Britain can now sign a multibillion-dollar treaty transferring sovereignty over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius after a High Court judge lifted an eleventh-hour injunction that had stalled the deal earlier in the day, as per Al Jazeera.
Judge Martin Chamberlain ruled that the delay was not in the public interest, allowing Prime Minister Keir Starmer to proceed with a virtual signing ceremony alongside Mauritian Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam.
The agreement will end more than half a century of British control of the Indian Ocean archipelago, while guaranteeing the UK—and by extension the United States—continued use of Diego Garcia, the region’s strategically important air- and naval-base, under a renewable 99-year lease. Government sources have put the annual cost of the lease at about £90 million.
Signing was originally scheduled for 09:00 BST, but an early-morning order by Judge Julian Goose halted any “conclusive or legally binding step” after two British-born Chagossian women, Bernadette Dugasse and Bertrice Pompe, argued that the treaty had been negotiated without adequate consultation with the islands’ exiled community of around 1,500 people.
Chamberlain’s afternoon ruling overturned that injunction, noting that further delay would “substantially prejudice” UK interests. The government welcomed the decision, calling the treaty “vital to protect the British people and our national security.”
Background:
Britain separated the Chagos Islands from Mauritius in 1965—three years before Mauritian independence—to form the British Indian Ocean Territory.
Between 1968 and 1973, islanders were removed to make way for the US-run Diego Garcia base, a move subsequently condemned in international forums.
A 2019 advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice and repeated UN votes have urged London to end its administration of the islands.
Pompe and Dugasse say the handover may complicate their right of return or jeopardise British citizenship rights for future generations. They are pressing for “full, transparent participation” in any resettlement plans and for compensation linked to decades of displacement.
Officials in London and Port Louis have indicated the treaty will be signed “within hours.” Parliamentary scrutiny in the UK is expected later this year, while Mauritius must ratify the accord through its National Assembly.
