Members of the Chagos Refugee Group organized an official ceremony held at the Marie Charlesia Alexis Community Center in Baie du Tombeau on Saturday, June 17, 2023 to mark the 50th anniversary since Chagossians were forcibly and unjustly deported from their native islands by the British government to Mauritius and the Seychelles. The official ceremony was also attended by Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth and several members of the government, both natives and descendants of the Chagossians.
The Head of Government believes that this memory must never be erased from the collective memory of Mauritians. “It is the duty of remembrance that we are fulfilling today as we commemorate the 50th anniversary of the last uprooting of the Chagossians. They were brutally expelled without mercy or respect for human dignity,” he maintains. The purpose of their exile was to make room for an American military base in Diego Garcia.
At the same time, Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth came out against the United States, “which presents itself as the sheriff of the world. He accused Washington of applying human rights principles selectively, and accused it of actively supporting the British, whose treatment of the Chagossians was in clear violation of human rights.
The Prime Minister also returned to the subject of ongoing discussions with the British. He said he could not go into details. However, he reassured the population and the Chagossians that there would be no compromise on certain fundamental points.
Pravind Jugnauth also referred to the historic judgments handed down by international bodies, including the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea.
The PM also spoke of the forthcoming trip to the archipelago to assess the material and other needs for the rehousing of the Chagossians. “We have announced that there will be another trip in the future. This trip will enable us to evaluate the structures that will be put in place. We will do this so that the Chagossians’ dream of returning can become a reality,” he reassures us.
Olivier Bancoult, President of the Chagos Refugee Group, once again condemned the crimes committed by Great Britain and the United States, and reaffirmed the desire of the Chagossians to return home! He also praised the Mauritian government’s support for their efforts to re-establish their right to return to the archipelago.
The ceremony ended with a photo exhibition and the unveiling of a commemorative plaque to the sound of Chagos drums.
