LONDON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 26th February, 2019) Monday's ruling from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) that the UK must give up control over the Chagos archipelago has been welcomed by Chagossian advocacy groups, although some have cautioned in a conversation with Sputnik that the real struggle to return the islanders home yet remains.
Earlier on Monday, the ICJ ruled that the United Kingdom had originally acted unlawfully in their decision to separate the Chagos islands from Mauritius, stating that the UK "has an obligation to bring to an end its administration of the Chagos archipelago as rapidly as possible."
"I think it's always good to see the plight of the Chagossian people recognized as it was in the (ICJ) judgment, but a terrible thing has happened and they continue to live with the consequences ... Now we want the focus to be on helping the Chagossians in exile and their actual ambitions to return to the islands. Regardless of what the future of those islands are we think it's the Chagossians that should be making those decisions," Stefan Donnelly, vice chair of the UK Chagos Support Association, told Sputnik.
He also pointed out the non-binding nature of the ICJ ruling.
"The ruling is non-binding but it does carry a certain weight given it does come via a referral from the UN General Assembly. But regardless of any formal response from the British government we'd like to see real progress on allowing the Chagossians to return to their homeland and supporting them with the consequences that have come from spending years in exile," Donnelly noted.
The activist vowed to continue the struggle for the Chagossians right to return to their homeland.
The UK's Foreign and Commonwealth Office has failed to respond to a request for comment.
The United Kingdom retained possession of the Chagos archipelago following Mauritius's successful bid for independence in 1968. The largest island, Diego Garcia, was then home to around 1,500 people, all of whom were ultimately dispossessed by the UK authorities, at times by force, in order to make way for the construction of a still operational US military facility.
The Chagos islanders living in Britain have repeatedly attempted to get their case resolved in the High Court, having only this month suffered defeat in yet another legal battle to have the British government reverse a 2016 decision prohibiting them from returning home.
Mauritius claims it was pressured by the then-UK government into giving up the islands, arguing such an act was in violation of the UN Resolution 1514, which forbids the "partial or total disruption of the national unity and the territorial integrity of a country" as a result of colonization.
The case was originally referred to the ICJ in 2017 following a vote in the UN General Assembly in which Britain found itself losing by a substantial margin, with 94 nations to 15 voting in favor of Mauritius.
