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Lankan Tamils stranded on ‘secretive’ British island in Indian Ocean

Published

2 years ago

2024/07/17

Sixty Lankan Tamil refugees, including at least 16 children, claim to have been ‘unlawfully detained’ on Diego Garcia since 2021, said a report published by The Week of the UK yesterday.

It said: A paradise island in the Indian Ocean has become the centre of a complex legal dispute, a battle for control – and a “prison” for stranded migrants.

In 2021, Sri Lankan Tamils fleeing persecution attempted to sail to Canada to claim asylum, when their fishing boat suffered a leak. British Navy ships rescued dozens and brought them to Diego Garcia, the largest of the disputed Chagos Islands in the British Indian Ocean Territory (Biot) – long claimed by Mauritius – and site of a secretive military base leased by the UK to the US. The group of 60, including at least 16 children, claim to have been “unlawfully detained” since: the first people to file asylum claims in the Biot.

The territory’s Supreme Court was due to rule on the claim last week, but hours before the judge and lawyers got on the US military plane to start their journey, the US cancelled the hearing. Officials said they were “withdrawing its consent” for access to the “heavily restricted” island, with communication seen by the BBC describing the reasons as “confidential” – but that the visit presented “risks to the security and effective operation” of the base.

But parts of the island where access was denied (such as a gym and a swimming pool) were visited by US cheerleaders and celebrity chefs earlier this year. The fact that the Biot Supreme Court has been “prevented from sitting in its own territory on Crown land is an extraordinary affront to the rule of law”, said Tessa Gregory, a partner at Leigh Day, the London-based solicitors representing the Tamils.

Diego Garcia is the largest of the Chagos Islands, an archipelago about 310 miles south of The Maldives. The Biot is constitutionally separate from the UK, but administered from London.

The UK took the Chagos Islands from its then colony Mauritius in 1965 and evicted the population of more than 1,000 people, to build a military base. It signed an agreement in 1966 to lease the base to the US for 50 years, which has been extended and is now set to expire in 2036. So although Diego Garcia is technically in a British territory, most of the island is under US military control, including the accommodation and transport.

The US has sent planes from Diego Garcia to bomb Afghanistan and Iraq, while two B52 bombers were sent there for training earlier this year. The CIA has also denied allegations that it has been used as a base to interrogate terror suspects after 9/11.

Since Mauritius gained its independence in 1968, it has claimed ownership of the islands. In 2000, the British High Court ruled that the forceful eviction of Chagossians had been illegal, and granted them right of return – to any island except Diego Garcia.

The International Court of Justice ruled in 2019 that the UK’s control of the whole territory was “unlawful” and should end. In 2021, a separate UN maritime court found that the UK’s control of the islands amounted to an “unlawful occupation”.

But “regardless of widespread international opinion in favour of Mauritius, London has largely ignored these decisions”, said Foreign Policy. The UK government also argues that the refugee convention does not apply there.

Foreign Office plans to give the Chagos Islands back to Mauritius in a “Cyprus-style deal” were scrapped earlier this year, said The Telegraph. Then Defence Secretary Grant Shapps “urged” David Cameron not to cede the islands to Mauritius – a growing ally of China.

“In many ways, the island – with its pure white sands, palm trees and azure seas – looks a lot like paradise”, said The Guardian. But for the 60 asylum seekers, “that idyll could not be further from their reality” – they remain “stuck there” in a “desperate, dangerous limbo”.

They are forced to live in a “makeshift tented camp the size of a football pitch, surrounded by a 7ft-high metal fence”. The tents are “infested with rats, mice and cockroaches”. One person told the paper: “My mental state is deteriorating. I live in a body that has no life inside it”.

Many of the detainees “say they are escaping torture and persecution by either Sri Lankan security forces” due to their Tamil ethnicity, said The New Humanitarian, or Indian security forces due to being Sri Lankan refugees.

But on Diego Garcia, guarded by private security company G4S, “they are treating us like prisoners”, two asylum seekers said in an anonymous written statement. A G4S spokesperson denied the claims, saying the company “treats the migrants on the island with dignity and respect at all times”.

But there have been “multiple suicide attempts” and “reports of sexual harassment and assaults”, said the BBC. Some have been flown to Rwanda for medical treatment, but remain under Biot administration. “During Tuesday’s virtual hearing, one of the migrants on the island collapsed multiple times.”

Last year, UN representatives who visited the camp reported that “conditions there amounted to arbitrary detention”. The Foreign Office has also said that the island is not suitable for migrants. A ruling in their favour could allow them to claim compensation for years of detention, as well as having implications for Chagossians’ calls for reparations for their eviction.

The asylum seekers are “pinning all their hopes on their legal teams to get them off the island and to a place of safety where their troubled children can thrive”, said The Guardian. One told the paper: “We hope we will be allowed to escape from hell.”

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Fast Attack Craft P 4447 recovered in successful salvage operation

Published

5 hours ago

2026/09/14

Priyan

The Sri Lanka Navy successfully recovered its Fast Attack Craft P 4447 following a successful salvage operation, bringing a multi-stage emergency response to a close.

The craft, which ran into distress during a routine patrol on 15th August 2026 off Angulana, was brought to the surface on 11th September, from a depth of approximately 80 feet. It was
subsequently towed to the Colombo Dockyard premises.
The initial phase of the operation immediately following the incident focused on search and rescue. A joint effort involving the Navy, Air Force, Police, and local fishermen from Angulana
resulted in the rescue of 11 crew members. The search and rescue phase drew to a close with the recovery of the remains of the Second in Command of the craft, on 4th September.

Following the search and rescue phase, specialized Navy diving and salvage teams launched a dedicated recovery phase against rough sea conditions and underwater challenges, adhering to
strict safety protocols. The Navy’s marine, hull, electrical, and electronic engineering teams utilized specialized technical know-how and equipment to raise the vessel in stages.

Thus, the salvage operation marked an outstanding achievement attained through the professionalism, technical expertise of Navy divers, and coordinated contribution of all
engineering and technical branches of the Sri Lanka Navy. Technical support and specialized expertise were also extended by the Sri Lanka Ports Authority and Colombo Dockyard PLC.

News

CIABOC member’s appointment: Controversy over Speaker under probe heading selection process

Published

7 hours ago

2026/09/14

Thilina Walpola

By Shamindra Ferdinando

The Opposition should intensity its focus on the forthcoming selection of a member of the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) and remain vigilant as Speaker Dr. Jagath Wickremaratne, MP, the head of the Constitutional Council (CC) tasked with making the relevant recommendation, is under investigation by the CIABOC, sources familiar with the ongoing inquiry told The Island.

Chethiya Goonasekara, PC, is expected to complete his three-year term on Dec 31, 2026. Sources pointed out that CIABOC Commissioners are appointed by the President on the recommendation made by the 10-member Constitutional Council.

The CIABOC initiated the investigation following a complaint lodged by suspended Chief of Staff and Deputy Secretary General of Parliament Chaminda Kularatne in early February this year. Sources said that as Goonasekera is scheduled to complete his term toward the end of 2026, the CC would have to call applications soon to choose the successor.

Goonasekara received his appointment from President Ranil Wickremesinghe in January 2024. A Justice W. M. N. P. Iddawala was appointed Chairman of the CIABOC. The other commissioner is K. Bernard Rajapakse.

Asked whether Iddawala and Rajapakse, too, would complete their terms soon, sources said that in terms of the Anti-Corruption Act No 09 of 2023, the Chairman of CIABOC would hold office for a period of five years, second commissioner (K. Bernard Rajapakse) for four years and the third commissioner (Chethiya Goonasekara) for a period of three years.

Sources said that the Opposition as well as civil society representatives in the CC should take up the issue of Speaker facing an investigation by the CIABOC taking part in the forthcoming selection process. Responding to queries, sources emphasized that the issue was whether in terms of Section 107 of the Anti-Corruption Act the participation of the Speaker in the selection process amounted to a violation of the Act itself.

The current members of the CC are Dr Jagath Wickramaratne, Speaker and Chairman of the Constitutional Council, Dr. Harini Amarasuriya, Prime Minister, Sajith Premadasa, Leader of the Opposition, Bimal Rathnayake, MP, Aboobucker Athambawa, MP, Ajith P. Perera, MP, Sivagnanam Shritharan, MP, Austin Fernando, Civil society representative, Prof. Wasantha Seneviratne, Civil society representative and Ranjith Ariyaratne, Civil society representative.

Sources pointed out that in spite of the sensitivity of the case, the CIABOC recorded Kularatne’s statement in the second week of August, six months after he lodged the complaint.

The CIABOC on 3, 8 and 10 Sept recorded the statements from the Transport Officer, Deputy Director, Administration and Assistant Director, Finance regarding the use of facilities by the Speaker, those assigned to his staff and other relevant matters.

The NPP named Dr. Wickramaratne as the Speaker after Asoka Ranwala resigned over controversy regarding his higher education qualifications.

SJB lawmaker Dayasiri Jayaskera has repeatedly raised the issues concerning the Speaker with the focus also on the Speaker using two government-managed residences, relevant staff in addition to expenditure on food, transport and fuel provided to the Speaker’s private secretary.

Political sources said that trouble erupted after the Parliamentary Staff Advisory Council in late January sacked Kularatne accusing him of providing false information to secure his appointment. Before being appointed as the Deputy Secretary-General of Parliament in 2023, Kularatne held several high-ranking positions, including Secretary to the Chief Government Whip, Additional Secretary to the President, Additional Secretary to the Prime Minister, and Additional Secretary to the Leader of the Opposition.

The SJB declared in Parliament that Ranwala should be brought back as the Speaker as they have no faith in Wickramaratne. MP Mujibur Rahuman jokingly told parliament that the Opposition wouldn’t raise Ranwala’s educational qualifications.

News

GMOA: Countrywide cadre revision not done since 2015

Published

7 hours ago

2026/09/14

Thilina Walpola

Dhammika

The Government Medical Officers’ Association (GMOA) has stressed the need to conduct a comprehensive countrywide cadre revision urgently.

GMOA spokesman Dr. Lasitha Dhammika told The Island that the failure on the part of successive governments to conduct cadre revision caused the deterioration of the public sector health services. Due to the absence of required statistics, they hadn’t been able to fully comprehend the situation on the ground and to ascertain the requirements of the public.

Dr. Dhammika pointed out the expansion of the services without supporting statistics and the need to initiate an immediate cadre revision. According to him, the GMOA had raised this issue with successive governments without success. The GMOA spokesman said that they also sought relevant information from the Health Ministry in terms of the Right to Information (RTI) Act two weeks ago but was yet to receive response.

(SF)