UN rules against Britain in islands row

THE UNITED Kingdom must end its administration of the Chagos Islands “as rapidly as possible”, the United Nations’ highest court has said.

Britain forcibly evicted people from the Chagos Archipelago, a sovereignty in the Indian Ocean disputed by the UK and Mauritius, in the 1960s and 1970s so the United States could build a military base.

Judges at the International Court of Justice, in The Hague, said yesterday that the UK’s detachment of the islands and their incorporation into the British Indian Ocean Territory was “unlawful”.

The UK’s ongoing administration is a “wrongful act”, according to an advisory opinion given by the court, which is not binding.

The ICJ said: “The court finds that the process of decolonisation of Mauritius was not lawfully completed when that country acceded to independence and that the United Kingdom is under an obligation to bring to an end its administration of the Chagos Archipelago as rapidly as possible.”

The UK agreed a package including £3 million with Mauritius for the detachment of the archipelago in 1965.

Chagossians were forcibly removed between 1967 and 1973 to make way for a US military facility on Diego Garcia, the largest island in the group. Mauritius, which gained independence in 1968, maintains the islands are its own and Chagossians have also brought cases in British courts for the right to return.

A spokeswoman for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office said: “This is an advisory opinion, not a judgment. Of course, we will look at the detail of it carefully.

“The defence facilities on the British Indian Ocean Territory help to protect people here in Britain and around the world from terrorist threats, organised crime and piracy.”