Mauritius, a small Indian Ocean nation, captures the archipelago against the United Kingdom – International

At Mauritius Islands, In the Indian Ocean, is smaller than Luxembourg. However, they decided to fight with them United KingdomThe former colonial metropolis, which still clings to some parts of the world.

A delegation from Mauritius landed this week on the island of Sagos, 2,000 kilometers from the capital Port Louis. Unconventionally, they removed the British emblems, hoisted the Mauritian flag, sang the anthem, and put up a sign claiming ownership of the corals.

London Did not like and yesterday reaffirmed that the archipelago was British. “The United Kingdom has no doubts about our sovereignty,” the foreign ministry said in a statement. At present, as in 1982, there are no nationalist explosions and sailors boarding the Southampton dock. Malvinas. At this point, history does not help.

Sagos has always been a Mauritius-managed colony. In the 1960s, London decided to separate the two territories, giving independence to Mauritius in 1968 and creating the British Indian Ocean territory, which had already been pledged to benefit the United States.

At the time, the Americans were looking for a deserted island to set up a military base. The British then leased the archipelago to the United States for 50 years – until 2016. The only problem was that 3,000 people lived there, mostly fishermen and coconut oil plantation workers.

“Unfortunately, some of the Torsons and Fridays with the birds (character in the novel) Robson CrusoeMust be taken to Mauritius, ”wrote Denise Greenhill, a British ambassador, in 1966, announcing a plan for mass deportation to London.

The villagers were deported and barred from returning. Some went to England, where they formed an association to challenge the expulsion. In Diego Garcia, the archipelago’s largest island, the United States created a base, which was later named the site of a secret CIA investigation.

Dispute

Mauritius claims that the UK has violated a UN resolution banning the breaking of colonies before independence. Has been successful in all events so far. In 2015, it received a favorable opinion from the Permanent Arbitration Court. In 2019, the UN General Assembly gave Britain a six-month deadline to leave the islands. The International Court of Justice and the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea asked for Sagos’ extradition.

After the deadline, Mauritius decided to act like the British colonialists. In January, he summoned the exiles, made a voyage, and began to occupy the territory. “This is a symbolic act,” said Jagadish Koonjul, the ambassador to Mauritius. UN, On Monday. It remains to be seen whether British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will have the patience to tackle another crisis 9,000 kilometers from home this time.