Bachri Ben Taleb
Bachri Ben Taleb is a Sahrawi human rights defender, the current Chairperson of the Sahrawi Association of Victims of Grave Human Rights Violations Committed by the Moroccan State (ASVDH), as well as a founding member of the Sahrawi Association for the Protection and Promotion of Sahrawi Culture and Heritage (ASPDCPS). Bachri Bentaleb has been subjected to numerous violations of his rights and repeated arrests, spending five years in detention due to his peaceful activism defending the rights of the Sahrawi people to self-determination under international law.
Despite the restrictions imposed on Sahrawi human rights defenders, Bachri Bentaleb has continued his human rights and cultural activism, as he believes in the importance of documenting violations, exercising the right to peaceful demonstration, and the right to freedom of association. As part of his activism, he also endeavours in upholding the protection of Sahrawi cultural heritage by taking part in cultural work to strengthen cohesion between components of Sahrawi society.
The issue of the status of Western Sahara remains unresolved, despite ongoing negotiations between the Moroccan authorities and the Polisario Front. The UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), established in 1991, has been extended but continues to have no human rights monitoring component. The dispute over self determination created deep political and security related tensions throughout the Sahara area and affects all aspects of life, including the work of human rights defenders.
Sahrawi human rights defenders continued to be subjected to intimidation, harassment, questioning, arrest, incommunicado detention, and unfair trials.
