Assessing the impact of forced displacement on communities in small island states : the case of the Chagossian tragedy

Abstract

The dissertation is centred on a case study of a small community, called the Chagossians who were former inhabitants of the Chagos Archipelago. They were forcibly displaced and relocated on the Islands of Seychelles and Mauritius between 1965 and 1973 by the UK and US governments to make way for the construction of a US military base. Numerous research conducted on the case has tended to focus mainly on the impoverishment risks that the islanders have been exposed to as a consequence of this phenomenon. Though my study will also examine the impoverishment effects of 'military base-induced' displacement, it will attempt to push knowledge a step further in the field by exploring the human rights implication of this phenomenon for the Chagossian people. Furthermore it will attempt to show how power politics has and continue to undemine Chogossians' efforts to reclaim their rights

The study adopted a qualitative methodology and data was colleted by means of interviews, the internet, other forms of printed materials and documentary films. The dissertation concludes that 'military base-induced' displacement have exposed the Chagossians to numerous impoverishments risks. Interestingly, it also revealed that the risks correspond sharply to those that victims of other forms of displacement are exposed to. It also reveals that the politicised nature of the case has been and still is largely responsible for the on-going impoverishment and human rights violation of the Chagossian people.