ASVDH was founded in El Aaiun on May 7, 2005 by Sahrawi activists, including its president Brahim Dahane (a former prisoner of conscience). Although the association has complied with the Moroccan Law of Public Associations, it has been refused permission to operate by the Moroccan authorities and operates illegally with limited means.[1] Its activities consist of researching and recording abuses by interviewing alleged victims of persecution and posting documentation (including photographs) of demonstrations, police interventions and torture on the Internet.
ASVDH has been outspoken in its defense of jailed Sahrawi human-rights and independence activists, such as Aminatou Haidar and Ali Salem Tamek. They were arrested during the Second Sahrawi Intifada, an activist term for May 2005 anti-occupation protests in El Aaiun.[citation needed]
As a result of this, the organization has been the subject of harassment and police action. President Brahim Dahane was detained on October 30, 2005, and charged with "belonging to an illegal organization" (ASVDH). The charge was condemned by Amnesty International and other international human-rights organizations, which campaigned for Dahane's release.[2] As part of a general royal pardon, Dahane and other members of ASVDH were freed on April 22, 2006.[3]
ASVDH applied for government recognition in 2006, and the following year a court ruled that the organization needed to be recognized by the government. It received government recognition in 2015,[4][5] but Moroccan authorities continue to interfere with ASVDH's monitoring of human-rights abuses.[6] The Moroccan government has called independence movements such as ASVDH a threat to regional security.[7] The organization's work has been cited by Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch,[8] the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.[9]
