Zemla Intifada
Encyclopedia
The Zemla Intifada is the name used by the Algeria
n-backed Polisario movement to refer to disturbances of June 17, 1970, which culminated in a massacre by Spanish
forces in the Zemla district of El-Aaiun
, Western Sahara
(then Spanish Sahara
).
Leaders of the hitherto secret organization Harakat Tahrir
, among them its founder Muhammad Bassiri
, called a demonstration to hand a petition calling for independence and fair treatment for Sahrawis to the Spanish governor-general of the colony, General José María Pérez de Lema y Tejero. They were allowed to read out the petition, but as the demonstration was dispersing, police moved in to arrest its leaders. Demonstrators responded by pushing the policemen away and when the police charged with batons, stone-throwing erupted. The Spanish authorities called in the Spanish Foreign Legion who opened fire on the demonstrators, killing at least eleven and wounding scores. Hundreds of people were arrested.
In the days following the massacre, Harakat Tahrir
activists, Bassiri among them, were hunted down by Spanish security forces. Bassiri disappeared
in jail.
The suppression of the Zemla demonstration pushed the Western Saharan anti-colonial movement into embracing armed struggle. The militant nationalist organization Polisario Front
was formed three years later.
June 17 is now commemorated by Polisario supporters in Tindouf
, Algeria
, and has been used as a reference day for protests in Western Sahara.
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
n-backed Polisario movement to refer to disturbances of June 17, 1970, which culminated in a massacre by Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
forces in the Zemla district of El-Aaiun
El Aaiún
El-Aaiún , is a city in Western Sahara founded by the Spanish in 1928. Administered by Morocco since 1976, El-Aaiún is the capital of what the Moroccan government call the region of Laâyoune-Boujdour-Sakia El Hamra, and POLISARIO call Occupied Territories...
, Western Sahara
Western Sahara
Western Sahara is a disputed territory in North Africa, bordered by Morocco to the north, Algeria to the northeast, Mauritania to the east and south, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. Its surface area amounts to . It is one of the most sparsely populated territories in the world, mainly...
(then Spanish Sahara
Spanish Sahara
Spanish Sahara was the name used for the modern territory of Western Sahara when it was ruled as a territory by Spain between 1884 and 1975...
).
Leaders of the hitherto secret organization Harakat Tahrir
Harakat Tahrir
The Movement for the Liberation of the Saguia el Hamra and Rio de Oro, sometimes referred to as the Movement for the Liberation of the Sahara or simply the Liberation Movement was created in 1969 by Muhammad Bassiri, a Smara-based Sahrawi quranic teacher, to work for the independence of Western...
, among them its founder Muhammad Bassiri
Muhammad Bassiri
Muhammad Sidi Brahim Sidi Embarek Basir was a Sahrawi nationalist leader, disappeared and presumed executed by the Spanish Legion in June 1970.- Biography :Muhammad Bassiri was born to Sahrawi family in Tan-Tan...
, called a demonstration to hand a petition calling for independence and fair treatment for Sahrawis to the Spanish governor-general of the colony, General José María Pérez de Lema y Tejero. They were allowed to read out the petition, but as the demonstration was dispersing, police moved in to arrest its leaders. Demonstrators responded by pushing the policemen away and when the police charged with batons, stone-throwing erupted. The Spanish authorities called in the Spanish Foreign Legion who opened fire on the demonstrators, killing at least eleven and wounding scores. Hundreds of people were arrested.
In the days following the massacre, Harakat Tahrir
Harakat Tahrir
The Movement for the Liberation of the Saguia el Hamra and Rio de Oro, sometimes referred to as the Movement for the Liberation of the Sahara or simply the Liberation Movement was created in 1969 by Muhammad Bassiri, a Smara-based Sahrawi quranic teacher, to work for the independence of Western...
activists, Bassiri among them, were hunted down by Spanish security forces. Bassiri disappeared
Forced disappearance
In international human rights law, a forced disappearance occurs when a person is secretly abducted or imprisoned by a state or political organization or by a third party with the authorization, support, or acquiescence of a state or political organization, followed by a refusal to acknowledge the...
in jail.
The suppression of the Zemla demonstration pushed the Western Saharan anti-colonial movement into embracing armed struggle. The militant nationalist organization Polisario Front
Polisario Front
The POLISARIO, Polisario Front, or Frente Polisario, from the Spanish abbreviation of Frente Popular de Liberación de Saguía el Hamra y Río de Oro is a Sahrawi rebel national liberation movement working for the independence of Western Sahara from Morocco...
was formed three years later.
June 17 is now commemorated by Polisario supporters in Tindouf
Tindouf
Tindouf is the main town in Tindouf Province, Algeria, close to the Mauritanian and Moroccan borders. The region is considered of strategic significance, and it houses Algerian military bases. Since 1975, it also contains several Sahrawi refugee camps operated by the Polisario Front a guerrilla...
, Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
, and has been used as a reference day for protests in Western Sahara.