Jeremy Corbyn has written to the prime minister condemning her decision to defy a ruling of the UN’s principal court which concluded that Britain should hand back the Chagos Islands to Mauritius.
In a letter to Theresa May, the Labour leader has accused her of disregarding international law and the right of exiled islanders to return to their homeland. His unusual intervention in a highly sensitive case highlights the dangers of Britain’s diplomatic isolation at the UN.
Earlier this year, the international court of justice (ICJ) at The Hague declared the UK’s continued occupation of the Indian Ocean archipelago was illegal.
The UK has retained possession of the Chagos archipelago since Mauritius gained its independence in 1968. The Foreign Office refers to it as British Indian Ocean Territory or BIOT. About 1,500 native islanders were deported so the largest island, Diego Garcia, could be leased to the US as an airbase in 1971. The Islanders have never been allowed to return home.
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