Minicoy was never part of Maldives: Aslam
According to official historical documents dated from 1648 to 1752, Minicoy was once an island of Maldives.
By
Mariyam Umna Ismail
Maldivian planning minister Mohamed Aslam on Wednesday stated that Minicoy, locally known as ‘Maliku’ was never a part of the Maldives, contradicting several historical records that speak otherwise.
The minister made this contradictory remark in response to a question posed by Kaashidhoo MP Abdulla Jabir in the parliament sitting on Wednesday. Jabir asked why Minicoy was not included within Maldivian territory.
In response, the minister said, “I don't believe we have ever included Minicoy within our territory”.
There are official government documents ranging from 1648 to 1752 that refer to Minicoy as a part of Maldives.
Notes on the Maldives-Minicoy situation:
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The distance between Minicoy and Thuraakunu (the northernmost island of Maldives) is 70 nautical miles. Minicoy is the second largest island among India’s Lakshadweep islands.
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Minicoy was last registered as a Maldivian island in the 17th century, under the rule of King Iskandhar of Maldives, but that was short term.
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In 1752, Minicoy returned to the reign of Ali Rajas of Kannanur.
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In 1790 the British East India Company colonised the majority of India, and in 1905 Minicoy went under the rule of the British in India.
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When India gained its independence in 1956, a referendum was held among the people of Minicoy and they voted to remain under Indian rule.
In Wednesday's parliament session, Jabir also questioned why Maldives was not taking part in discussions regarding the disputed territory, the waters between Addu Atoll and Diego Garcia – one of the Chagos islands – overlapping the Exclusive Economic Zones of both countries.
Diego Garcia island, which hosts a United States military base, is some 310 nautical miles from Addu Atoll. The whole of Mauritius used to be a British colony, the Chagos islands were detached in 1965, from the Crown Colony prior to granting Mauritius independence. A new colonial territory was created – effectively recolonising the archipelago – under the name ‘British Indian Ocean Territory’ (BIOT). They gained independence from the UK in 1968.
At the UN, in 2017 and then in 2019, Maldives was among the six countries that voted against claims to the Chagos made by Mauritius.
While UK rejected the decisions of both the UN’s General Assembly and its International Court of Justice, Mauritius then brought proceedings against the Maldives in 2019 at the International Tribunal of the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) to determine the maritime boundary between the Chagos Archipelago and the southern-most atoll of the Maldives.
In response to Jabir’s question at Majlis today, Minister Aslam said that the issue is between the UK and Mauritius, Maldives only has a say in the matter when it involves us as well.
Following the Minister’s response, the Speaker addressed the issue as well. He said that in 2011 he tried to work with Mauritius in resolving the Diego Garcia issue, and they did try to follow-up with further discussions, but Maldives did not respond. Speaker Nasheed claims that this is the reason why Mauritius brought proceedings against the Maldives in 2019 at the ITLOS.
Speaker Nasheed also said that he believed the matter should be evaluated carefully, and that he understood the Maldives Attorney General was advocating the matter on international platforms.
