British Indian Ocean Territory

British Indian Ocean Territory (British overseas territory)
East Point, Diego Garcia
In tutela nostra Limuria
Area:	23.2 sq miles ‘’(land only)’’
Population:	4,000
Capital:	Diego Garcia
Biggest town:	Diego Garcia
Time zone:	GMT +6
Dialling code:	+246
TLD:	.io

The British Indian Ocean Territory (also known as the Chagos Islands) is an British overseas territory in the Indian Ocean, lying halfway between Africa and Indonesia. The territory comprises the six atolls of the Chagos Archipelago with over 1,000 individual islands and islets having a total land area of 23.2 square miles but somewhat more if lagoon areas are included.

The islands are created by a vast area of coral reefs extending across the territory, providing a rich habitat of abundant sea-life. This is protected as the 'Chagos Marine Protected Area' in which fishing and commercial exploitation are banned.

The largest island is Diego Garcia with a land area of 11.6 square miles (or 65.6 square miles including the lagoon), the site of a joint military facility of the United Kingdom and the United States. Following the removal of the settled plantation workers in the 1960s, the only inhabitants are British and American military personnel and associated contractors, who collectively number around 4,000 (by 2004 figures).

Geography and communications

Map of the British Indian Ocean Territory since 1976

The territory is an archipelago of 55 islands, the largest being Diego Garcia, accounting for almost three-quarters of the total land area of the territory, which is 65.6 square miles including its lagoon. The terrain is flat and low, with most areas not exceeding 6 feet above sea level. The climate is tropical marine; hot, humid, and moderated by trade winds.

With the exception of one two-lane road, most of the islands in the territory have no roads of any sort. Diego Garcia has a short stretch of paved road between the port and airfield; otherwise most transport is by bicycle.

Diego Garcia's military base is home to the territory's only airport. At 3,280 yards long, it is capable of supporting very heavy USAF bombers like the B-52 and the Space Shuttle in the event of a mission abort. It also has a major seaport.

History

Maldivian mariners knew the Chagos Islands well. In Maldivian lore they are known as Fōlhavahi or Hollhavai (the latter name in the closer Southern Maldives). According to Southern Maldivian oral tradition, traders and fishermen were occasionally lost at sea and got stranded in one of the islands of the Chagos. Eventually they were rescued and brought back home. However, these islands were judged to be too far away from the Maldives to be settled permanently by them. Thus for many centuries the Chagos were ignored by their northern neighbours.

The islands of Chagos Archipelago were charted by Vasco da Gama in the early sixteenth century, then claimed in the eighteenth century by France as a possession of Mauritius. They were first settled in the 18th century, by African slaves and Indian labourers brought by Franco-Mauritians to found coconut plantations. In 1810, Mauritius was captured by the United Kingdom. France ceded both that island and the Chagos Islands in the Treaty of Paris.

In 1965, the United Kingdom split the Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius, and the islands of Aldabra, Farquhar and Desroches (Des Roches) from the Seychelles, to form the British Indian Ocean Territory. The purpose was to allow the construction of military facilities for the mutual benefit of the United Kingdom and the United States. The islands were formally established as an overseas territory of the United Kingdom on 8 November 1965. On 23 June 1976, Aldabra, Farquhar and Desroches were returned to Seychelles as a result of its attaining independence. Subsequently, BIOT has consisted only of the six main island groups comprising the Chagos Archipelago.

In 1966, the British government purchased the privately owned copra plantations, which had long since ceased to be profitable, and closed them down. Over the next five years, the British authorities removed the entire population of plantation workers, about 2,000 people in all, from Diego Garcia and two other Chagos atolls, Peros Banhos and Salomon, to the Seychelles and Mauritius. In 1971, the United Kingdom and the United States signed a treaty, leasing the island of Diego Garcia to the American military for the purposes of building a large air and naval base on the Island. The strategic location of the island was also significant at the centre of the Indian Ocean, and to counter any Soviet threat in the region.

View of Diego Garcia, showing military base

Work on the military base commenced in 1971, with a large airbase with several long range runways constructed, as well as a harbour suitable for large naval vessels. Although classed as a joint UK/US base, in practice it is mainly staffed by the American military, although a British garrison is maintained at all times, and Royal Air Force long range patrol aircraft are deployed there.

Outside links

• The Chagos Conservation Trust - A non-political charity whose aims are to promote conservation, scientific and historical research, and to advance education concerning the archipelago.
• US Military Site on Diego Garcia
• Chagos Islands (B.I.O.T.) at Britlink - British Islands & Territories