ABSTRACT
Mayotte Island is part of the Comoros Group which lies astride the northern end of the Mozambique Channel. The Comoros were granted independence from France in 1975 but the population of Mayotte insisted on retaining French protection. On 26 June 1975, the French Parliament passed the Comoros Islands Independence Bill, which required the establishment of a constitutional committee and island-by-island referendum. On 10 December 1975, the French National Assembly passed a bill recognising the independence of the three Comoros Islands and providing for a referendum on Mayotte. However, on 21 October 1976, the UN General Assembly passed a motion by 102 votes to 1 calling on France to withdraw from Mayotte. Politically, the case of Mayotte presents a classic example, like Gibraltar, of the last vestiges of empire. To the developing world, such territories represent a failure of decolonisation and even evidence for neo-imperialism. Mayotte continues under its chosen system but problems with regard to maritime boundaries loom.
