Illusion cartographique au Nord, barrière de sable à l’Est : les frontières mouvantes du Sahara occidental

Moroccan Western Sahara, to use the UN’s terms, is a territory claimed by the Polisario Front movement, but administered and controlled since 1976 by the Moroccan authorities as “Southern Provinces of the kingdom”. Maps and personal observations based on fieldwork underscore the challenge of localiz...

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Main Author: Karine BENNAFLA
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Université de Reims Champagne-Ardennes 2013-07-01
Series:L'Espace Politique
Subjects:
Online Access:https://journals.openedition.org/espacepolitique/2644
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author Karine BENNAFLA
author_facet Karine BENNAFLA
author_sort Karine BENNAFLA
collection DOAJ
description Moroccan Western Sahara, to use the UN’s terms, is a territory claimed by the Polisario Front movement, but administered and controlled since 1976 by the Moroccan authorities as “Southern Provinces of the kingdom”. Maps and personal observations based on fieldwork underscore the challenge of localizing the Moroccan Western Sahara border in the North, due to the erasing of the UN’s line by the Moroccan authorities. They have espoused a policy of developing the contested area, focused during the last ten years on promoting tourism and culture, which has contributed to depoliticizing the Sahrawi issue. On the ground, the real border has been moved (from an E-W line, it now runs roughly NE-SW along the Algerian and Mauritanian territories), and transformed into a permeable barrier of sand, the so-called ‘Berm’, which can be bypassed. Delimiting a Sahrawi territory is not obvious, in part because of the indefinite Sahrawi collective identity. However this identity is increasingly cristallised by the arrival of Moroccan migrant labourers coming from the North, in opposition to whom it is formulated.
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spelling doaj-art-e5b706923e044ccc9b34ef0f733260ef2025-08-20T02:26:42ZengUniversité de Reims Champagne-ArdennesL'Espace Politique1958-55002013-07-012010.4000/espacepolitique.2644Illusion cartographique au Nord, barrière de sable à l’Est : les frontières mouvantes du Sahara occidentalKarine BENNAFLAMoroccan Western Sahara, to use the UN’s terms, is a territory claimed by the Polisario Front movement, but administered and controlled since 1976 by the Moroccan authorities as “Southern Provinces of the kingdom”. Maps and personal observations based on fieldwork underscore the challenge of localizing the Moroccan Western Sahara border in the North, due to the erasing of the UN’s line by the Moroccan authorities. They have espoused a policy of developing the contested area, focused during the last ten years on promoting tourism and culture, which has contributed to depoliticizing the Sahrawi issue. On the ground, the real border has been moved (from an E-W line, it now runs roughly NE-SW along the Algerian and Mauritanian territories), and transformed into a permeable barrier of sand, the so-called ‘Berm’, which can be bypassed. Delimiting a Sahrawi territory is not obvious, in part because of the indefinite Sahrawi collective identity. However this identity is increasingly cristallised by the arrival of Moroccan migrant labourers coming from the North, in opposition to whom it is formulated.https://journals.openedition.org/espacepolitique/2644MoroccoborderMoroccan Western Saharabarriersahrawi identity
spellingShingle Karine BENNAFLA
Illusion cartographique au Nord, barrière de sable à l’Est : les frontières mouvantes du Sahara occidental
L'Espace Politique
Morocco
border
Moroccan Western Sahara
barrier
sahrawi identity
title Illusion cartographique au Nord, barrière de sable à l’Est : les frontières mouvantes du Sahara occidental
title_full Illusion cartographique au Nord, barrière de sable à l’Est : les frontières mouvantes du Sahara occidental
title_fullStr Illusion cartographique au Nord, barrière de sable à l’Est : les frontières mouvantes du Sahara occidental
title_full_unstemmed Illusion cartographique au Nord, barrière de sable à l’Est : les frontières mouvantes du Sahara occidental
title_short Illusion cartographique au Nord, barrière de sable à l’Est : les frontières mouvantes du Sahara occidental
title_sort illusion cartographique au nord barriere de sable a l est les frontieres mouvantes du sahara occidental
topic Morocco
border
Moroccan Western Sahara
barrier
sahrawi identity
url https://journals.openedition.org/espacepolitique/2644
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