UK HANDS BACK CHAGOS ISLANDS TO MAURITIUS AFTER 50-YEAR DISPUTE
After more than five decades of dispute, the United Kingdom has agreed to return the Chagos Islands to Mauritius. The agreement, announced jointly by both governments, grants full sovereignty of the remote archipelago to Mauritius in exchange for allowing a US military base on the largest island, Diego Garcia, to continue operating for the next 99 years.
The decision has elicited mixed reactions from Chagossians, who were forcibly exiled from the islands in the 1960s. While some see this as a step towards reclaiming their ancestral homeland, others criticize the lack of inclusion in the negotiations between the UK and Mauritius.
The Chagos Islands have been at the center of a longstanding dispute, stemming from the UK’s detachment of the islands in 1965 to create the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT). The US military base on Diego Garcia has been a point of contention, with allegations of its use as a black site for torture.
Mauritius challenged the UK’s control of the islands through legal avenues, culminating in a non-binding advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice in 2019 in favor of Mauritius reclaiming sovereignty over Chagos. The recent agreement represents a significant shift in the long-standing dispute.
Chagossians in the UK have expressed mixed feelings about the deal, with some feeling excluded from the negotiations and others viewing it as a recognition of past injustices. Calls for self-determination and greater involvement of Chagossians in decision-making processes have been raised in response to the announcement.
The agreement between the UK and Mauritius marks a new chapter in the history of the Chagos Islands and sets the stage for collaboration on various fronts, including environmental protection, maritime security, and crime prevention. As the Chagossian community awaits further developments, the focus remains on ensuring their rights and interests are upheld in the implementation of the new agreement.
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