Aminatou Haidar should live to fight not fight to die, says Spanish government official

Aminatou Haidar should live to fight not fight to die, says Spanish government official
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By m.p. - Nov 30, 2009 - 1:27 PM
The human rights activist has now entered the 3rd week of her hunger strike at Lanzarote Airport

Aminatou Haidar at the airport on Sunday - EFE

The Western Sahara human rights activist, Aminatou Haidar, now in the third week of her hunger strike at Lanzarote Airport, should ‘live to fight, not fight to die’, a Foreign Ministry spokesman has said.

The Foreign Minister’s chief of staff, Agustín Santos, was in the Canary Islands on Sunday to pass on to Aminatou Haidar the government’s offer of Spanish nationality or political asylum in Spain in an attempt to resolve the situation. He confirmed at a press conference on Monday that both offers were rejected.

Santos told journalists that, while understanding her fight, the government wants to prevent a tragedy. The activist has been surviving on sugared water since starting her protest at Lanzarote after she was expelled by Morocco for writing her nationality as ‘Saharawi’ on the entry form at Laayoune Airport. Spain has said she can only return with a passport, but was withheld by the Moroccan authorities.

With her health becoming increasingly weaker, Haidar collapsed at one point during her meeting with Agustín Santos on Sunday. Doctors are now seriously concerned for her health.

A representative from the Polisario Front has meanwhile called on Morocco to take responsibility for causing the situation. Jadad Mohamed, named by Europa Press as the Polisario Front’s coordinator with MINURSO - the UN mission for the referendum in Western Sahara – called on Madrid to involve Rabat in resolving the situation, saying the Spanish government should not act as a buffer with Morocco.

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