Apropos Chagos Archipelago, Ganga Talao & L’enfer routier
Readers Speak
Return the Chagos Archipelago to Mauritius
Colonialism Reparation welcomes that the International Court of Justice has decided that the process of decolonization of Mauritius has not been lawfully completed and that the United Kingdom has an obligation to bring to an end its administration of the Chagos Archipelago and requests that the United Kingdom present apologies and compensations for the deportation of the original inhabitants and the whole period of British colonial rule.
On February 25, 2019 the International Court of Justice has delivered the advisory opinion Legal Consequences of the Separation of the Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius in 1965 requested on June 22, 2017 by the United Nations General Assembly.
The Court considers that “as a result of the Chagos Archipelago’s unlawful detachment and its incorporation into a new colony, known as the [British Indian Ocean Territory] BIOT, the process of decolonization of Mauritius was not lawfully completed when Mauritius acceded to independence in 1968”.
For this reason “the United Kingdom has an obligation to bring to an end its administration of the Chagos Archipelago as rapidly as possible and that all Member States must co-operate with the United Nations to complete the decolonization of Mauritius”. As regards the resettlement on the Chagos Archipelago of Mauritian nationals, including those of Chagossian origin, the Court was of the view that this is an issue relating to the protection of the human rights of those concerned, which should be addressed by the General Assembly during the completion of the decolonization of Mauritius.
The decision was taken as a full court with thirteen votes in favour and only one against and was immediately welcomed by the United Nations, the African Union, Mauritius, the associations Groupe réfugiés Chagos and UK Chagos Support, the United Kingdom’s Leader of the Opposition and also by Cyprus, which could start a similar path for Akrotiri and Dhekelia, Argentine and Comoros.
Colonialism Reparation welcomes that the International Court of Justice has decided that the process of decolonization of Mauritius has not been lawfully completed when Mauritius acceded to independence and that the United Kingdom has an obligation to bring to an end its administration of the Chagos Archipelago as rapidly as possible and requests that the United Kingdom, besides returning the Chagos Archipelago to Mauritius, present apologies and compensations for the deportation of the original inhabitants and the whole period of British colonial rule.
Colonialism Reparation
http://www.colonialismreparation.org/
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‘L’enfer routier’
Just a comment on Dr R Neerunjun Gopee’s article in your paper, some time back, titled ‘L’enfer routier’.
An ant knows where it is going. On a scale of size alone, this tiny creature moves about 1 million times more effectively than us. Yet they do it humbly, without a horde of advisers and without putting their colony at risk by going to other colonies for help, for which colony, in its right mind, would help others without putting their own interest first?
The question is: what do we do as a people enslaved by a mode of locomotion that does not meet our needs? It is certainly not by overlapping it with another mode of transport and pretending that all those hundreds of thousands of vehicles will be sent to the garage for a long and well-deserved rest!
Vishesh
Visheshdev@yahoo.ca
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Apropos ‘Rupture & Ganga Talao’
Ref: Ganga Talao also needs its “politique de rupture” by Rattan Khushiram in your edition of 8th March 19. The author’s points are very much valid and reflect a sound appraisal of the situation in respect of our Shivratri festival entering kitchen politics at the hand of idiosyncratic politicians. Just too bad that we let ourselves be subject to such foolish groups, politicians, cultural groups, or pressure groups. It’s very sad to see the impropriety of others masking as spirituality as you say! I hope we can come to our senses!
Dave Ran
quaintxyz9@gmail.com
* Published in print edition on 29 March 2019
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