Yearbook 2007
Mauritius. About 2,000 people from the British-controlled
Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean, who were displaced from
there 30 years ago, were allowed to return home in May.
According to
CountryAAH, an
appeal court in London then rejected an appeal from the
British government and instead upheld a 2006 ruling that
gave the islanders the right to move back.
The conflict between Mauritius and Britain dates back to 1966,
when Britain leased the Chagos Islands' largest island,
Diego Garcia, to the United States, which built a military
base there. Britain forced the approximately 2,000 Chagos to
move to Mauritius, 20 miles southeast of the islands. There many of
them live in poverty and some of them are refugees in the
UK.
The islanders have long demanded to return home as well
as claim damages from the UK and the US. The British
government has tried to prevent the Chagos from moving back,
partly by taking advantage of an opportunity to make
decisions through decrees. The Court of Appeal described the
government's treatment of the islanders as "disgusting abuse
of power". Before the verdict came, M's president Anerood
threatened Jugnauth to leave the Commonwealth in protest of
Britain's "barbaric treatment" of the people of the Chagos
Islands. He also considered bringing the matter to the
International Court of Justice in The Hague.
Mauritius - Port Louis
Port Louis
Port Louis, the capital of Mauritius; 148,100 residents (2018). Port Louis,
located on the northwestern coast of the island of Mauritius, with its port is
the center of the country's domestic and foreign trade. The city has several
research institutes and a university (founded in 1965).
Port Louis was founded by the French in 1736 as an intermediate station for
ships en route between Europe and Asia.
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