U.N. Urges Halt on Chagos Islands Ratification

A U.N. committee has called on Britain and Mauritius to reconsider ratifying a deal regarding the Chagos Islands, expressing concerns over the perpetuation of Chagossians' rights violations. The deal, transferring sovereignty to Mauritius, prevents Chagossians from returning to their lands and lacks reparations for historical injustices.

A United Nations committee has urged the United Kingdom and Mauritius to halt the ratification of a controversial agreement on the Chagos Islands' future, warning that it could continue existing rights violations against the Chagossians.

The May agreement, after extensive negotiations, proposes transferring sovereignty of the islands to Mauritius while allowing the UK to maintain control of the strategic U.S.-UK air base on Diego Garcia. The deal has raised concerns because it prevents Chagossians from returning to their ancestral lands and lacks formal acknowledgment of the historical wrongs they faced. Between the 1960s and 1970s, around 2,000 Chagossians were forcibly displaced, many relocating to the UK.

The U.N. Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, which gathered in Geneva, has highlighted the absence of reparations and cultural preservation measures in the agreement. Both nations are signatories to the 1965 Convention on Racial Discrimination. The U.N. urges continued cooperation to address the Chagossians' suffering and rights violations.

(With inputs from agencies.)