The Coordinator of the Organizations of Growers and Ranchers (COAG) and the Polisario Front will study joint actions to stop Morocco from illegally exporting agricultural products from the Western Sahara. This was agreed during a meeting in Madrid of the head of Fruits and Vegetables of COAG, Andrés Góngora, with the Delegate of the Sahara for Spain and a member of the National Secretariat of the Polisario Front, Jira Bulahi.
Both organizations have analysed the current context following the ruling of the EU Court of Justice on 21 December 2016, which recognised that the territories of Western Sahara are excluded from the trade agreement with Morocco, as international law does not recognise the Alawite Kingdom's sovereignty over them. Ms Bulahi thanked COAG for its position and actions in this regard.
COAG has also expressed its intention to continue working on this issue, as it is of great importance because of the impact it has on the situation of the European fruit and vegetable markets, but is also relevant from the point of view of the protection of the rights of consumers and European taxpayers.
COAG rejects the EU's negotiating the application of a court ruling which is not subject to interpretation, and believes that it should be enforced without delay. On the one hand, consumers should be guaranteed their right to distinguish a product from the Western Sahara to one from Morocco; something that is not currently possible, and thus comply with the European labelling regulations on fruit and vegetables.
On the other hand, the EU must also ensure that agricultural products grown in the territories of Western Sahara do not enter the Community market as if they were from Morocco, as has been happening up to now. This entails unfair competition for EU producers and the European Commission must urgently investigate the damage caused and reverse this situation. Moreover, it is also detrimental to the European taxpayer because of the continued failure (for 16 years) to pay the common customs tariff of the EU.