Coma Story
Stephen Manoj Thompson, Ph.D.
Published by Stephen Thompson at Smashwords
ISBN: 978-1-4523-3125-6
Copyright 2010 Stephen Thompson
This book is available in print at Amazon and local book stores.
This book is an absolute work of fiction.
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“Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person.”
- Mother Teresa
Author
Stephen Manoj Thompson is the author of the acclaimed Land of Opportunity Forever. He is an IT techie by profession and dwells in the Show-Me State. Thompson was many other things before becoming a writer. He is also a committed advocate who speaks regularly about high-school dropout issues. The one thing Thompson dislikes is political correctness being taken too far. “Erosion of common-sense starts from PC,” he affirms. His favorite pastimes include spending time with his family, research, golf and car shows.
Thompson is passionate about helping people. It is this passion that helped him to craft Coma Story - his first fiction, covering the lives of a particular geographic location and incorporating historical facts into the story. Being a natural social writer, he shows the universe how to make a fresh start with any situation. However, Thompson is not shy about unpleasant details - in fact his raw and unapologetic point of view makes Coma Story a highly captivating read.
Fine Points
Coma Story is an all-out imaginary tale; it nevertheless embodies a certain non-fiction spirit and explores a colonial, imperialist historical event. Coma Story is in no way an attempt at a definitive history of the Chagossians’ forced relocation during the Cold War, nor a catalyst for any anti-base.
Prologue
“All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.”
- Article 1 of the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights (10 Dec 1948)
Dear Readers,
Buckle up. It’s going to be a bumpy read!
This novel centers on the natives of the Chagos Islands, who were forcibly relocated by the British, to make way for a military base. Coma Story gives a kaleidoscopic view of the controversial depopulation saga surrounding Diego Garcia, via often humorous lucid dreaming by a coma survivor. However, the emphasis here is not the exposure of the transatlantic cover-up, but rather an attempt to uplift those damaged people. Thus, Island of Consciousness is neither tragedy nor indictment, but inspiration. It is the story of coma and of the forgotten - nothing more.
The Chagos chain of islands is near the remote center of the Indian Ocean, about a thousand miles southwest of India. Officially part of the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT), these tropical islands had been home to a few hundred Creole-speaking, descendants of enslaved Africans and bonded south Indians for almost two centuries. Calling themselves Ilois, they all worked on coconut plantations owned by the British crown. Between 1967 and 1971, plantations were closed and the entire population was forcefully expelled to make way for a military base at Diego Garcia (leased by the U.S. military). This ruinous episode left the indigenous people stateless, jobless and living in slums at Mauritius and Seychelles, little more than forced refugees. The unfortunate fallouts of this haunting colonial episode still continue.
****
I was recently nominated, as the first-ever “Knight of Ilois,” for helping many Chagossians return to their natal islands thereby ending an ongoing, largely suppressed tragedy of mass dislocation. I am very pleased about the successful outcome of my efforts and above being part of a wonderful, if bumpy journey.
Soon enough, however, I came to realize that my efforts were just a well-intentioned and pleasant DREAM.
****
Having lasted four long years, my comatose, lucid dreaming, gave me a unique prospective on what I call a double life. Prior to my coma condition, I had the opportunity to mingle with numerous Chagos friends and experienced their plight first hand. A visit to Mauritius, on a cultural assignment, introduced me to the Chagos world and to the doomed history of the Chagos people.
“Power mixed with cunningness creates poison cocktail.
While power with cleverness makes a perfect pilot whale.”
- Stephen M. Thompson, Ph.D.
Chapter 1
I had a dream
Open Letter to the British Citizens
By Aldan Foy
October 22, 2008
To:
The Chagos Islander,
(that’s right, they are British citizens)
I had your dream and as well truly lived your dream!
If this opening line sounds familiar…. no, it’s not any “Save the Last Dance” lyric, nor it is from the celebrated historic speech, “I Have a Dream,” by Martin Luther King, Jr. In fact, this is a statement by a coma survivor. A statement of hope and future for a destroyed paradise which until a short time ago belonged to you, the respectful Chagossians, descendants of enslaved Africans. Yes, you heard it right!
Ok, let me stop confusing.
Through the course of my four-year long coma condition (which was, for the most part, Glasgow score 5 or should I just say deep coma), I truly saw the freedom and dignity given back to you, the former slaves. Without violence, Chagos islands were peacefully taken over and you, the natives, led a peaceful life with prosperity ever after.
I wish I had stayed in my vegetative state, and continued my self-controlled dreaming forever. It was a pleasant existence in which wrongs had been righted, but what good would that have accomplished? Today, after almost four years of a deep slumber, I awake to learn (along with other personal tragedies) the unfortunate 3-to-2 verdict in favor of the British Law Lords, a vote that terminates the legal process of your homeland restoration. It seems the London government lawyers have argued that the Queen has unlimited power, and can use Royal Prerogative for the Chagossian territories. Perhaps, my polished world is unable to realize that at issue is a story from the days of slavery, except that your sorrow was kick-started just few decades ago. The theatrical depopulation by two of the greatest democracies drove the inhabitants of the sliced-sliver, into poverty-ridden exile, hundreds of miles away to Mauritius and the Seychelles, without regular income and practical access to education or healthcare. It is my hope that our modern society will soon learn to respect you, the small individuals, now without any ancestry skills. Today, after over forty years of sorrowful exile and brutal poverty, the once-Kreol-speaking, matrifocal Ilois society, has no energy to face any more adversaries. By some accounts, your disenfranchised people are being marginalized by your very own adopted societies. You guys should feel lucky, as lately the Mauritian politicians have also started showing some interest for Chagos Archipelago. Please do not suspect their current upsurge of enthusiasm for the reclaiming efforts. Your brothers will never use you all as pawns in a game where the prize is political and economic dominance of the ocean region. The wow factor is that Mauritius is even threatening to leave the Commonwealth club for your cause. Adding to your community’s severe ongoing impoverishment, did you realize the environmental contributions, which include damage caused by coral mining, the introduction of invasive alien plant species, secretive transits of nuclear materials and the unreported fuel spills? As I see, the British politics on the Chagos issue have been shocking for many years, though with few concessions made. What amazes me is the lack of international awareness or any outcry about your treatment. Even though justice has been denied for so long, I feel, influential souls and common folks can still work together to persuade the Whitehall to do the right thing. After all, how long can anyone ignore the elephant in the room? Given the torture you were forced to undergo, and in order to appreciate the peaceful struggle, our futuristic high society is indeed obligated. In the pursuit of your simplest desire, we should allow temporary visits (at least, to the islands of Peros Banhos and Salomon, which is located dozens of miles away from the military base), in order to being in some flowers and tend the graves of your ancestors.
History has shown us that it is never too late to cure an enduring injustice. The hope is that this open letter might provide an inspiration for such a blessed prospect. It is of no use being fatalistic about things; every tyranny must end because that is the law of life. This letter comes straight from the heart of one whose mind is tormented by the thought of the endless suffering of Chaggossians. Agreeably, it is also high time you take more responsibility for your own justice. Uplift yourself, become self-reliant. That’s the only approach to stop the bleeding being passed on to your future generations. An urge to breathe the fresh air of freedom and self-reliance has to come from within. At this moment, the priority ought to be given to rewriting the fate, rather than tackling the poisoned history. As the saying goes, it is useless to “cry over spilled milk,” and it is purposeful to move forward in the setting and accomplishing of goals to change circumstances. The utmost need of the hour is unity, self-resourcefulness and the promulgation of your conditions and views throughout the world. The islanders, need to unite and expose your sufferings more publicly, demanding assistance from the world community, which has served the downtrodden in the past and which can continue to do so. When a group of people are excluded from work, education and any possibility of a decent livelihood, it often becomes easy to accept the injustice and, as well, seek other outlets to cope with misery. Many younger members of your community are turning towards negative coping strategies and behaviors, which will only complicate the situation and weaken harmony. Youngsters are always prone to all types of vices. They rarely have their perspectives clear and get into troubles and bad habits easily. When they see no future, they see no reason for responsible political and social activity. No doubt the Catholic Church and Caritas Internationalis are doing some good work for your community. Additionally, what should be done is a government initiative to ensure good education and decent jobs. A form of aggressive affirmative action needs to be setup and that effort needs to be determinedly escorted by the west, as they have an obvious responsibility here.
On a lighter note, you guys should keep in touch with your faraway cousins at Sark Island, or even better, those famous publicity-shy billionaire twin brothers (who own around a fifth of the island). Sark is also a British Crown possession, but with just over 600 folks in a two square-mile island. Yet they have managed to acquire their own democratic government, judicial system and a Chief Pleas too. To top it all, they are free to have sheep races and an annual cricket match between the same old Seigneurs XI and the Lord Taverners XI. How cool is that? Maybe they are more native than you folks. Before I forget, the so-called Sark natives are of-course well-to-do Europeans. Actually, I can go on about many such faraway cousins of yours. Like the Gib (a British overseas territory, near Spain) and the Falkland Islands (again a self-governing British overseas territory, near Argentina).
But sorry, I have got to leave right now, as we have a crisis situation here in the U.S. A live news conference is being beamed across all TV channels, with tickers screaming about Tiger Wood’s Escalade escapade. The negative fallout from his secret infidelity as begun to hit home and yes it’s a national event of sorrow-entertainment. Largely driven by the public’s interest in celebrity, mystery, and often pure salaciousness, I am sure this nail-biting matter is going to bring about a global golf crisis; so keep it hush-hush! If your community is not aware, when the U.S. catches cold the whole world sneezes.
Ok, a quick tease before I end this letter. It seems allowing you folks to go back to your sinking islands would be a “precarious and costly” operation. Moreover, you have no property rights on your islands at all. What is being asserted is a right of mass trespass. Then again, you guys have already received a flood of substantial compensations. I should say, “You guys rock.” Even the Superpowers are scared of your soft identity (though there is no terrorism fall out or backing from any international community). Evidently the military outpost (staffed largely by the Americans but operated jointly with the British) flies in many “guest” workers to Diego Garcia, however they have unofficially banned you folks. Shouldn’t you also, the entitled British passport holders, be allowed to work, at least on a non-military capacity? I would go on to suggest Chagossians should be employed by the Brits as Marine Security Guards. This would help them to weed out their hottest headache, illegal fishing activities by Japanese and Mauritian registered vessels. Wow, I am heading nowhere here. But seriously, the British Government collects heavy fees for commercial licenses to fish the waters of the British-controlled islands and spends millions of pounds annually to its other remaining colonies. So they do have the resource to make it work for the welfare and rights of the Chagossian community.
It is remarkable to know that yours Shakespearean-like-tragedy is being treated as a comical. It is impossible to overstate your rights and moreover cannot be discarded as the so-called colonial vintage. I hope this open letter helps in relighting the transatlantic cover-up and gives the great powers the opportunity to correct their errors.
I wish you all good luck.
Yours for the cause of simple fairness,
Aldan Foy, Esq.
Historian and Columnist
Studied Byzantine history at the Ohio State University
End of letter
~~~~~~~~~~
Mine is a story of coma. Mine is the story of the forgotten. And mine is a story of patience. My story is also a magical chronicle or maybe more related to fish poop; which by the way acts as TUMS for the ocean’s tummy!
Reject your thought…. this is not about global consequences of fish poop. I am no fan of poop, nor do I have time to sit around and play with any. All in all, since the Chagos islanders’ history is the backdrop of this narrative, I guess there is no choice other than to read this initial tedious chapter all over again. For those relaxed souls, exit now and continue on with the next chapter. As a final point, for those who have to call Directory Assistance to get the emergency telephone number, please skip all chapters!
Well, alright then…. here we go.
Welcome, I am Aldan Foy, and you are entering my coma zone, a place in which life happenings are superfast and totally controllable, my way….
The truth is life is awesome when you sleep well. What’s more, if you could control your dreams, day and night, non-stop, imagine the bliss. Apparently that’s exactly what I did for almost four years in my comatose condition - oddly that was the happiest episode of my life.
….did I say life? Maybe it should be corrected to “existence” or whatever.
Taking advantage of my medical state, I traveled spiritually to the far ends of my fantasy land and easily ignored the unsound, real world around me. I felt as though I was floating, without a single care in the world, and it seemed as though I was caressing the clouds gently with my hands. In truth even after recovery -- now that I am so tailored towards a fairytale lifestyle -- I confuse it with the real world.
One such instance is the ongoing plight of the Chagossians, who, I thought, got their natal homelands back and finally the Diego Garcia depopulation controversy was put to rest once and forever. Now I constantly repeat to myself that nothing changed for the Chagos people.
****
The controversial episode in short, for those who just tuned-in (believe me this will not prolong beyond this chapter or maybe I am lying), is one of the most sordid and long-running stories in Anglo-American colonial history, and it mainly concerns Diego Garcia, the chief island of the Chagos Archipelago in the Indian Ocean. Since this ongoing episode is no Armageddon for our future, the average thought of colonial obligation did not appear. Even if this issue gets resolved there will be no storybook ending. Too much of terrible sufferings and many lives been cut short already. Chagos islands share a time zone with Moscow and Baghdad. It is eleven hours ahead of Los Angeles and eight hours ahead of New York City. On the far side of the world, sits this group of seven atolls in the middle of the Indian Ocean, far south of India. Diego Garcia is a small v-shaped 10 square-mile British owned island, presently leased (just an exchange of notes, dated 1966) to the U.S. Navy. Though, it is reported by fanciful sources that this lease fetches Brits at least $2 billion per year and includes other U.S. concessions.
….no rent was paid formally, by the way U.S.A’s Polaris nuclear missile deal (around then) with U.K. could be just a twist of fate.
Life began to crumble in 1965, when Britain separated Chagos from colonial Mauritius, to create the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT). These islands were calculatedly reserved for defense purposes, and so a telecommunications center was established. Subsequently, in 1975, the U.S. was granted permission to build what was to become one of her largest overseas military bases on Diego Garcia. From this tiny island, the superpowers presume monitoring the areas around Middle East, East Africa and southern Asia (mainly the traffic of the Soviet fleet). Yet, the regions’ nuclear tests, by Pakistan and India, were undetectable by the U.S. Ouch!
Prior to Diego Garcia spell, the U.S. had no permanent naval base between Greece and the Philippines. During 1968 and 1973 the expulsion of the Chagos inhabitants appears to have occurred in a wicked fashion. To justify the deportation, the U.K. government reported dishonestly to the U.N. that the so-called inhabitants were temporary workers from the Seychelles and Mauritius. One cannot trick the U.N., who is particularly known for their tall and effective leadership attitude. The U.N. tunneled the truth in just thirty years and did nothing. Just so if anyone cares…. around 1750s it was the French who brought in the first batch of permanent inhabitants as slaves from Madagascar. As a long term strategy, the superpowers informally barred the islanders from working on the base. Funny thing is cheap labors were brought in all the way from Philippines and Sri Lanka to keep the base running. Uprooted and robbed of their livelihood, the Chagossians ended up living in poverty in the urban slums. Chagossians are a very religious community, and most of them are still Christians. They have continued their faith, which is exactly what is keeping them standing and alive. Since the early 1960’s, there was a remarkable, collaborative, fictional story created by the British colonial folks, and is still officially being maintained that these islands were never inhabited. I think that is indeed a clever story. However, the following tops the description of “clever.” The rumor is the Chagos islands will soon be submerged by the rising water level, and so it is certainly not possible for former inhabitants to resettle on this land. As well, it seems there is frequent seismic activity, which makes it doubly dangerous! This more recent rationalization has gone from merely clever to “brilliant.”
Technically the Chagos islanders have been displaced twice; beginning of eighteen century as enslaved laborers taken to work on Chagos from Africa and India by the French and British empires and now expelled from the Chagos at the behest of the U.S. The result is profound disruption and impoverishment of their lives for many generations. In between, in 2002 selective Chagossians have been conferred with full British citizenship. I guess now it’s time to amend the European human rights laws to declare that “not all British citizens are entitled for protection.”
The fortunate turn out is, Chagossians can have their elegant British passport without taking those ridiculous citizenship questionnaires that include questions like….
“Where does Santa Claus come from?”
“How might you stop people playing tricks on Halloween?”
“Must dogs wear a collar?”
****
Anyway, back to my coma story. In my dream, I played a noteworthy character in redefining the Chagos Island’s fate. I made sure the tossed-out inhabitants had real opportunity to regain and develop their distinct culture in their native homeland. Yes, to some extent, I helped them re-acquire their islands. I believe that includes the Diego Garcia or maybe not - I am not too sure. I will have to work on my islands of consciousness. Chagossians always suspected the British of playing delaying tactics, designed to put off a resolution until the survivors have all died off, so this emotional return is still disbelief for many (even in my dream).
Ok, the interesting part…. GEODSS facility at Diego Garcia, one of three operational space junk tracker sites worldwide, is now transformed as a state-run museum, and fittingly named as…. Yes! You guessed it right, “Aldan Foy Museum of Chagossian History.” The indubitable dramatic part is that I have been nominated for the first ever honorary title, “Knight of Ilois,” for being the catalyst to unite and help many Chagossians return to their natal homes. There by ending an ongoing untold tragedy. These poor people have been sorely treated for many decades. Chagossians had been caught up in the wheels of constitutional nicety, that’s why I feel very pleased about the successful outcome and certainly being part of a wonderful, but bumpy journey. Now wait!
Quite the reverse… It turns out all this was just a well intended and pleasant DREAM! Upon awakening from my coma, I am now feeling somewhat ashamed of myself, and the Chagossians’ nightmare continues. Maybe somebody should consider me for that Stupidest Statements Award, and show mercy to our pitiable Paris Hilton (who gets it every year).