With political will, the UK could bring about an overall settlement for the displaced islanders who wish to return, writes David Snoxell, while Peter Harris says it’s never the wrong time to do the right thing
Your editorial (The Guardian view on Britain and the Chagos Islands: time for justice, 1 June) made a powerful case for bringing an end to a relic of the cold war and 56 years of colonial rule. The Chagos dispute has become a millstone round the neck of British diplomacy. Governments since then have failed to deal with it, choosing to hand on to their successors a mounting bill for domestic and international litigation (about £12m) and a dark stain on Britain’s human rights record. The exile of a people is a crime against humanity under the Rome statute of the international criminal court.
With political will, the UK could bring about an overall settlement to provide for those who wish to return and address the requirements of international law expressed in the advisory opinion of the international court of justice, endorsed by a resolution of the UN general assembly and the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea.
