UN body urges Britain and Mauritius not to ratify Chagos deal

By Emma Farge

GENEVA, Dec 8 (Reuters) - A U.N. committee on Monday urged Britain and Mauritius not to ratify a deal seeking to settle the future of the Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean, saying it risks perpetuating long-standing violations of Chagossians' rights.

The deal, struck in May after years of talks, passes sovereignty of the islands to Mauritius while allowing Britain to retain control of the strategically important U.S.-UK air base on the largest island, Diego Garcia, under a long-term lease.

Up to 2,000 Chagossians were forcibly removed from the archipelago in the 1960s and 1970s. Many ended up in Britain, and some have sought the right to return.

The U.N. Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, which met in Geneva this month, said it was concerned that the deal "explicitly prevents the return of the Chagossian people to their ancestral lands in Diego Garcia Island".

It also voiced concern that the deal did not formally acknowledge past injustices, provide full reparation for harms, or allow the islands to preserve their distinct cultural heritage.

Britain and Mauritius, along with some 180 other states, are parties to the legally binding 1965 Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination overseen by the U.N. Committee. Their diplomatic missions in Geneva did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The World Court urged Britain in 2019 to return the islands to Mauritius. London has since acknowledged that the removal of Chagossians was "deeply wrong and regrettable".

The decision was issued under the Committee's early warning system, which discusses urgent matters to limit treaty violations and prevent them escalating into conflicts.

It urges the parties to "continue cooperating to bring an end to the harm suffered by the Chagossian people and the violations of their rights".

(Reporting by Emma Farge; Editing by Kevin Liffey)