The Chagos Archipelago Case and the Limits of International Law (English) L’Affaire de l’Archipel des Chagos et Les Limites du Droit International

Abstract

The legal status of the Chagos archipelago is complex because it is of a hybrid nature: it is under the sovereignty of the United Kingdom which grants rights at sea to Mauritius, and on land to the United States (Diego Garcia). This case is also important because it is not easy to have two divergent preoccupations: the protection of the environment in the face of the rights of Chagossians and environmental sustainability in the face of equity and human rights. This case was first submitted to the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA), before the UN General Assembly had asked the International Court of Justice (ICJ) about the claims that the PCA declared it lacked jurisdiction to answer.