The Mauritian government has led a trip to the disputed islands, which are controlled by Britain.
Image source, Science Photo Library
The Mauritian flag has been raised for the first time on the Chagos Islands, an Indian Ocean archipelago controlled by Britain but claimed by Mauritius.
Mauritian PM Pravind Jugnauth described it as an “historic moment”, saying it was time for the UK to cede control.
The event was the culmination of a trip to the islands organised by the Mauritian government.
The Foreign Office said: “The UK has no doubt as to our sovereignty over the British Indian Ocean Territory.”
The ceremony, led by the Mauritian ambassador to the UN, took place on the atoll of Peros Banhos, where a pre-recorded message from Mr Jugnauth was played. A flag was also raised on Salomon, a separate atoll.
Three UN bodies have ruled that the archipelago, which has a population of about 3,000, is part of Britain’s old empire and should be handed to Mauritius.
Mr Jugnauth said it was “a very emotional moment and a very historic time for us, because we are able to rule in our own territory”.
He said if the flags were removed, it would be considered as provocation from the UK.
“We have asked them to hand over these islands to Mauritius already,” he said. “It’s more than the right time for them to hand back the islands and abide by international law.”
Mauritius says Britain is occupying the islands illegally – which the UK government denies.
It says it will give Chagos to Mauritius when the islands are no longer needed for security purposes.
It is half a century since Britain took control of the Chagos Islands from its then colony, Mauritius, and evicted the population of more than 1,000 people in order to make way for a US military base.
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The official reason given for the Mauritian government’s excursion is to map reefs around the archipelago.
As well as scientists, a group of Chagossians evicted from the islands by the British government 50 years ago is on the trip.
They believe their removal in the early 1970s was a crime against humanity.
Last week, the Foreign Office said: “Mauritius notified the UK about its plans to conduct a scientific survey close to the Chagos Islands. The UK shares this interest in environmental protection and gave assurances to Mauritius that it would not interrupt the survey.”
