Legal decision
ICJ Advisory Opinion on the Chagos Archipelago, 2019
The International Court of Justice found in a 2019 advisory opinion that the 1965 detachment of the Chagos Archipelago was not lawfully agreed and that Mauritius's decolonisation was not completed in 1968; the General Assembly then called on the UK to withdraw its administration.
What happened
On 25 February 2019, the International Court of Justice, in an advisory opinion requested by the General Assembly, found that the 1965 detachment of the Chagos Archipelago was not based on a free and genuine expression of the will of the people concerned and that Mauritius's decolonisation was not lawfully completed in 1968.[1] On 22 May 2019, the General Assembly adopted resolution 73/295, welcoming the opinion and demanding the UK withdraw its colonial administration within six months, by a vote of 116 in favour, 6 against, and 56 abstentions.[2]
Sources for this page
Each number marks a specific claim. Notes give the source, its locator and how it relates to the claim.
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1.
Claim: On 25 February 2019, the International Court of Justice, in an advisory opinion requested by UN General Assembly resolution 71/292, found that the 1965 detachment of the Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius was not based on a free and genuine expression of the will of the people concerned, and that the decolonisation of Mauritius was not lawfully completed in 1968.
- International Court of Justice, Legal Consequences of the Separation of the Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius in 1965, Advisory Opinion (International Court of Justice, 25 February 2019) link, advisory opinion. Source record
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2.
Claim: On 22 May 2019, the General Assembly adopted resolution 73/295, welcoming the ICJ's advisory opinion and demanding that the United Kingdom withdraw its colonial administration from the Chagos Archipelago within six months, by a recorded vote of 116 in favour to 6 against, with 56 abstentions.
- United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly resolution 73/295: Advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice on the Legal Consequences of the Separation of the Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius in 1965 (United Nations, 22 May 2019) link, resolution text. Source record