codapsos letter to kosmos Mr. William Hayes Senior Vice President, Government Affairs Kosmos Energy Ltd. c/o Kosmos Energy LLC 8176 Park Lane, Suite 500 Dallas, Texas 75231 USA. Date: September 21st, 2014 RE: Complaint letter about oil drilling in Western Sahara. Dear Sir, We are writing to strongly urge you to take a stand against offshore oil drilling based on your recent decision and agreement with the Moroccan government to start this coming October oil Drilling in the off-shores of Boujdour city, Western Sahara. As stated by the international law and the advisory opinion of the UN legal advisor, Mr. Hans Corell, offshore drilling is inherently dirty, dangerous and above all illegal and ethical. The UN resolution (A/res/46/64 dated December 11, 1991) says that the exploitation and plundering of colonial and non-self-governing territories by foreign economic interests, in violation of the relevant resolutions of the United Nations is a grave threat to the integrity and prosperity of those Territories.” The international law is clear when it comes to foreign oil companies conducting business in Western Sahara: No company should do so without the involvement of the people of Western Sahara in the whole process. Saharawis should benefit from these contracts and business deals while consenting to any such activities. According to the international law, your business activities in Western Sahara are considered illegal and unethical, as it is a clear illustration of pillage of the territory’s natural resources. The coastal waters of Western Sahara as well as its soil all belong to the Saharawis, people of Western Sahara. Morocco does not have the sovereignty over these soil and waters. Only Saharawis can give you the right to do so. Your action of oil drilling will give Morocco a golden opportunity in its plight to legitimize its control of Western Sahara. This is a very dangerous act and can ignite political turmoil in Western Sahara and thus hurt all UN efforts in solving the conflict. Also, your petroleum activities will mean more damage to the environment and to the ozone. So far, the Saharawi shores are clean and still unpolluted. Your oil drilling will mean more pollution for the water, the earth and for the ozone. This will mean more contribution to the global warming. Producing more petroleum means it will be used. And that will add to carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere, so increasing the atmosphere’s temperature. Furthermore, oil-drilling activities will mean death to lots of migrating birds that travel over Saharawi coasts. This goes without forgetting the fisheries, as our waters are rich of all fish species. It has been proven that petroleum activities are a direct threat to animals on dry land and to fish in the waters. So far, the Saharawis voice has been excluded by Kosmos Energy and was not included in any pact. Furthermore, Saharawis do not see any good in such activities, as the margin of benefit is zero. Plans by Kosmos Energy and partner Cairn Energy to drill a well next year in a Moroccan-licensed block in the Western Sahara continue to us Saharawis. It is a conflict zone and is listed as a decolonization issue. Kosmos Energy seems to ignore this very crucial fact. Your company, by starting the oil drilling in Western Sahara, will only bring more tension and instability to the region. Your action will bring more problems and would harbor violence and obstruction of peace. To conclude, we urge you to refrain from starting the oil- drilling in the off-shores of Western Sahara until you meet the Saharawis demands while respecting the international law. Looking forward to your reply and resolution of this problem Yours Sincerely, CODAPSO
Posted on: Fri, 03 Oct 2014 15:54:51 +0000
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