Gardian Posted May 23, 2007 Share Posted May 23, 2007 It's been mentioned a bit on the News today, but may not have meant much to many.A group of Islanders in the Indian Ocean were turfed out by the British Government 30 or so years ago. It was literally that - off you go, find a new home. They were / are British citizens, or at least part of the Commonwealth (not sure of my facts here), but whatever, they were badly dealt with by our Govt.They've been fighting for years for the right to return. Today, the High Court ruled in their favour. It's not all over by any means - the US has a base on the main island and I guess that it all has to go before Congress. Still some way to go, but it's more than a start.This was not, by any means, one of our 'finest hours' in terms of how we dealt with people over whom (in truth) we had no credible jurisdiction. They'll win eventually (let's hope) and if GB's Govt appeals against the ruling, then shame on them.My congratulations to the Judiciary for taking a humanitarian stand.My interest? My Dad was based on Diego Garcia during WW2 and always said that the people were the most gentle folk you could wish to meet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tresco Posted May 23, 2007 Share Posted May 23, 2007 I can't quite believe 'we' were still doing this kind of thing as late as 1967.[8-)]It was a massive cheek to say 'move along now'.... (eg, just move to another Island/country).http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601102&sid=aUx23jkO_yPg&refer=uk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Le Petomane Posted May 25, 2007 Share Posted May 25, 2007 The Foreign Office minister who signed their deportation order was Roy "Chubby" Hattersley, who now presents himself all over the media as the Inheritor of Keir Hardie's Cloth Cap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monaco Posted May 25, 2007 Share Posted May 25, 2007 I have an instinctive aversion to former left wingers who accept peerages. They say it is in order to balance the parties in the Lords, but I suspect it has much to do with their own and their wives' liking for the title. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Polremy Posted May 25, 2007 Share Posted May 25, 2007 Wot? Are you calling him a Polremy socialist then? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Posted May 26, 2007 Share Posted May 26, 2007 The reason the Diego Garcian islanders were chucked off was to turn their homes into a US military base - proving that the British government sucking up to the Americans is not an invention of Mr Blair.If they can return it will be good news for everybody, not just the islanders but also the taxpayers in West Sussex, where they have been held, at a centre near Gatwick airport, for several years. They have maintained a daily vigil outside the council offices in Crawley to draw attention to their situation.Some information can be found here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diego_Garcia Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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