PARIS (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron decided Monday to lift a state of emergency in the French Pacific territory of New Caledonia to allow for political dialogue after unrest that has left seven people dead and left a trail of destruction, his office said.
The presidency said in a statement that the state of emergency would not be extended “for the time being” and would end at 8pm Paris time on Monday and 5am New Caledonia time on Tuesday.
The statement said the decision was intended to “allow a meeting of different constituents” of the independence movement FLNKS (Kanak National Socialist Liberation Front) and to allow elected officials and other local leaders “in a position to call for” the barricades to be removed to travel to the site and meet with protesters.
Louis Le Franc, France’s top official in New Caledonia, said on Monday that evening and midnight curfews would remain in place, and movement is banned between 6pm and 6am local time, except for civil servants, health workers and other essential workers working the night shift or in health emergencies.
Le Franc said bans on public gatherings, the transportation and carrying of weapons and the sale of alcohol in New Caledonia would also remain in place.
According to a statement from the New Caledonia Chamber of Commerce, La Tontouta, the main international airport, will remain closed to commercial traffic until Sunday, June 2. The closure comes a day after protests against Macron’s efforts to amend the French constitution and change New Caledonia’s electoral register turned violent.
Magenta regional airport, on the outskirts of the capital Noumea, has in recent days been used as a base for military planes chartered by France, Australia and New Zealand to evacuate French and foreign tourists stranded in the unrest-hit archipelago.
French President Emmanuel Macron (centre) visits the central police station in Noumea, France’s Pacific territory of New Caledonia, on May 23, 2024. The French president made a lengthy visit to the restive Pacific territory of New Caledonia on May 23, appealing for a “return to peace” after deadly violence and vowing to deploy thousands of military reinforcements “for as long as necessary.” (Photo: Ludovic Marin/Pool/AFP) (Photo: Ludovic Marin/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)
Macron has repeatedly called on leaders on both sides of New Caledonia’s bitter conflict – the indigenous Kanak people who want independence and pro-Paris leaders who don’t – to remove the protesters’ barricades.
In a statement, Macron called this a “prerequisite for the start of concrete and serious negotiations.”
The statement said a further 480 military police would arrive in the archipelago “in the coming hours”, bringing the security presence to more than 3,500.
Macron’s move came after he visited New Caledonia on Thursday.
At least three indigenous Kanaks and two military police officers were among the seven killed in the shooting, one of whom was killed by a gunshot wound, according to the French Interior Ministry.
Le Franc said more than 122 police and gendarmes have been injured in the unrest and more than 460 people have been arrested since protests turned violent on May 14. Le Franc did not disclose the number of civilians injured.
Bystanders hold up a Socialist Kanak National Liberation Front (FLNKS) flag at a checkpoint in Ducos, New Caledonia, France’s Pacific territory, on May 21, 2024. The Pacific territory of 270,000 people has been in turmoil since May 13, when violence erupted over France’s plans to introduce new voting rules that would give tens of thousands of non-indigenous residents the right to vote. (Photo by Delphine Mayeur/AFP) (Photo by Delphine Mayeur/AFP via Getty Images)
Paris declared a state of emergency for at least 12 days from May 15 to give police greater powers. The emergency measures give authorities expanded powers to deal with unrest, including the possibility of placing people under home arrest if they are deemed a threat to public order, as well as expanded powers to search, confiscate weapons and restrict movement.
The leader of New Caledonia’s pro-independence party on Saturday called on his supporters to “continue mobilization” across the French Pacific island and to “continue the resistance” against efforts by Paris to force through electoral reforms that the indigenous Kanak people fear will further marginalize them.
Christian Thein, leader of a pro-independence political party known as the Field Action Coordination Unit, addressed supporters and protesters in a video message posted on social media.
In a separate statement, the Kanaks and the Socialist National Liberation Front called on Macron to withdraw the electoral reform bill if France “wants to end the crisis.”
New Caledonia became a French colony under Emperor Napoleon III, Napoleon’s nephew and successor, in 1853. It became an overseas territory after World War II, and in 1957 all Kanak people were granted French citizenship.
Sixth death recorded in anti-colonial uprising in French territory of New Caledoniahttps://t.co/SEeNlnEZy7
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