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John Conyers, an American Democratic Party politician who served as U.S. Representative for Michigan’s 13th congressional district, resigned from Congress on Tuesday 5th of December. «Today I am retiring today», Conyers told a local radio station in Detroit after he was accused of sexually harassing former female staffers who worked in his office.
After his resignation letter was accepted by the congress, the 88-year-old politician denied all accusations. In the same interview, as reported by the Guardian, Conyers stressed that «whatever they are they are not accurate, they are not true and I think they are something that I can’t explain where they came from».
«My legacy can’t be compromised or diminished in any way by what we are going through now».
The Michigan Democrat, also known as the long-serving member of the House, did not miss the opportunity to support his son John Conyers III, expected to succeed him. Conyers also clarified that he is retiring and not resigning, «I am in the process of putting my retirement plans together will have more on that very soon».
The Polisario losing an ally in the congress
John Conyers' retirement comes as the Polisario Front is going through a difficult period. After failing to attract attention at the 5th African Union-European Summit, the separatist ,ovement is losing one of its important allies in the USA. In fact, Conyers is one of the long-lasting supporters of the Front in the Congress.
To put it in other words, in June 2015, the Committee on House Administration approved the Congressional Western Sahara Caucus, co-chaired by John Conyers. According to a press release published on the official website of the congressman it is explained that the Caucus is created «with the intent of highlighting the needs for self-determination and human rights monitoring for Western Sahara».
At that time, Conyers stated that «while the State Department played an important role in renewing the U.N. peacekeeping mission for Western Sahara, I hope that Congress can push for a greater emphasis on human rights monitoring and scheduling the referendum necessary to resolve the long running controversy».
«Though progress has recently stalled, I am optimistic that U.S. advocacy for self-determination for the peoples of Western Sahara can lead to a durable peace in the region».
More than that, in March 2016, the congressman attended a hearing on the human rights situation in Western Sahara. According to Le Desk, Conyers alongside, Kerry Kennedy, an American human rights activist and writer, the former head of the MINURSO, Francesco Bastagli, Erik Hagen from the Western Sahara Resource Watch and Eric Goldstein from Human Rights Watch were there to assess the situation in the region.
