For 50 years the UK government has shown little regard for the human rights of the indigenous population of the British Indian Ocean Territory

The British Indian Ocean Territory was established in 1965, when around 1,500 inhabitants of the Chagos Archipelago were forcibly removed, and now hosts one of the United States’ most important military bases. In this post Peter Harris discusses the military and environmental interests shaping British policy toward the territory, and argues that the human rights of the indigenous population demand they be able to return their former home.