Aminatou Haidar subjected to harrassment at El Aaiun Airport by the Moroccan authorities

Aminatou Haidar, the prominent Sahrawi human rights defender who recently received The Robert Kennedy Human Rights Award and chairwoman of the CODESA, The Collective of the Sahrawi Human Rights Defender, based in El Aaiun, Western Sahara, was subjected to harassment at the airport of El Aaiun, as her plane landed, coming from the Canary Islands on Saturday 07th, 2008 at about 22:30.
Aminatou was harassed by a Moroccan customs officer who targetted her among dozens of passengers and was searching in her luggage, books and documents. Aminatou protested why these measures have been taken with her and not any other of the passengers coming in the same plane with her.
She understood why only when she saw a group of police officers in plain clothes and in uniform at the airport, who also followed the car that picked her and her relatives coming to the airport to accompany her home until she entered her house.
Aminatou's house and neighbourhood were being watched out by the police cars and agents, for fear that the Sahrawis would come to her house to congratulate her on receiving RFK Human Rights Award and her return after her awareness tours in Spain, France, the USA and South Africa.

The CODESA Exective Board,
El Aaiun, Western Sahara,
December 08th, 2008.