The Pope stood firm in his support for the rights of vulnerable groups while standing up to powerful interests during a meeting with refugees from Chagos, a conflict-torn Indian Ocean archipelago that hosts a strategic US and British military base.
The first-ever US pope stressed the right of the Chagossian people to return to their homeland. He also noted the symbolic value of the recent agreement between the UK and Mauritius on the future of the archipelago, calling it a significant step in international relations.
Pontiff Leo XIV held a conversation with representatives of the Chagossian refugees. About 2,000 of them were forcibly evicted by the British authorities in the 1960s and 1970s to establish a US air and naval base on the largest island, Diego Garcia.
The displaced people have been fighting for decades in British courts to be allowed to return home. In May, the UK and Mauritius reached an agreement to transfer sovereignty over the islands to Mauritius while maintaining the operation of the military facility.
Leo told the refugees he was “happy” about the signing of the agreement, describing it as an “important success” in their years-long struggle to “restore fundamental justice.”
He paid particular attention to the role of Chagos women in the non-violent struggle to restore the right of return.
In French, the pontiff said: “The renewed possibility of your return to your homeland is a hopeful symbol for the world community: all nations, including small and vulnerable ones, deserve respect for their rights and uniqueness from strong powers, especially the right to live on their own land without the threat of forced expulsion.”
He expressed confidence that the Mauritian authorities would ensure the implementation of the return programme, promising assistance from the Catholic Church in the region.
Under the agreement, the UK is obliged to pay Mauritius an average of £101 million annually for the lease of the base for a minimum of 99 years.
The document provides for the creation of a special fund to support the Chagossians and confirms “Mauritius's right to develop a repatriation programme” on the islands other than Diego Garcia.
However, the agreement does not oblige them to relocate, which has raised concerns among some displaced people who believe that handing over control to Mauritius will make it more difficult to return.
Mauritius has historically disputed Britain's rights to the archipelago, with the UN and the International Court of Justice repeatedly calling on London to return the territory to the state located 1,250 miles southwest of the islands.
In a 2019 advisory opinion, the International Court of Justice ruled that the partition of Mauritius carried out by the United Kingdom when it granted independence in the late 1960s was unlawful.
The late Pope Francis visited Mauritius in 2019 and hosted a group of Chagossians at the Vatican in 2023.
Returning from a visit to Mauritius in 2019, the pontiff told reporters that Britain needed to comply with UN decisions on the return of the archipelago.
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
