Help End Decades Of Forced Exile By Making Chagossians' Westminster Protest A Success.
Just forty years ago the UK Government completed a shockingly under-reported atrocity. The native people of the Chagos Islands were forced from their homes, under UK orders, so a US military base (still there) could be built on Diego Garcia.
Chagossians' have fought for return for years and have now collected
thousands of signatures demanding the UK Government finally deliver justice (still time to add yours!).
Long-time Chagossian supporter and TV presenter Ben Fogle will formally
hand in the petition at 12:30 Friday 22nd May to 10 Downing Street.
We
want you all there (we'll be there from 10:30), but we also need your help to make it happen and make it a success. We
need to help as many Chagossians from Crawley, Manchester and elsewhere to make it there as possible. We also need new banners, materials and leaflets to get the
message out there. Please give anything, at all, that you can.
In exile Chagossians have suffered broken promise after broken promise on compensation, employment and housing. A great number have fallen into extreme poverty.
In the last year an independent study has confirmed that return is possible. The Government pledged to act before the election, but failed to do so.
What We Need
So here's our plan and how you can help.
- A large number of Chagossians from Crawley are eager to attend. We want to charter a bus, making it easier for good numbers Chagossians -who have already arranged time off work and took time out of their lives to fight for this- to make their views known.
- There is a smaller but active Chagossian community in Manchester and we want to make sure they can make their voices heard at the protest too.
- Media outlets will be attending the protest so we want to create banners, placards and promotional materials to tell the world about the terrible decades of injustice suffered by the Chagossian people.
- On a busy Friday in central London, we will also look to get the general public involved. We'll need to print leaflets to let people know how they can support the fight for justice.
How it will help
The next Government, no matter who it is, will decide whether Chagossians will receive justice.
This petition will prove that UK citizens will no longer tolerate oppression of Chagossian human rights in their names.
We must keep the pressure on Government to deliver the only fair
outcome: a properly supported voluntary resettlement programme.
Getting a strong presence at the protest will help get media attention and finally make this an issue for ordinary people across the country and internationally.
We want everyone standing in the upcoming general election to pledge to end this national disgrace.
Once people know about the horrible injustices dealt to the Chagossian people, they support our cause. We just need to get the message out there.
And we need your donation to do it. As you can see our goal is modest and every little helps.
What else can I do?
It isn't a protest if no-one comes!
Ben Fogle will be handing the petition in at 10 Downing Street and we will be a close as we can get, proving real people really care about this too-often-forgotten atrocity. We hope you can join us.
We wouldn't have got this far without your support; please do what you can to take Chagossians over the line and make return a reality.
