South Africa’s Position on the Western Sahara and the right of Self-determination: An Afro-decolonial analysis

Abstract

In a 2004 letter to the King and Government of Morocco, South Africa’s second democratically-elected president, Thabo Mbeki, announced the
decision to fully recognize the Saharawi Republic as a state though the United Nations process of facilitating a negotiated end to disagreement
between Morocco and Saharawi people represented by the Polisario Front had not concluded. The letter suggested that the hope for a negotiated solution had been dashed. South Africa has maintained this position, aligning with the AU official position to Morocco’s chagrin. This paper employs an Afro-decolonial lens of analysis to critically analyze this policy position and how this is impacted upon by the aggressive growth of Moroccan influence in multilateral Africa.
Keywords: Western Sahara, South Africa, Self-determination, United Nations.