President Mohamed Muizzu has decided to withdraw the letter sent by the previous government to the Prime Minister of Mauritius regarding the Chagos issue and to disregard the International Tribunal for the Law of the Seas (ITLOS) demarcation of the Maldives' border to the south.
“Referring to the archipelagic base points in the Maritime Areas Act, I conclude that the SEZ is the area already defined in the law, including the demarcated marine area and declare it in the presence of you, Honorable Members of Parliament,” Muizzu said in his third presidential address at the opening session of the People's Majlis this morning (February 5).
He said the decision was taken after consulting legal experts and ministers.
Legal experts also recommended the establishment of a special government office to carry out legal and other work on the border issue, he said.
On August 22, 2022, the former government sent a letter to the Prime Minister of Mauritius stating that the Maldives would maintain its long-standing stance on the maritime issue. In the letter, the former President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih said the Maldives' stance on the issue would not change.
The letter also said that the Maldives will not change anything in its response to the case against Mauritius.
The Bar Council's Law Reform and Research Committee, which examined the letter, said it did not contain any information that could affect the ITLOS decision.
According to the letter, the Maldives changed its stance on the issue of Mauritius' sovereignty over the Chagos Islands.
The Maldives has previously advocated against Mauritius' efforts to claim sovereignty over the Chagos Islands. In 2019, the Maldives voted against Mauritius during a vote in the UN General Assembly.
The UN General Assembly decided in 2019 to recognize Chagos as a territory of Mauritius with 116 votes in favour. The Maldives, the UK, the US, Australia, Hungary and Israel voted against Mauritius. Fifty-six countries abstained.
Some countries expressed dissatisfaction with the vote. Former opposition Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM), with Muizzu as a senior leader, issued a statement condemning the Solih administration's vote.
In a statement issued on May 24, 2019, the PPM said the vote violated the human rights of the people of Mauritius. The statement expressed concern and condemned the vote.
"We call on the government not to mislead the people about the facts of this case, clarify them and apologize to the people for the way you have acted in this matter,” the PPM said in the statement.
However, as soon as the Solih administration changed its stand, the PPM held many activities to criticize the government and accuse officials of "selling Maldivian territory."
