The tension in New Caledonia began when Paris submitted to the parliament the bill that would grant voting rights to French people who had lived in the region for 10 years. Recently, the French parliament approved the bill. The pro-independence group, largely made up of indigenous people, opposes the reform, claiming it would "reduce their influence in the administration". In the tension that turned into conflict, shops were looted and public buildings were set on fire. France sent troops to the island to quell the conflict that had been going on for days. French soldiers were deployed in New Caledonia's ports and international airport. French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said that TikTok was banned in the region and a state of emergency was declared. 7 people were killed and hundreds were injured in the clashes that lasted for days. A state of emergency was declared and French leader Macron said that the 3,000-person force sent from France would remain in the region even during the Paris Summer Olympics, if necessary. Macron, who arrived in New Caledonia on a 24-hour flight from Paris, stated that he "wants peace, tranquility and security to return as quickly as possible" and said, "This is our absolute priority." While Macron commemorated those who lost their lives in the incidents, he met with local politicians and business leaders. Separatist leaders who attended the talks said they hoped the meeting would revitalize relations with France.
This is New Caledonia's biggest civil conflict since the 1980s. Located between Australia and Fiji, New Caledonia, whose capital is Noumea, has been French territory since the 19th century. The region continued to be part of France in the post-colonial period. In the 1998 Noumea Agreement between France and New Caledonia, Paris promised to give the region more political autonomy and keep the voter list limited to the residents at the time. In other words, voter lists in the region have not been updated since 1998. This means that those who have newly settled on the island cannot vote. It is estimated that more than 40 thousand French people have settled on the island since then.
Local people argue that the voting of those who settled on the island later will support pro-French policies. After the agreement in 1998, independence referendums were held three times in the region. While the opponents of independence won the first two by a narrow margin, the last referendum held in December 2021 was boycotted by pro-independence parties whose postponement requests were not accepted due to Covid, and no independence decision was made in this referendum. 96 percent of voters who went to the polls said "no" to independence. So how are the showdowns in the background? What does the future hold for New Caledonia?
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