# UK Chagos Support Association

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UK Chagos Support Association Headquarters London Chair Tom Guha

The **UK Chagos Support Association** was an organisation based in the [United Kingdom](/source/United_Kingdom) that supported the [Chagossian people](/source/Chagossians) in advocacy activities and lobbied to improve the welfare of Chagossian people in the UK. Its patrons included [Ben Fogle](/source/Ben_Fogle) and [Benjamin Zephaniah](/source/Benjamin_Zephaniah).[1] [Philippa Gregory](/source/Philippa_Gregory) was another patron, and she also acted as secretary for the Association.[2][3]

The Association supported the right for Chagossian people to return to [the Chagos Islands after their expulsion](/source/Expulsion_of_the_Chagossians) and also lobbied for Chagossians to be compensated and be given access to British citizenship.[4] It additionally worked to improve the lives of Chagossian people living in the UK. For example, in 2017, it organized a debate with parliamentary candidates in [Crawley](/source/Crawley), which has the largest Chagossian population in the UK, about issues experienced by the local Chagossian community, such as difficulty finding affordable housing, the expense of obtaining a British passport, and lack of support for Chagossian children in local schools.[5] The Association also gave out small grants to Chagossian families in financial need.[6] In 2020, it worked with Mauritian-Chagossian artist [Audrey Albert](/source/Audrey_Albert) to create holiday cards whose purchase raised funds for the association.[7]

In November 2022, the Association announced that after running for more than 20 years, it would halt operations. The closure came about because the group had primarily consisted of non-Chagossian volunteers, and they felt volunteer efforts would be of more use in supporting other organizations that had since been established by Chagossians themselves.[8]

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** ["One of Britain's most shameful acts will make you wonder why we're proud of our past"](http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/chagos-island-right-to-return-refusal-amber-rudd-ben-fogle-a7421341.html). *The Independent*. 2016-11-16. Retrieved 2019-06-03.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** ["Biography"](https://web.archive.org/web/20180822171956/http://www.philippagregory.com/biography). *www.philippagregory.com*. Archived from [the original](http://www.philippagregory.com/biography) on 2018-08-22. Retrieved 2025-06-26.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** Doward, Jamie (2015-04-04). ["Chagos islanders 'betrayed' by UK failure to decide on their return"](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/apr/04/chagos-island-exiles-decision-betrayal-uk). *The Guardian*. [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0261-3077](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0261-3077). Retrieved 2025-06-26.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Shabeer, Muhammed (2019-02-26). ["'The UK should immediately return the Chagos To Mauritius,' said the International Court of Justice"](https://peoplesdispatch.org/2019/02/26/the-uk-should-immediately-return-the-chagos-to-mauritius-said-the-international-court-of-justice/). *Peoples Dispatch*. Retrieved 2025-06-26.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** Demetriadi, Alexi (2017-06-22). ["Lost in exile: The forgotten Chagos Islanders"](https://newint.org/features/web-exclusive/2017/06/22/lost-in-exile-chagos-islanders-of-west-sussex). *[New Internationalist](/source/New_Internationalist)*. Retrieved 2025-06-26.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** Armour, Katie (2021-01-31). ["Just £12,000 of £40m fund for displaced Chagos islanders has been spent"](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jan/31/just-12000-of-40m-fund-for-displaced-chagos-islanders-has-been-spent). *The Guardian*. [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0261-3077](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0261-3077). Retrieved 2025-06-26.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** ["Send season's greetings that support Chagossians"](https://web.archive.org/web/20201118211145/https://www.chagossupport.org.uk/post/send-season-s-greetings-that-support-chagossians). *chagos-support*. 2020-11-17. Archived from [the original](https://www.chagossupport.org.uk/post/send-season-s-greetings-that-support-chagossians) on 2020-11-18. Retrieved 2022-05-03.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** ["Closure statement: UK Chagos Support Association"](http://www.chagossupport.org.uk/post/closure-statement-uk-chagos-support-association). *UK Chagos Support Association*. 2022-11-10. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20230417151504/http://www.chagossupport.org.uk/post/closure-statement-uk-chagos-support-association) from the original on 2023-04-17. Retrieved 2025-06-26.

v t e Chagos Islands dispute History Chagos Archipelago sovereignty dispute British Indian Ocean Territory Order 1965 Expulsion of the Chagossians British Indian Ocean Territory Chagos Marine Protected Area Key groups and people Chagossians Louis Olivier Bancoult Allen Vincatassin Aurélie Marie-Lisette Talate Charlesia Alexis Sabrina Jean Liseby Elysé Diego Garcia and Chagos Islands Council Chagos Refugee Group UK Chagos Support Association Legal cases 2000 Bancoult (No 1) EWHC 2006 Bancoult v. McNamara D.C. Cir. 2008 Bancoult (No 2) UKHL 2012 Chagos Islanders v UK ECtHR 2015 Mauritius v UK PCA 2016 Bancoult (No 2) UKSC 2018 Bancoult (No 3) UKSC 2019 Chagos advisory opinion ICJ Media Another Paradise Diego l'interdite Stealing a Nation

Authority control databases International VIAF National United States

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [UK Chagos Support Association](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UK_Chagos_Support_Association) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UK_Chagos_Support_Association?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.