Mauritius has taken a symbolic step towards taking control of the Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean. This is a major development in the UPU’s international recognition of Mauritius’ sovereignty over the Chagos Islands, says Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth, who commented on the decision of the Universal Postal Union (UPU) on national television. The UPU, a UN agency in charge of world postal policy, voted to block the use of British stamps from the remote archipelago. Now, all mail to and from the Chagos Islands must carry Mauritian stamps. The UN postal agency is recommending that the stamps of the British Indian Ocean territory no longer be recognized, a symbolic victory for Mauritius’ claim to the disputed Chagos Islands.
By rejecting the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) stamp, the Universal Postal Union (UPU) is putting into practice the decisions of the UN council following the decision of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which in January stressed that Mauritius had the right to claim sovereignty over the Chagos archipelago. The UPU has always recognized Mauritius’ sovereignty over the archipelago, according to an article published Sunday, May 16, in the online version of the Guardian. Based on the ICJ decision, the UPU has recommended that its 192 members stop distributing, registering and sharing IOTC stamps.
The latest development is this recommendation by the Universal Postal Union, a 192-member United Nations agency, to no longer register, distribute or transmit stamps issued by the British administration. This near-unanimous vote by the UPU to make these stamps illegal worldwide is a blow to Britain, and another sign of its growing isolation over its claim to the Chagos Islands.
It will be recalled that British authorities issued a series of stamps in February that featured the head of Queen Elizabeth II and depicted sea slugs in the Indian Ocean.
The body would officially recognize the islands as part of Mauritius.
Mauritius gained independence from Britain in 1968, but the ICJ ruled that the decolonization process had not been legally completed because the Chagos Islands remained under British control.
The World Court judges said in 2019 that Britain was obliged to end its administration of the islands as soon as possible.
According to the BBC, the next step could see Mauritius seek to ban international flights over the area – a vast chunk of the Indian Ocean.
The United Nations General Assembly subsequently backed Mauritius’ claim and gave Britain six months to withdraw from the territory.
