Eviction from the Chagos Islands: Displacement and Struggle for Identity Against Two World Powers (African History, 1)

Book info: Eviction from the Chagos Islands: Displacement and Struggle for Identity Against Two World Powers (African History, 1) (Paperback, 312 pages) – Brill, 2011. Language: English.

This book examines the history and contemporary living conditions of Chagossians who were evicted from the Chagos archipelago in the Indian Ocean to make way for a strategic U.S. military base. Initially part of colonial Mauritius, Chagos was integrated into a new colony named the British Indian Ocean Territory in 1965. In 1966, Great Britain transferred control of Diego Garcia, the largest Chagos island, to the Americans under a fifty year lease. The expulsions which followed were designed to satisfy the U.S. demand for an unpopulated territory. The Chagossians were thus forced to resettle in Mauritius and the Seychelles, where livelihoods are poor and marginalized. The Chagossians are currently engaged in a campaign seeking right of return to the archipelago and recognition as a people forced to live in diaspora. Editorial Reviews Review "This collection is a comprehensive compendium of texts on the Chagossians and I cannot recommend it highly enough. Not only is it of value to those familiar with the islands and their inhabitants, but it provides a thorough overview of the islands’ history, culture, traumas and imaginaries for those for whom the story is little known." - Iain Walker, COMPAS, University of Oxford
"Evers and Kooy showcase some original contributions to the historical, anthropological, and legal literatures on the Indian Ocean, demonstrating that edited volumes are most effective when they go beyond simply summarizing the existing literature. The book is well written and accessible, and will be of benefit to students (undergraduate and advanced) and researchers alike." - Peter Harris, University of Texas at Austin, In: African Affairs, 111(444) (2012), 503-506 About the Author Sandra J.T.M. Evers, Ph.D., is associate professor and senior researcher at the Department of Social and Cultural Anthropology, VU University Amsterdam. She acts as convener of an international working group on the anthropology of children: www.anthropologyofchildren.net and directs a research project on foreign large-scale land acquisitions in Africa and Madagascar.
Marry Kooy is a freelance journalist who holds a Masters degree in Social and Cultural Anthropology from VU University Amsterdam. She is reading for her second Masters degree, in Christian Studies of Science and Society, at the Department of Philosophy, VU University Amsterdam.