rule in then-Spanish Sahara in the 1970s. After the departure of the Spanish in 1975, which caused the dissolution of the PUNS, he became a defender of Morocco's position on the Sahara, and became a figurehead for the Moroccan government's rule in the Western Sahara. Partido de UniÃ³n Nacional Saharaui (PUNS, Sahrawi National Union Party) was a short-lived political party set up by Spain to rally support in its rebellious Spanish Sahara colony (now Western Sahara). ... A political party is an organization that seeks to attain political power within a government, usually by participating in electoral campaigns. ... See colony and colonisation for examples of colonialism which do not refer to Western colonialism. ... Spanish Sahara was the name used for the modern territory of Western Sahara when it was ruled by Spain, created from the Spanish territories of Rio de Oro and La Aguera in 1924. ... In politics, a figurehead, by metaphor with the carved figurehead at the prow of a sailing ship, is a person who holds an important title or office yet executes little actual power. ...

There are nine vice-presidents: Khedad Moussaoui, Hassan Derham, Abdelaziz Abba, Omar Bouida, Ali Salem Chekaf, Othmane Ila, Hassana Cherif, Brika Zerouali and Kaltoum Khyate.

International activities

The CORCAS leadership has travelled extensively and is regularly featured in the Moroccan press meeting with visiting delegations from other countries. Its chairman, Khellihenna Ould Errachid, is regularly brought to meetings in foreign forums, such as the UN, where the Sahara question will be discussed, and presented as the authentic voice of Sahrawis, contrary to Polisario claims to be representative of the population. Among others, the CORCAS president has met with the President of the People's Republic of China president, the former French foreign minister, and various Spanish and international officials. The President of the Peoples Republic of China (Simplified Chinese: ä¸åŽäººæ°‘å…±å’Œå›½ä¸»å¸; Pinyin: ZhÅnghuÃ¡ RÃ©nmÃn GÃ²nghÃ©guÃ³ ZhÇ”xÃ, or abbreviated GuÃ³jiÄ ZhÇ”xÃ å›½å®¶ä¸»å¸) is the head of state of the Peoples Republic of China. ...

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Contents

Mission

Composition

International activities

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