Tamil refugees in tropical island nightmare

Stuck in paradise - 10th July 2023

Nearly one hundred Tamil migrants from Sri Lanka have been held on the tropical island of Diego Garcia for more than 20 months. 89 refugees were rescued by British sailors from a troubled fishing boat near the island's coast in October 2021.

The Tamils, who are an ethnic group in Sri Lanka, claimed to be escaping unfair treatment back home. They were on their way to Canada when winds pulled their boat off course. In 2022, there were two more boats which resulted in 173 refugees from Sri Lanka on the island.

The refugees were placed in a fenced camp and face an uncertain future on the British Indian Ocean Territory. This is because Diego Garcia's a US-UK military base. Britain's signed the United Nations Refugee Convention. However, its rules don't apply to a military base.

The island paradise has turned into a living nightmare for these refugees. WIth no civilians on the island, this means there's no education for the children to access. Medical care's also limited and some refugees have had to be flown to Rwanda for treatment. To escape this situation, some agreed to return to Sri Lanka in their fragile condition. One boatload of refugees chose to leave and finally landed on the French island of Reunion.

The island's refugees have gone on hunger strikes to push for better conditions and phones for communication. 60 are currently left on the island. Some have received legal advice from UK law firm Leigh Day. Its lawyers are requesting that they are transferred to Britain.