Dubai – Switzerland’s Federal Court on August 20 endorsed the State Secretariat for Migration’ designation of Sahrawi refugees as “without nationality,” according to Expatica.
The decision came after an unnamed Sahrawi, who had been living in Switzerland for the past 20 years, challenged Swiss authorities’ 2019 decisions to change the country of origin on his refugee permit from “Western Sahara” to Morocco.
The unnamed man, who was reportedly not happy with the change, took the matter to the State Secretariat for Migration to update this and register him under his old nationality title. However, the service decided to register him as “without nationality.”
Switzerland, which has not given a definitive position on the long-dated conflict over Western Sahara, does not recognize the Polisario Front, the separatist group claiming independence in the region.
By rejecting “Western Sahara” as a possible nationality for people who hold refugee status, it appears the Swiss Federal Court’s decision serves to reaffirm the country’s position on Morocco’s stake over its southern provinces.
Not recognizing Polisario’s self-styled Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) as a sovereign state, the Swiss court stressed that such a ruling falls in line with the public’s interest as well as the country’s foreign policy. The court believes that it is vital to hold a coherent position on the issue at “all levels of the Administration,” Moroccan state media said in its report about the case.
Meanwhile, the Swiss Ministry of Foreign Affairs has also brought to attention the fact that “’there is no official representation of the ‘Polisario Front’ at the United Nations Office in Geneva, nor at the Federal Council.” The ministry further clarified that the individual claiming to represent the separatist group in Switzerland is “subject to ordinary law,” rather than diplomatic law.
According to the Swiss outlet SWI, the court has essentially chosen to uphold Swiss authorities’ earlier decision to identify refugees from Western Sahara as “without nationality,” despite complaints by apparently pro-Polisario Sahrawi refugees who have been living in the European country for the past two decades. who arrived
The “stateless” designation is due to the fact that Switzerland recognizes neither Polisario’s self-styled SADR as an independent state, nor Morocco’s claim” over its southern provinces, SWI noted.
