In 2004 and with a rare, Royal Order In Council, she overruled every previous judgement and banished the islanders once and for all from their homeland. (See ‘There will be... seagulls’ IE, Dec 14, 2005 for complete story)

Kenntridge appealed again, this time against the Queen herself — and Tuesday’s judgement at the appeals court was more than sensational. It upheld the high court verdict and dismissed the later Order initialed by Britain’s head of state, as a “repugnant abuse of power”.

The court also warned the British foreign office not to waste any more taxpayers’ money — totaling 4 million pounds since 2000 — by appealing yet again and this time as a last resort, to the House of Lords.

Or by making any more excuses:

• That the USA would not allow the islanders to return to any island in Chagos. There are 4000 US personnel, a 4000-yard runway lined with B-52 bombers and four hangars for B2 Stealth bombers on Diego Garcia. The Chagos’ largest island is the US’ most important military base and the one most crucial to its ‘war against terror’ in Asia. (After all, the returning coconut farmers could easily set up “jammers and surveillance devices” in the neighbourhood and impair the invaluable operations being conducted out of Diego Garcia, such as the attacks on Afghanistan and Iraq).

• That the islands which once boasted of functioning infrastructure, were now inaccessible.

In theory and being but a tenant till 2050 in Diego Garcia, human rights and legal experts argue that the US can hardly have a say in who lives on the neighbouring islands of Peros Banhos, Salomon and others.

... contd.