Camp Justice

The 1600 out of 3000 Falkland Islanders are currently being asked their opinion in a referendum on whether they wish to remain a British Overseas Territory. An exercise in democracy? Rather it is a public relations exercise.

The  Chagos islanders in the Indian Ocean have well evidenced claims to continuous settlement dating back to at least the mid-nineteenth century ie almost exactly the same time span as the Falkland Islanders. Were the Chagossians asked their opinion when they were  dispossessed and forcibly deported to Mauritius over 1,000 miles away by the British governement to make way an extensive US military base?

On orders from the then Governor Sir Bruce Greatbatch, the islanders were required to deliver their pet dogs (some 1,500 in total) to a large building with no explanation of the reason. Once delivered they were sealed in and gassed with the exhaust fumes from two US military jeeps and under the supervision of American and British officers. Anyone who embarked on a visit to Mauritius for medical treatment or other necessity was forcibly barred from returning. The regular supply ship bringing post, fresh milk, dairy products, sugar, salt, oil, medications and other basic supplies was barred from docking at the islands. This amounted to officially sanctioned harassment and psychological warfare. By 1973 only some 250 of the indigenous population remained. Allowed to take just one suitcase each, they were forcibly embarked into the holds of the SS Nordvaer, on top of a cargo of bird fertiliser (the decks being reserved for horses) and transported to the Seychelles where they were held in prison cells before being transported to Mauritius. There, in similar fashion to the relatives, friends and fellow Chagossians who had preceded them, they were dumped penniless on the quayside. In 2008, Labour's foreign secretary David Miliband called for the creation of a giant 1m-hectare marine protection zone around the islands. This was backed by many of world's major green groups. It later emerged that no one would be allowed to fish there, except of course for American military personnel, who extracted at the last count 28 tons of fish.

Compare and contrast the difference in treatment.

Ironically, the giant American military base on Diego Garcia is named "Camp Justice".