Trading fish or human rights in Western Sahara? Self-determination, non-recognition and the EC–Morocco Fisheries Agreement
The chapter examines the conflict over Western Sahara through the framework of international law, focusing on the right of the Sahrawi people to self-determination and the obligation of non-recognition of unlawful territorial claims. Despite the 1975 International Court of Justice ruling affirming this right, Morocco continues to assert sovereignty over the territory, while the international community has failed to enforce the relevant legal principles effectively.
It focuses on the European Community–Morocco Fisheries Agreement, which controversially includes waters off Western Sahara. Such agreements risk implicitly recognising Morocco’s claims, thereby undermining the legal prohibition on recognising territorial acquisitions made in violation of the right to self-determination. The analysis highlights how political and economic interests, reflected in agreements like the Fisheries Partnership, threaten to erode established principles of international law and reinforce Morocco’s control, despite Western Sahara’s recognised status as a non-self-governing territory.
Full article
Dawidowicz-trading-fish-Western-SaharaSupport our work
Support our work
Support our work with a one-off or monthly donation
AuthorMartin DawidowiczYear2013Pages27LanguageEnglish
Share via
Related resources
The Western Sahara Dispute: A Cautionary Tale for Peacebuilders
The UN and MINURSO have succeeded neither inconducting a referendum nor in…
Western Sahara as a Hybrid of a Parastate and a State-in-Exile: (Extra)territoriality and the Small Print of Sovereignty in a Context of Frozen Conflict
Within the liminal universe of parastates, what makes Western Sahara/SADR…
The Front Polisario Verdict and the Gap Between the EU’s Trade Treatment of Western Sahara and Its Treatment of the Occupied Palestinian Territories
Morocco’s control over Western Sahara and Israel’s control of the West Bank…



