March to Close the Military Base on Diego Garcia: No to War! No Genocide!
29.03.2025
We, the 20 organizations that endorsed the petition last month to Close the Diego Garcia Base, now call for a march in the capital, Port Louis on 4 April at 11:00 a.m. on the same issue. We now also include in our platform the demands of the Women’s Peace March against genocide held for the International Women’s Day street march held last year.
FRIDAY 4 APRIL 2025
Meet at Jardin de la Compagnie at 11:00 a.m.
PORT LOUIS
for a peaceful, public street march in the heart of the Capital City.
* Platform for the March, based on Petition (i)
a) We, who represent the organizations below, last month called on the Prime Minister to seize the moment, when the Republic of Mauritius had proven its sovereignty over all its territory:
* to insist upon the closure of the military base on Diego Garcia
* to amend the Constitution to abolish foreign military bases from our country
* while instituting a demand from the British ex-colonizers and American occupiers for rental arrears from the moment of Independence in 1968 to the date of base closure, as well as for reparations for Chagossians for the harm they have suffered by their forcible removal, and reparations to the State of Mauritius for prolonged illegal military occupation of so much of Mauritius’ land and sea.
Now, we call a demonstration on the basis of this same platform, believing that
- This will ensure effective exercise of Mauritian sovereignty over the whole of Chagos.
- This will ensure that the military base no longer represents a permanent threat of war, and that war and genocide are not ever again perpetrated from the land we are responsible for.
- This will ensure the land for which we are responsible is not ever again used for illegal imprisonment or torture.
- This will ensure that Chagossians have the right to return to the Island most of them came from, Diego Garcia, as well as all the other Chagos Islands, and all Mauritians have the right of free movement, over the whole of Mauritian territory.
- This will ensure that the state of Mauritius is not in violation of the Pelindaba Treaty for a Nuclear Arms Free Africa to which we are a signatory.
- This will ensure an end to the “military base pollution”– a major source world-wide of degradation of air, land and sea – and make possible a proper Marine Protected Area there.
- This will ensure that our country does not become the target for dangerous retaliation if war is ever waged from our territory against a country with which we are not at war.
- This will empower us, the people of the country, to enjoy our “sovereign democratic state”, as enshrined in Section 1 of the Constitution of Mauritius.
- This will help ensure peace on the basis of international law and justice.
and our march is on the basis of the platform of the Women’s Peace March (ii) last year led by Muvman Liberasyon Fam:
1. We oppose the genocide that the state of Israel is perpetrating against the Palestinians,
2. We denounce the USA and other states that supply arms, money and diplomatic cover for Israel,
3. We support South Africa case before the International Court of Justice against Israel for genocide,
4. We support the Palestinian people against military occupation and colonization they have endured since 1948, in line with the 2024 ICJ judgment.
Our march is thus built on the foundations of these two platforms. We will follow the same route that was approved for the Women’s Peace March last year. We will thus gather in La Poudriere Street by Company Gardens, go up the Royal Road in front of the L’Hotel du Gouvernement, turn right into Sir William Newton, and then right again into Desforges Street, then down Pope Hennessy, and left back to La Poudriere Street by the Company Gardens.
Call for demonstration signed by:
Mauritius Labour Congress, Haniff Peerun
Federation of Parastatal Bodies and Other unions, Deepak Benydin
Conf. des Travailleurs des Secteurs Publique et Privé, Reeaz Chuttoo
National Trade union Confederation, Narendranath Gopee
Federation of Civil Service and Other unions, Vinesh Sewsurn
General Workers Federation, Clency Bibi
Federation des Travailleurs Unis, Atma Shanto
Rodrigues Private Industries & Allied Workers union, Jocelin Louis
Rodrigues Government Employees Association, Julienne Meunier
Rodrigues Workers Federation, Marie Antoinette Casimir
Nurses’ union, Vidhata Jeewuth.
Nursing Association, Ram Nowzadick
union of Private Secondary Education Employees, Dain Jahajeeah
Ledikasyon pu Travayer, Lindsey Collen
Dr Idrice Goomany Treatment Centre, Norman Tambanivoul
Leve Fam! Danielle Turner
Muvman Liberasyon Fam, Rajni Lallah
ABAIM, Marousia Bouvery,
Never Again-Olive Resistance, Tania Haberland
Lalit, Alain Ah Vee
Alain Ah Vee, co-ordinating for the Collective, c/o 1A La Croix Street, Forest Side.
(i) Petition for Base Closure 23 February 2025 Global Day of Action to Close Bases (ii) Adhered to by 10 women’s organizations, March 2024.
