In a symbolic moment in the history of the Chagos Islands, an official world map produced by the United Nations has identified the Chagos Islands as Mauritian territory. This follows a 2019 UN General Assembly vote that overwhelmingly instructed the UK to cede control of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius within six months. UK Ministers have repeatedly indicated that they have "no doubt" over their sovereignty over the Chagos Islands and have given no suggestion that they will c

This follows a sequence of events which have ruled against the UK government position on the islands in 2019. First starting back in February when the International Court of Justice ruled that the UK decolonisation process of the Chagos islands was unlawful by a margin of 13-1. Furthermore the United Nations passed a resolution in May by an overwhelming margin of 116-6 demanding the UK return control of the islands back to Mauritius within six months. Mauritius has stated thr

Six months ago today the UN General Assembly voted that the Chagos Islands should be ceded by the UK to Mauritius. They also indicated that the UN would work with all parties to develop a programme to support Chagossians waiting to return. The UN General Assembly motion, passed by a majority of 116-6, followed an International Court of Justice verdict which found the creation of the British Indian Ocean Territory (the official name for the Chagos Islands) to have been illegit

On Friday the 22 November, Chagossians will take to the streets outside the British High Commission in Port Louis, Mauritius. The protest, organised by Chagos Refugees Group, will demand Chagossians right to return to their homeland and call for the UK government to comply with the UN General Assembly vote 6 months ago, which called for the UK to cede control of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius. The UN General Assembly vote, carried by 116 votes to 5, set a deadline of six mon

On the final day before Parliament was dissolved, the UK government has released a new statement on the future of the Chagos Islands. The full statement can be read here. In May, the UN General Assembly voted overwhelmingly that the UK should cede control of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius within six months. This came after an International Court of Justice (ICJ) verdict which judged UK sovereignty of the islands was not legally established by international law, due to the ma

Olivier Bancoult, leader of Chagos Refugees Group, has addressed the Labour Party Conference to speak about the Chagossian community's aspirations to return to their homeland. In his speech, which you can see here on Youtube, Mr Bancoult praises the years of support Mr Corbyn has provided for the Chagossian community and notes the wide support for Chagossian return among other UK political parties, and numerous governments across the world. The Labour Party included restorati

Pope Francis has intervened on the dispute over the future of the Chagos Islands, speaking after a papal trip to Mauritius. Chagossians were involved in a papal mass in Mauritius, at the request of the Vatican following discussions with Chagos Refugees Group leader Olivier Bancoult. In remarks that are being widely interpreted as urging the United Kingdom to cede control of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, the Pope stated that: “It’s true that not always things that seem ‘jus

The below summary is as ever provided by Chagos Islands All-Party Parliamentary Group coordinator David Snoxell. A statement issued by the group after the meeting can be found here. The Group considered PQs and interventions since the last meeting on 22 May and the Westminster Hall debate on 3 July entitled "Chagos Islands: UN General Assembly Resolution" which had been obtained by the Vice Chairman Patrick Grady. Members were concerned by the quality of Answers and repetitio

Last week the United Nations General Assembly backed a non-binding motion calling on the UK to end it's control of the Chagos Islands. The motion instructed that control and sovereignty of the islands should then pass to Mauritius. If control is ceded to Mauritius, the Mauritian government has pledged to support resettlement of the islands. In the week since the UN vote, many Chagossians living across the world have shared their opinion on the judgement, what this means and w

In a non-binding vote, the UN General Assembly today voted by an overwhelming 116-6 margin to call for an end to UK administration of the Chagos Islands. The motion was supported by Mauritius' government, who have claimed to have rightful sovereignty over the islands. The vote comes several months after the UK was similarly instructed by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to end it's control of the Chagos Islands, which remain a British Overseas Territory, as soon as po

On Wednesday the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) will vote on a resolution which states that the UK must abandon the administration of the Chagos Islands as rapidly as possible. The vote comes after the judgement of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in February, which concluded the creation of the British Indian Ocean Territory (the formal UK government name for the Chagos Islands) was illegal, as it involved the UK government detaching the islands from Mauritiu