Chagossans ‘very hopeful’ Starmer’s Chagos handover deal will be stopped on crunch day for treaty
The interim first minister of the Chagossian government in exile said he was hopeful Sir Keir Starmer’s controversial deal to hand over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius would be stopped on Monday.
Louis Misley spoke Mandarin Independent Ahead of two key decisions on the deal, Britain will pay Mauritius at least £120 million a year under a 99-year deal to lease back the military base in Diego Garcia.
Members of the House of Lords will vote at the third and final reading of the bill to approve it, and they can still vote against it.
The deal will need to return to the House of Commons for further debate after colleagues backed an amendment last week to require a renegotiation of terms to ensure payments are halted if the military base can no longer be used.
Defeat would be humiliating for the prime minister, who has argued he has no choice but to strike a deal with Mauritius because of the threat of legal challenges through the United Nations that could disrupt the UK and US’ use of the archipelago’s base.
Also on Monday, another important decision will be made in the high court on the Chagossians’ legal challenge over their claim that the UK government failed to consult them about the deal.
Mr. Mandarin, who lives in the United Kingdom, said he wanted the islands to remain British sovereign territory and for the Chagossians to be allowed to return under a home rule protectorate arrangement.
They argue that the agreement with Mauritius, although it involved resettlement on the outer islands, affected their British citizenship and right to return home.
The Chagossian chief minister, whose government-in-exile was formed to prevent the UK from ceding their homeland to Mauritius, said: “I am very, very hopeful about the vote in the Lords and the high court decision.
“We will continue to fight for this no matter what. We will not let our homeland slip away from us because of Keir Starmer’s policy, a policy that did not even appear in the Labor Party elections.”
He complained that there had been no consultation with the UK government and that it had been ignored in the negotiation process.
He added: “If they at least say ‘self-determination, go to a referendum and vote’ that would be fair, but Mauritius doesn’t want that.”
Mr Mandarin also called on US President Donald Trump in a letter to change his mind on the deal and intervene.
He said: “We want the Americans to stop the deal because they also rely on British sovereignty.”
The deal to hand over the Chagos archipelago to Mauritius while retaining control of the Diego Garcia military base is expected to cost the UK £34.7bn in rent for the base.
Questions were asked about the value of the island to taxpayers and whether the islands would be handed over.
When he signed the agreement, Sir Keir insisted it was a responsible move.
He said: “President Trump welcomed the agreement along with other allies because they see the strategic importance of this base and we cannot cede land to those who want to harm us.”
He added: “If we do not accept this agreement, the legal situation means that we cannot prevent China or any other country from establishing their own bases on the outer islands or conducting joint exercises near our bases.
“No responsible government could allow this.”
