Arab News Japan

TOKYO: Japanese Foreign Minister KAMIKAWA Yoko expressed regret on Friday that the altercation over the presence of Polisario representatives at the Ministerial Meeting for the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) in Tokyo was ‘extremely regrettable.’

There was confusion about whether representatives of the so-called Sahrawi Republic should be allowed to participate in the meeting. Although Japan does not recognize the “Sahrawi Republic,” it granted their representatives visas. However, Japan’s Foreign Ministry said they were not invited to the TICAD meeting but were invited by the African Union.

However, the organizers – effectively Japan’s Foreign Ministry – let the so-called Sahrawi Republic representatives place their self-made unofficial nameplate at the meeting, angered the Moroccan delegation. When a member of the Moroccan delegation tried to remove the nameplate, he was swiftly attacked by members of the Algerian delegation who violently overpowered him in what looked like a wrestling match, as could be seen in video clips posted to social media platforms. 

In reply to a question from Arab News Japan about the incident and Japan’s position on the Polisario, Kamikawa referred to the confrontation as “confusion.”

“I understand that some physical confusion happened among the delegations,” she said. “No violence is ever allowed, and it’s extremely regrettable that such confusion happened. Ambassador Shimizu, who is in charge of TICAD and was the chair, immediately asked participants to be calm and  maintain order and ordered those who didn’t observe the order to leave.”

In a serious tone, the Japanese government conveyed to the delegations the regrettable nature of the incident and urged them to take measures to prevent any recurrence of such behavior, according to Minister Kamikawa.

The Japanese foreign ministry declined to comment on what passports the ‘Sahrawi’ representatives used to enter Japan. 

Delegates at TICAD had conflicting views over the presence of representatives from Polisario, revealing a significant divide in the African Union. The decision on whether the African Union or Japan should decide who can attend meetings threatens to cast a shadow over the TICAD summit scheduled for next year in Yokohama.