British Indian Ocean Territory
The British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT), one of the 12 British Overseas Territories, comprises around 2,300 tropical islands of the Chagos Archipelago in the Indian Ocean and covers some 54,400 km² of ocean. It is situated about 500 km south of the Maldives and 1770km east of Mahe (the main island of the Seychelles ). The islands have a total land area of only 60 km² and 698 km of coastline. Diego Garcia, the largest and most southerly island, is 44 km². The climate is hot, humid and moderated by trade winds. The terrain is flat and low and most areas do not exceed four metres in elevation.
The islands were discovered by Vasco da Gama in the early 1600s and then claimed by France in the 18th century as a possession of Mauritius. The United Kingdom gained possession of both Mauritius and the Chagos Archipelago in 1814. In 1965, the islands were detached to become part of the British Indian Ocean Territory with the agreement of the Mauritus Council of Ministers. The UK paid a grant of £ 3 M to Mauritius in consideration of the detachment of the Chagos islands. Diego Garcia contains a joint UK-US naval support facility. In 2004, there were approximately 1,500 UK and US military personnel and 2,000 civilian contractors living on the island.
All of the remaining islands are uninhabited.
There are no industrial or agricultural activities on the islands. Construction projects and various services needed to support the military installations are done by military and contract employees from the UK, Mauritius, the Philippines and the US. The licensing of commercial fishing provides an annual income of about USD 1 M for the territory. In 2003, UK exports to BIOT were £ 341,000. Main UK exports included industrial machinery and equipment, essential oils, and transport equipment. UK imports were valued at £ 123,000, comprising paper, office equipment, clothing and accessories.
Political Situation
As a territory of the United Kingdom, BIOT’s Head of state is Queen Elisabeth II. The Head of government is Commissioner Tony Crombie and Administrator Charles A. Hamilton, all of whom reside in the UK. No elections are held as the monarch is hereditary and the Commissioner and the Administrator are appointed by the monarch.
The constitutional arrangements for BIOT are set out in the British Indian Ocean Territory (Constitution) Order 2004 and related instruments. The 2004 Order gives the Commissioner full power to make laws for the Territory. A series of UK/US Agreements regulate matters relating to the use of the Territory for defence purposes, such as jurisdiction over US military and other personnel.
After BIOT had been created, the UK government gave Mauritius an undertaking to cede the Chagos islands to Mauritius when they were no longer required for defence purposes. However, since the 1980s, successive Mauritian governments have asserted a sovereignty claim to the islands, arguing that they were detached illegally.
The 50-year agreement (with an option for extension of another 20 years) between the United Kingdom and the United States for the US to use the island as a military base was made in 1966. Between 1967 and 1973 the British Government relocated around 1,200 resident islanders, called Ilois, to the Seychelles and to Mauritius to make way for the military base. In 2000, the British High Court granted the islanders the right to return to the Archipelago while upholding the special military status of Diego Garcia. In 2002, the Ilois returned to court claiming compensation after a two-year delay. However, in 2004 the British government made two Orders-in-Council banning the islanders from a return thus reversing the 2000 court decision. This had been preceded by an investigation into relocating the former islanders to some of the uninhabited islands which concluded that this was impossible due to a variety of reasons, i.e. lack of fresh water, vulnerability to natural events and global warming. The Ilois plan to re-establish sugarcane production and fishing upon their return after
the US military lease expires at the earliest in 2016 (See The Guardian from 5 July 2004, 17 July 2004 and 2 October 2004).
The British Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has regularly sought and obtained assurances from the US Government that there is no discrimination against the Chagossians when recruiting employees in Mauritius to work on Diego Garcia. Nevertheless, they have assured members of the Chagossian community that, if they can provide them with any concrete examples of alleged discrimination, the FCO shall take the matter up with the US authorities.
Both Mauritius and the Seychelles claim the Chagos Archipelago and its inhabitants.
Diego Garcia has reported some minor damage following the Tsunami in December 2004. There have been no human casualties or injuries but there has been some environmental damage to vegetation and marine life as well as erosion of beaches as a result of sand displacement.
External and regional environment
The British Indian Ocean Territory is not a member of a regional or subregional organisation.
Relations with the EU
As is the case with other OCTs that lack a permanent population, BIOT has not received any financial allocations from the EU under the 9th EDF or other relevant instruments.
Relations with international community
The British Indian Ocean Territory does not have independent international relations at the political level.
