After more than 50 years, the United Kingdom has declared it is relinquishing sovereignty over a secluded but strategically significant group of islands in the Indian Ocean.
This, agreed after years of discussions, will see the UK hand over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius in a historic gesture. It includes the tropical atoll of Diego Garcia, which the United States government uses as a military base for its long-range bomber planes and navy ships.
The decision was announced in a joint statement by the Prime Ministers of the UK and Mauritius, putting an end to decades of frequently contentious discussions between the two nations.
The decision was made possible in part, by the US-UK base's continued presence on Diego Garcia, which is crucial, given the escalating geopolitical rivalry in the region between China, India, and the West.
Although a treaty still needs to be finalised both parties have committed to finishing the deal as soon as possible.
The joint statement said, "The treaty will address wrongs of the past and demonstrate the commitment of both parties to support the welfare of Chagossians. Mauritius will now be free to implement a programme of resettlement on the islands of the Chagos Archipelago, other than Diego Garcia, and the UK will capitalise a new trust fund, as well as separately provide other support, for the benefit of Chagossians."
Speaking to the reporters, the chairman of the Chagossian Association of Seychelles, Pierre Prosper, said that they are happy to learn about the news although they are a little concerned as as they have been disappointed many times in the past. They also do not know what will happen to the Chagossians.
"We hope that the Mauritian government will engage will the whole Chagossian community, all over the world, so we can move forward," said Prosper, who revealed that many Chagossians had some reservations about the island being returned to Mauritius.
"That is because when Mauritius gained independence, part of the agreement with the UK government, was that Chagos was separated from the Colonial Administration of Mauritius," explained Prosper.
He said Mauritius accepted "when we began our fight, they went behind us and sought the UN and all, until we got here today. We are afraid of a repeat of the past, where Mauritius did not have the interest of these people at heart, so what should we expect from them now."
More than 2,000 Chagossians have been fighting to return to their home since they were expelled from the islands between 1967 and 1973 to allow the United States to build a military base on Diego Garcia.
More than 200 were deported to Mahe, the main island of Seychelles when the country was still a British colony. The rest were deported to Mauritius, also a British colony at the time.
