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Behind Closed Doors: "Autonomous Colonization" In Post United Nations Era - The Case For Western Sahara, Pamela Epstein

Annual Survey of International & Comparative Law

This paper's central objective is to highlight, through a critical assessment of the conflict, a compelling case for the independent State of Western Sahara. Part I provides a snapshot of the conflict from the time of Spanish colonial rule, paying particular attention to the International Court of Justice Advisory Opinion on Western Sahara, the Moroccan invasion and subsequent illegal occupation of Western Sahara, the U.N. attempted referendum under MINURSO, concluding with the most recent extension of the U.N. mandate. Part II articulates the argument for statehood by evaluating Western Sahara's claims under the binding authority of the 1933 Montevideo Convention …