Member

Even at this stage, these amendments try to put lipstick on the pig—a reference to the domestic pigs that formerly roamed freely on the islands of the Chagos Archipelago before that base was established. After 200 years of protection, the British Indian Ocean Territory will be ceded to a country in bed with our enemies, and the citizenship rights of the Chagossians will be limited. It is down to us at least to ensure that the trust fund will be used to benefit all Chagossians, to ensure that they have a say in how it is spent to benefit our former subjects, and to ensure that the Chagossians, and their issue, are not just eligible to be employed on the base on an equitable basis, but also have preference for employment. They can then play a role in protecting their ancestral home, in the hope that, one day, it may be returned to them.