Aminatou Ali Ahmed Haidar (Arabic: أميناتو علي أحمد حيدر; born 24 July 1966), sometimes spelled as Aminetou, Aminatu or Aminetu, is a Sahrawi human rights activist and an advocate of the independence of Western Sahara.

While her parents lived in Tan-Tan, a small city in southern Morocco with significant Sahrawi population (and former Spanish Cape Juby) where she passed her childhood, Aminatou was born in 1966 in Akka, in the Moroccan province of Tata, her grandmother's town, due to a bedouin tradition.

After admission to Belmehdi Hasan hospital and receiving twelve stitches for a head injury, she was arrested on charges of "participation in violent protest activities and incitement" and "belonging to an unauthorized association".

[10] She reportedly went on hunger strike from 8 August to 29 September to demand an investigation into torture allegations by fellow Saharawi detainees Houssein Lidri and Brahim Noumria as well as improved conditions of detention.

[9] On 13 November 2009, Haidar was detained by Moroccan authorities at the airport in El-Aaiún when she attempted to return from a trip to Lanzarote in the Canary Islands, Spain, to collect a prize.

[13] The Spanish newspaper El País later published documents demonstrating that the Moroccan government made three different flight reservations for Haidar prior to her return, indicating that they had planned to expel her in advance.

[21] Argentinian Nobel Peace Prize laureate Adolfo Pérez Esquivel asked for a "humanitarian and political exit" for Haidar, and called on the Spanish and Moroccan governments to undertake dialogue to see "in what ways could the European Union, Council of Europe or even the United Nations intervene to avoid a tragic outcome and try to save her life, but not at any cost.

"[22] British filmmakers Ken Loach and Paul Laverty compared Haidar to U.S. civil rights activist Rosa Parks, stating, "What tragedy would be for the non-violent resistance, and for the possibility of a pacific solution, that we let her die.

Performers included Bebe, Kiko Veneno, Macaco, Amaral, Pedro Guerra, Mariem Hassan, Conchita, Miguel Ríos, and Ismael Serrano.

Signatories included three Nobel laureates – Günter Grass, Dario Fo, and Saramago – as well as Pedro Almodóvar, Mario Vargas Llosa, Penélope Cruz, Antonio Gala, Almudena Grandes, Carlos Fuentes, and Ignacio Ramonet among others from India, Puerto Rico, Portugal, Colombia, Brazil and Angola.

Spain attempted again to apply for her re-entry to the country, but backed down when Morocco threatened to end cooperation on illegal immigration, drug trafficking, and other issues.

The Spanish foreign ministry attributed the resolution to "a co-ordinated effort between Spain, France and the US" to persuade Moroccan government that its refusal to re-admit Haidar was counterproductive.

Haidar stated that the summit "denied the suffering of the Sahrawis"[34] and that the EU was appeasing the "totalitarian regime" of Morocco, sacrificing human rights in favor of economic interests.

[35] On 24 March, Haidar stated during a visit to Washington, D.C. that "before reaching a final settlement, a political solution, we must put pressure on Morocco to respect human rights".

[39] On 29 October 2011, Haidar's son was threatened with sexual violation and a beating that would cause him permanent disability by a couple of Moroccan policemen in El Aaiun, according to CODESA.

[40][41] On 8 July 2012, Sahrawi human rights sources stated that Haidar's children had been physically injured by some Moroccan passengers when they were travelling by bus from Agadir to El Aaiun.

[43][44] On 1 November 2012, the same day she met UN Special Commissioner for the Western Sahara Christopher Ross at El Aaiun MINURSO HQ, Haidar stated that she had been later attacked by Moroccan police during a non-violent protest.

[45] Human rights organizations such as the RFK Center, Front Line Defenders and the Spanish political party Union, Progress and Democracy condemned the aggression.

US Senator Edward Kennedy stated that "all who care about democracy, human rights, and the rule of law for the people of the Western Sahara are inspired by her extraordinary courage, dedication and skilled work on their behalf.

[61] In January 2010, the Italian municipality of Sesto Fiorentino appointed Haidar as "Honorary Citizen" of the village, for her "non-violent struggle for liberty and human rights for her people".

[73] Also in March, Haidar won the 13th Bremen Solidarity Award, a prize given to personalities who are distinguished by their compromise with liberty, democracy and human rights, and against colonialism and racism in the world.

[76] Aminatou Haidar has won the Right Livelihood Award in 2019 "for her steadfast nonviolent action, despite imprisonment and torture, in pursuit of justice and self-determination for the people of Western Sahara.