Joanna Tuffy (Dublin Mid West, Labour)
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Question 160: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs if his attention has been drawn to the recent developments in the House of Lords whereby former residents of the British Indian Ocean territory of Diego Garcia, exiled in the 1960's when the colony was leased to the US to build an air base, were denied the right to return; his view of this ongoing transgression of the islanders right of abode; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38372/08]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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The demand of the Chagossian natives to return to the Chagossian archipelago is a complex issue which also involves competing sovereignty claims and legal arguments.

In November 2000, the High Court in Britain ruled that the "wholesale removal" of the Islanders between 1967 and 1971 was an "abject legal failure" and that they could return to the small outlying islands in the group but not the largest, Diego Garcia. The ruling also granted the islanders British citizenship. Following this ruling, the British Government commissioned a study on island resettlement and concluded that it was "impractical and inconsistent with the existing defence facilities". A study commissioned by the Islanders refutes the idea that resettlement is "impractical".

In November 2002 the Islanders launched a separate case in the High Court in England claiming that they had been treated in such a way by the British Government as to entitle them to compensation and return of their property. In October 2003, the Islanders lost this claim for compensation. In June 2004 a royal decree was issued in Britain banning the Chagos Islanders from returning to the islands. In October 2004 the High Court agreed to a judicial review of the royal decree, and it was overturned in May 2006. This decision was supported by the Court of Appeal in May 2007. The British Government requested that the House of Lords examine this decision in June 2008, and on 22 October the Law Lords ruled that the royal decree was indeed immune from scrutiny, and the ban on returning to the islands should stand. The Law Lords ruling is the final judgement in the British legal system. The group have claimed that they may bring their case to the European Court for Human Rights.

The Government will continue to monitor the situation of the Chagossian Archipelago. We would wish to see the issue resolved by agreement between the parties, and in a manner which properly addresses the unfortunate situation of the Chagos Islanders. However, we note that the matter is one which has been pursued through the appropriate British legal and judicial channels.