It has been revealed that the Maldives government did not put any effort into claiming sovereignty over the Chagos Islands.
In response to a Right to Information (RTI) request by lawyer Ahmed Mauroof, the Attorney General's (AG) office said it was not aware of the government’s intention to file a formal suit to claim sovereignty.
"In the above-mentioned case, this office will be alerted to any decision when it is reached by the ministerial cabinet," the response stated.
The government earlier classified President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu's letter to the UK government stating that the Maldives is more deserving of sovereignty over the Chagos islands located to the south of the country.
But the British government ignored the letter and handed over Chagos to Mauritius in May.
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Mauritius has sovereignty over the Chagos. In view of the decision, the court divided the disputed waters between the Maldives and Chagos.
President Muizzu assumed office with a pledge to reclaim the territory that had been lost to Chagos. The government promised to file an appeal within the first 100 days.
A review committee of the AG office is working to finalise a report into the division of the territory between the Maldives and Chagos.
The AG office said a paper will be submitted to the ministerial cabinet when the review committee report is finalised.
“Once the paper is submitted to the cabinet and the cabinet takes its necessary decisions on the matter, the Attorney General’s Office will publish further details on the matter publicly,” the office stated.
