The Party of Communists USA (PCUSA) congratulates President and General-Secretary Brahim Ghali on his re-election by the delegates of the 16th Congress of the POLISARIO Front.
The International Secretary of the Central Committee of the Party of Communists USA, Christopher Helali, recently returned from his official visit to the 16 Congress of the POLISARIO Front in the Wilaya of Dakhla where he was able to extend our greetings to the POLISARIO congress and briefly meet with President Ghali.
This is the Party of Communists USA’s second trip to the Sahrawi Refugee Camps in less than one year. Last May, Christopher Helali and Joe Morman attended the UJSARIO congress in an official capacity.
The Party of Communists USA remains steadfast and unwavering in its commitment to the struggle of the Sahrawi people. We will continue to struggle until all of Western Sahara is free.
We will continue to struggle to reverse the Trump administration’s illegal and immoral decision to recognize Morocco’s so-called “sovereignty” over Western Sahara. PCUSA will continue to pressure US politicians and officials to reverse this decision, to recognize the SADR, and to support the Sahrawi struggle for self-determination.
Below is the text of the speech given at the POLISARIO Congress by Christopher Helali, International Secretary of PCUSA.
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To his Excellency Brahim Ghali, President of the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic and General Secretary of the Polisario Front.
To the members of the central committee. To the secretaries, ministers, deputies, members of parliament, ambassadors, diplomats, distinguished delegates, and guests.
Comrades, Sisters and Brothers,
On behalf of the Party of Communists USA, I bring the warmest greetings, solidarity, and best wishes for the success of the 16th Congress of the Polisario Front. We salute you!
These past few years have been very difficult as the Saharawi struggle for national liberation has entered a new phase with the resumption of the armed struggle against the occupying forces of Morocco.
The failure of diplomacy, the inability of the United Nations and MINURSO to carry out the promised referendum, and the reckless and rogue nature of the US-EU-NATO axis of domination have become apparent for all to see. This includes the growing influence of the Zionist state, Israel, in deepening its diplomatic, political, economic, and military ties with the Kingdom of Morocco.
Two occupiers are thus united, continuing without recourse in their oppression and domination of the Saharawi people. We must recognize the role Morocco plays in normalizing relations in the Arab world vis-Ã -vis Israel. Both Morocco and the Zionist state are expansionist and settler-colonialist, actively plundering the natural resources of the occupied territories with the support of Western powers. The Saharawi and Palestinian peoples are therefore the vanguard of all national liberation struggles.
The nexus of the United States, the European Union, their military forces including NATO and US AFRICOM, Israel, Morocco, and their regional partners must be understood for the clear and present danger they represent in order to build the power necessary to confront both the Moroccan and Zionist occupations.
We in the United States, recognizing that we live in the imperial core, understand the challenges, and promise that can come if the United States is confronted on Western Sahara. The Trump administration’s illegal and immoral decision and so-called recognition of the sovereignty of Morocco over Western Sahara must be condemned and reversed. We call on the United States to uphold international law, to recognize the right of the Saharawi people to self-determination, to recognize the sovereignty of the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic, and to establish full diplomatic relations with the Polisario Front, the legitimate representative of the Saharawi people.
As anti-imperialists, we recognize the nature of the struggle of the Saharawi people as part of the larger historical struggle for decolonization, self-determination, and national liberation. The freedom of Africa is incomplete without the freedom of Western Sahara, the last colony on the continent.
We will continue to confront US politicians regarding their positions on Western Sahara, raise the awareness of the Saharawi struggle to the American people, and deepen our ties with the Saharawi people and the Polisario Front in all respects so as to advance the struggle until Western Sahara is fully liberated.
We honor first and foremost the martyrs, whose blood waters the tree of independence and national rejuvenation. We honor the women who give birth and raise these fighters and martyrs of the Saharawi struggle. The women who struggle unceasingly for the liberation of their people. We honor the families of the martyrs, the wounded, the political prisoners, and all the Saharawi people who continue to struggle in the occupied territories, the liberated areas, and the refugee camps.
We reaffirm our commitment to the Saharawi people and their struggle for national liberation!
DOWN WITH IMPERIALISM, COLONIALISM, AND ZIONISM!
LONG LIVE PROLETARIAN INTERNATIONALISM!
VICTORY TO THE POLISARIO FRONT!
VICTORY TO THE SAHARAWI PEOPLE’S LIBERATION ARMY!
VICTORY TO THE SAHARAWI PEOPLE!
SAHARA HURRA!
Given on January 14, 2023 at the 16th Congress of the POLISARIO Front in the Wilaya of Dakhla, Tindouf, Algeria
Christopher J. Helali
International Secretary of the Central Committee
Party of Communists USA
