Mauritius reopens talks with U.K. on controversial Chagos deal

London: A U.K.-Mauritius deal recognizing the latter’s claim to the Chagos Islands in the Western Indian Ocean could be in trouble as Mauritius seeks to renegotiate it.

The agreement was reached in October, but no formal treaty was signed by the two countries. Following elections in Mauritius in November, the new prime minister, Navin Ramgoolam, ordered a review of the deal, saying the draft agreement “would not produce the benefits” the island nation expects.

Chagos, a cluster of more than 55 coral islands in the Indian Ocean, was initially administered as a British colony alongside Mauritius until 1965, when the U.K. carved it into the British Indian Ocean Territory.

Mauritius gained independence in 1968, but the U.K. retained control of Chagos, allowing the U.S. to establish a military base on the largest of its islands, Diego Garcia. Consequently, about 2,000 Chagossians were expelled between 1968 and 1973, in what Human Rights Watch has called a “crime against humanity.”

Mauritius brought a case to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) challenging British control of Chagos. In 2019, the ICJ gave an advisory opinion in favor of Mauritius. However, the U.K. continued denying Mauritian claims until its October 2024 announcement, when it said it would cede sovereignty of Chagos to Mauritius, but maintain authority over Diego Garcia for military purposes for an initial period of 99 years. Some Chagossians see the continued U.K. control of Diego Garcia as a betrayal.

The announcement was also thin on details concerning the future of the Chagossians, some of whom allege they were left out of the negotiations. They’re calling for the deal to be scrapped and have opposed Mauritian control over the islands.

“I was uprooted, deported, and dumped in the Seychelles,” Bernadette Dugasse, who was born on the island of Diego Garcia, told Mongabay. “They say the negotiations are between states and we are not a state. Who made us stateless in the first place?”

Olivier Bancoult, who heads the Mauritius-based Chagos Refugees Group, supported the Mauritian case. “We were not part of the discussions, but we were briefed on the talks by the Mauritian government,” he told Mongabay. Bancoult said he’s hopeful the deal would stand despite the change in administration.

The future of the Chagos marine protected area that the British created in 2010 is also uncertain. The MPA creation was criticized for being an ocean grab, allegedly to keep Chagossians from returning to the islands and accessing their traditional fishing grounds. The October deal favored the establishment of a Mauritian MPA.

On Dec. 20, the U.K. and Mauritius published a joint statement saying they were committed to “finalising a treaty as quickly as possible, whose terms will agree to ensure the long-term, secure and effective operation of the existing base on Diego Garcia and that Mauritius is sovereign over the [Chagos] Archipelago.”

The Mauritian PM’s office didn’t respond to Mongabay’s request for comment.