Exiled islanders put up in hotels

Islanders were exiled from Diego Garcia 30 years ago

Thirty people from a remote island in the Indian Ocean who were protesting in West Sussex have been put up in hotels.

The islanders, from Diego Garcia in the Chagos Archipelago, had been camping out at Gatwick Airport and campaigning outside council offices in protest at their treatment by the British authorities.

They had wanted to stay in Crawley but were told West Sussex County Council was not responsible for them because they flew into Heathrow.

Now a High Court judge has ordered the council to house the islanders, who all hold British passports, until a judicial review into their future has been completed.

Military base

The Diego Garcians were forced to leave their home in the 1970s when it was taken over by the British government for a British and American military base.

They were exiled to Mauritius, but now high unemployment there has prompted them to travel to Britain.

A London court ruled in 2000 that the islanders' deportation had been illegal and their ultimate aim is to return to Diego Garcia.

Last year 19 islanders flew to Gatwick and were given emergency accommodation in Crawley and the new arrivals wanted to join them.