- by Che Janz
- The Guardian
- Issue #2200
The Odyssey is an ancient Greek epic poem, immensely important to western culture. The movie is a new adaption, directed by Christopher Nolan and starring Matt Damon. You’ll hear a lot about that.
What you will not hear so much about is where the movie was filmed. The Odyssey was partly filmed in Dakhla, a city that rightfully belongs to the Sahrawi people and their nation-state the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR).
The Kingdom of Morocco has illegally occupied 70-80% of the territory that rightfully belongs to the SADR. On 17 October 1975, the United Nations ruled that the Sahrawian people had a right to self-governance, and any continued conflict in the region will jeopardise the harmony of North-West Africa in continued colonial era disputes.
Morocco disobeyed the command less than a fortnight later and entered West Sahara to claim it. This lead to the Western Sahara War,which lasted for nearly 16 years between the Imperialist Royal Moroccan Armed forces and the socialist Polisario Front (The Sahrawi liberation vanguard party and militia), leading to tens of thousands of deaths.
Although the war ended with a ceasefire, the occupation continues along with the mistreatment and abuse of the Sahrawian people who live under apartheid conditions in their own lands, with most having no choice but to live in refugee camps in neighbouring Algeria.
Supplied by the US and Israel, Morocco has used drones, napalm, white phosphorus and thermobaric bombs. Over 150,000 Sahrawi have fled to the refugee camps, and Morocco has sent settlers to claim the now abandoned villages. They have further separated the Sahrawian people from ever re-entering their land by digging a 2,700km long berm that is heavily guarded. Morocco regularly kidnaps and tortures Sahrawian people and their allies who dare cross it.
Anyone who has any knowledge of the Nakba and the slow stripping away of Palestinian sovereignty by the ‘State of Israel,’ would see the striking similarities with the story of the Sahrawian people. It’s is no coincidence that the national flags of Palestine and Western Sahara are near identical.
In 2023 Israel and the USA recognised Morocco’s illegal conquest and plundering of the Western Sahara in exchange for a normalisation of relations between the two.
We can help the Sahrawian people in a boycott of Morocco like we do of Israel. From obviously not going there, not purchasing goods from there, and not consuming media that was utilised using this ethnic cleansing. As with boycotting Israeli products, it’s a start.
See Guardian #2043 ‘Freedom for the Sahrawian People is long overdue.’ The Australia Western Sahara Association can be found at awsa.org.au.
