The Western Saharan members of the moroccan parliament: Diplomacy and perceptions of identity

This chapter analyses the activity of the members of the Moroccan parliament for Western Sahara constituencies (MMPWS) during the ninth legislature (2011-2015). It examines the interactions between the local, national and international levels of analysis in the context of their “parliamentary diplomacy” and the impact of these MPs’ identity self-perceptions upon that activity. We discuss the implications of the dual profile of these MPs as representatives in a state/national parliament (that of Morocco) of a territory (Western Sahara) that does not legally fall under Moroccan sovereignty and where the population is subjected to an antagonistic control relationship. To that end, the chapter first introduces some aspects of the parliamentary diplomacy of the MMPWS concerning the Western Sahara conflict. Second, it addresses the interrelations between the different levels of action (local, national and international). Third, it analyses the discourse on identity issues of nine MMPWS interviewed in May and June 2015.