A group of four Chagossians has established what they describe as a permanent settlement on a remote Indian Ocean atoll, in an effort to disrupt Britain’s planned handover of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius scheduled for 2025.
The group, led by Misley Mandarin, arrived Monday on Ile du Coin atoll and are currently residing in tents. Mandarin expects ten additional people to join them next week, with many more planned arrivals throughout the coming year.
Speaking to Reuters by phone Tuesday, Mandarin revealed that his 74-year-old father Michel accompanied him on the journey. The elder Mandarin was just 14 years old when he was forced to leave the island decades ago.
“I am not in exile anymore. This is my homeland,” declared Misley Mandarin, who was born in Mauritius after his family’s displacement.
Between the 1960s and 1970s, British authorities forcibly relocated as many as 2,000 Chagossians from the archipelago, with most settling in Mauritius and Britain. Many of these displaced people continue to seek the right to return to their birthplace.
The 2024 sovereignty agreement between Britain and Mauritius permits Britain to maintain control over the strategically vital U.S.-UK military installation on Diego Garcia, the archipelago’s largest island, through a 99-year lease arrangement.
The United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination has called on both nations to reject ratifying the deal, warning it could continue historical violations of rights.
Mandarin stated his goal is to enable the 322 individuals he says were born on Ile du Coin and remain alive “to come home before they die.”
He emphasized that their settlement poses no threat to the American military facility on Diego Garcia.
However, Mauritius Attorney General Gavin Glover characterized the landing as illegal during an interview with private Radio Plus, calling it a “publicity stunt organised to create a situation of conflict with the British government.”
Glover noted that Mauritius will not assume control over the Chagos Archipelago until the treaty receives official ratification.
