Britain’s declaration of a Marine Protected Area, ostensibly to safeguard fish stocks, was the last straw for Mauritius which, like the Philippines, took its dispute to the Permanent Court of Arbitration. After four years of hearings, the tribunal ruled that Britain had failed to give due regard to the rights of the Chagos islanders and had breached its obligations under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. Unlike China, Britain took part in the hearings and said it accepted the decision. But since then, apart from a single brief meeting when I last checked, nothing has happened. The
...more
