What does Mauritius’ acquisition of the Chagos Islands mean for the Sri Lankan Tamil refugees?
Yathushan Vignarajan Yathushan Vignarajan

What does Mauritius’ acquisition of the Chagos Islands mean for the Sri Lankan Tamil refugees?

The Chagos Islands have recently been handed over to the Mauritian government by the UK’s new Labour government. Yet, on these very islands, specifically Diego Garcia - a US-UK military base, around 60 Tamil refugees, including 16 children, are trapped in limbo after claiming asylum in what was, and still is, the British Indian Ocean Territory in 2021. The group are alleged to have faced rats in their camp and multiple reports of sexual harassment and abuse along with several self-harm attempts (the latter of which led to 8 being treated in Rwanda), even resulting in the United Nations declaring that Diego Garcia is an unsuitable location for these migrants.

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