Our exile directly violates the Magna Carta, the foundational document of English law and global human rights: "No man shall be exiled except by a jury of his peers." We have fought for decades to reclaim our basic human and legal rights.
1999-2000: Our struggle finally reached the UK courts. In 2000, the British High Court ruled we had a right to return to our homeland.
2003-2004: Permission to appeal for compensation was refused. Then, the Royal Prerogative was used to ban us from our homeland again—a second exile that nullified our legal victory.
2006: Victory again. The High Court deemed the 2004 orders illegal, restoring our right of return.
2008: The Government appealed to the House of Lords. In a 3-2 decision, the Law Lords ruled that the secret 'Orders in Council' were legal, closing the door on the domestic legal battle for many years.
2012: The ECHR found in favor of the UK, claiming compensation already paid prevented further challenges. We disagreed; elders were forced to sign legalistic English documents they did not understand for a pittance of £1,000.
2014: A KPMG study reported that resettlement was economically feasible, yet the Government continued to resist.
2015: We challenged the 2008 verdict on the basis that key evidence—acknowledging the flawed nature of feasibility studies—was withheld by the Government.
2016: Our challenge was narrowly rejected (3:2). In November 2016, the government formally decided against resettlement despite the KPMG evidence.
We were given British citizenship, but no support mechanisms to survive or establish our families. Current policies are breaking families apart:
Families are separated by enormous visa fees and language barriers. Many descendants are currently in deportation centres, facing removal from their only safe haven.
The Government offered a £40 million 'support package' over 10 years. We must ask: Is this a bribe to back down from resettlement?
It is described as a "voluntary offer of help," but it does not address the fundamental right of return or the trauma of loss caused by enforced exile.
"Chagos belongs to the Chagossians; we are the owners."
Chagossians are standing firm, supporting each other against unfair immigration laws, housing insecurity, and poverty. We demand an amendment to the immigration bill to grant full British Citizenship to all our descendants, exempting them from rules that ignore our unique history.