Misley Mandarin | |
|---|---|
| First Minister of the Chagossian Government | |
| Assumed office 16 December 2025 [a] | |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Personal details | |
| Born | July 1978 (age 47) |
| Residence(s) | Île du Coin,Peros Banhos,Chagos Archipelago |
| Signature |  |
Louis Misley Mandarin (born July 1978 [1] ) is a Chagossian politician and First Minister of the self-declared Chagossian Government.
Mandarin was born in Mauritius,the son of Michel Mandarin,a Chagossian,who was forcibly removed from Île du Coin aged 14. [2] Misley Mandarin served in the British Army. [3]
In December 2025,the Great British Political Action Committee organised an election to determine the formation of a government-in-exile,independently overseen by polling firm Whitestone Insight,with all Chagossians worldwide eligible to participate. [4]
1,341 people voted in the election. 1,233 respondents supported the formation of a government-in-exile with 108 opposed. 1,326 people voted for Misley Mandarin to serve as interim First Minister for a period of a year,during which period a Charter would be drafted and formal elections prepared. [5]
A landing party of four British Citizens defied a British government exclusion zone to set foot on Île du Coin,part of the coral atoll of Peros Banhos,on Monday 16 February 2026 at 08.52 local time (02.52 GMT) with the intention of staying to establish a permanent settlement. The group consisted of Misley Mandarin,his father Michel,Antoine LeMettre,and Guy Castel, [6] assisted by former British MP Adam Holloway. [7] Now aged 74,Michel was 14 at the time of the déraciné,or uprooting,put on to boats by the British colonial authorities. There are 322 people who were born on the island and still living that wish to return home before they die. In addition there are descendants of the Chagossian people that consider the Chagos Islands there home and wish to be re-patriated there while remaining under British rule.
Mandarin sought to reassure the United States that the settlement did not threaten the military base on Diego Garcia. [8]