President of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic | |
---|---|
Residence | Sahrawi refugee camps, Tindouf, Algeria |
Term length | No term limit |
Inaugural holder | Mohamed Abdelaziz |
Formation | August 1982 |
The president of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic is the head of state of the partially recognized Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), a government in exile based in the Sahrawi refugee camps of Tindouf, Algeria.
From the declaration of independence on February 27, 1976, to August 1982, the head of state of the SADR was known as the chairman of the Revolutionary Council. The office of the president of the SADR was established in August 1982, after a change in the constitution made by the fifth general congress of the Polisario Front, where it was decided the post were to be held by the Secretary-General of the Polisario. [1] The first President was Mohamed Abdelaziz from August 1982 until his death in 2016. [2] [3]
The powers of the presidency are extensive, and they have been subject to modification in various constitutional amendments, the last occurring in 1995.
No. | Portrait | Chairman/President | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Party | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | El-Ouali Mustapha Sayed (1949–1976) [lower-alpha 1] | 29 February 1976 | 9 June 1976 † | 101 days | POLISARIO | — | |
– | Mahfoud Ali Beiba (1952–2010) Acting | 9 June 1976 | 30 August 1976 | 82 days | POLISARIO | — | |
2 | Mohamed Abdelaziz (1947–2016) | 30 August 1976 | 31 May 2016 † | 39 years, 275 days | POLISARIO | — | |
– | Khatri Addouh (born 1954) Acting | 31 May 2016 | 12 July 2016 | 42 days | POLISARIO | [4] | |
3 | Brahim Ghali (born 1949) | 12 July 2016 | Incumbent | 6 years, 339 days | POLISARIO | — |
Western Sahara, formerly the Spanish colony of Spanish Sahara, is a disputed territory claimed by both the Kingdom of Morocco and the Popular Front for the Liberation of the Saguia el Hamra and Rio de Oro, which is an independence movement based in Algeria. The Annexation of Western Sahara by Morocco took place in two stages, in 1976 and 1979, and is considered illegal under international law.
The Polisario Front, Frente Polisario, Frelisario or simply Polisario, from the Spanish abbreviation of Frente Popular de Liberación de Saguía el Hamra y Río de Oro, is a rebel Sahrawi nationalist liberation movement claiming Western Sahara.
Mohamed Abdelaziz was the 3rd Secretary General of the Polisario Front, from 1976, and the 1st President of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic from 1982, until his death in 2016.
Abdelkader Taleb Omar is a Sahrawi politician who serves as the ambassador of Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic to Algeria since 17 March 2018. He is a former prime minister.
El-Ouali Mustapha Sayed was a Sahrawi nationalist leader, co-founder and second Secretary-General of the Polisario Front.
Tifariti is an oasis town located in north-eastern Western Sahara, east of the Moroccan Berm, 138 km (86 mi) from Smara and 15 km (9 mi) north of the border with Mauritania. It is part of what Polisario Front calls the Liberated Territories and Morocco call the Buffer Zone. It has been the de facto temporary capital of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic since the government moved there in 2008 from Bir Lehlou. It is the headquarters of the 2nd military region of the SADR.
Mahfoud Ali Beiba Hammad Dueihi was a Sahrawi politician and co-founder of the Polisario Front, a national liberation movement that seeks self-determination for Western Sahara. From 1975 until his death, he lived in an exile in the refugee camps of Tindouf, Algeria.
Agounit is a small town or village in the Río de Oro area of the disputed territory of Western Sahara. It is situated in the Polisario Front-held Free Zone of Western Sahara, under the jurisdiction of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, and near the Mauritanian border, 72 km. south-west from Fderik. It is claimed by Morocco as a rural commune in the Aousserd Province in the region of Dakhla-Oued Ed-Dahab. At the time of the 2004 census, the commune had a total population of 222 people living in 43 households. It has a hospital, a school and a mosque. It is the head of the 7th military region of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic.
The Sahrawi National Council (SNC) or Sahrawi Parliament is the legislature of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic. Its structure and competences are guided by the Constitution of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR). The present speaker since 2020 is Hamma Salama.
The Royal Advisory Council for Saharan Affairs is an advisory committee to the Moroccan government on Western Sahara. It was created under Mohammed VI in early 2006, after a new autonomy plan proposed by Morocco to replace the United Nations' Baker Plan. The Polisario Front opposes Morocco's autonomy plan, demanding for a referendum and independence.
The politics of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic refers to politics of the Polisario Front's proclaimed Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, a country in North Africa with limited recognition by other states, controlling parts of the Western Sahara region.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic:
Brahim Mokhtar Boumakhrouta is the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic Minister of Cooperation. He is a prominent member of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) diplomatic corps. He has had several postings around the world, both as Polisario representative and SADR ambassador. He has also held two positions in the SADR government, Secretary General of Government 2001-2003 and Director of Protocol 2003-2007 of the President Mohamed Abdelaziz.
The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) was proclaimed by the Polisario Front on 27 February 1976, in Bir Lehlu, Western Sahara. SADR claims sovereignty over the entire territory of Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony; however, at present the SADR government controls approximately 20–25% of the territory it claims. It calls the territories under its control the "Liberated Territories", whilst Morocco claims its territories as the "Southern Provinces".
Brahim Ghali is a Sahrawi politician, military officer and current president of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), formerly its ambassador to Algeria and Spain.
Sahrawi Republic–South Africa relations are the current and historical relations between the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) in Western Sahara and the Republic of South Africa. Formal diplomatic relations were established at ambassador level in 2004, during the Thabo Mbeki government. A Sahrawi embassy was opened in Pretoria, and the South-African embassy in Algiers was accredited to the SADR.
Mexico–Sahrawi Republic relations are the current and historical relations between Mexico and the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR). Mexico recognized the SADR on 8 September 1979.
The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, also known as the Sahrawi Republic and Western Sahara, is a partially recognized state, recognised by 45 UN member states, located in the western Maghreb, which claims the non-self-governing territory of Western Sahara, but controls only the easternmost one-fifth of that territory. Between 1884 and 1975, Western Sahara was known as Spanish Sahara, a Spanish colony. The SADR is one of the two African states in which Spanish is a significant language, the other being Equatorial Guinea.
Khatri Addouh is a former president of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic and the president of the Sahrawi National Council from 2010 to 2020. He was appointed as the Acting President and the Secretary General of the Polisario Front upon the death of his long time aide President Mohamed Abdelaziz on 31 May 2016.
Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic–Spain relations refers to the current and historical relationship between the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic and Spain.