Paris/Sydney:

Seven more mobile force units will soon arrive as reinforcements in New Caledonia, the Elysée said in a statement on Monday, also indicating a state of emergency would end as planned in the French Pacific territory on Tuesday morning local time.

The state of emergency would end on Monday evening at 8:00 pm in Paris (Tuesday 5:00 a.m. in Noumea).

Seven people have been killed, hundreds arrested and large numbers of buildings and cars destroyed in a fortnight of upheaval triggered by a contested electoral reform and fuelled by sharp economic disparities between the indigenous Kanak population and people of European background.

Police shot dead a man on Friday evening, a day after French President Emmanuel Macron visited to try to calm tensions.

The arrival of an additional 480 gendarmes will bring the number of French security forces in the Pacific territory to some 3,500.

Macron’s decision not to renew the state of emergency illustrates Paris’s desire to start the process of de-escalation and re-establish conditions for dialogue, the statement added.

The main pro-independence political coalition, FLNKS (Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front) issued a communique on Saturday saying the priority was easing tensions and the only viable solution was a “political and non-repressive solution”.

Lifting the state of emergency was intended to allow FLNKS to meet, the French statement said.

Macron “recalls that the lifting of the roadblocks is the necessary condition for the opening of concrete and serious negotiations”, it added.

Christian Tein of the Field Action Coordination Cell (CCAT), which organised the roadblocks that are impeding movement and supply of food and medicine across the island, said on Friday it “remain mobilised, we maintain the resistance in our neighbourhoods, in a structured, organised way”.

No announcement was made on a night curfew imposed by local authorities in New Caledonia.

The operator of Noumea international airport has announced it will remain closed until June 2.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

French President Emmanuel Macron visits the central police station in Noumea, France’s Pacific territory of New Caledonia on May 23, 2024. Photo: Via Reuters

President Emmanuel Macron pushed on May 23 for a lifting of protesters’ barricades in riot-hit New Caledonia and pledged that reinforced police forces battling deadly unrest on the French Pacific archipelago “will stay as long as necessary,” even when French security services will be focused in weeks ahead on the massive security operation for the Paris Olympics.

By binning his previously announced schedule to fly across the globe from Paris on his presidential jet, Mr. Macron brought the weight of his office and his personal touch to bear on the crisis that has left six dead and a trail of destruction on the archipelago that is a global source of nickel, used in batteries and other everyday necessities, and where Indigenous Kanak people have long sought independence from France.

Pro-independence Kanak leaders, who a week earlier declined Mr. Macron’s offer of talks by video, turned out on May 23 to greet him in person, bringing them together at a meeting in the capital Nouméa, with rival loyalist leaders who want New Caledonia, which became French in 1853 under Emperor Napoleon III, to remain part of France.

Mr. Macron opened the meeting by calling for a minute of silence for the six people killed in shootings during the violence, including two gendarmes, and read out their names. He subsequently urged local leaders to use their clout to help restore order. He said a state of emergency imposed by Paris the previous week to boost police powers could be lifted only if local leaders call for a clearing away of barricades that demonstrators and people trying to protect their neighborhoods have erected in Nouméa and beyond.

“It’s a simple phrase and it’s best to say because it can have an effect,” Mr. Macron said.

Barricades have turned some parts of Nouméa into no-go zones and made travelling around perilous, including for the sick requiring medical treatment and for families fretting about where to find food and water after shops were pillaged and torched. Unrest continued to simmer even as Mr. Macron jetted in, despite a 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew and more than 1,000 reinforcements for the archipelago’s police and gendarmes, now 3,000-strong, the French leader said.

“I will be very clear here. These forces will remain as long as necessary. Even during the Olympic Games and Paralympics [which open in Paris on July 26],” Mr. Macron said.

It was late on May 21 in Paris when he left on the 16,000-kilometre (10,000-mile) trip but, because of the distance and time difference, already on May 23 morning in New Caledonia when he arrived, with his Interior and Defence Ministers in tow.

At Nouméa’s La Tontouta International Airport, used for special evacuation flights for stranded tourists but still closed to commercial services, Mr. Macron said on arrival that he wanted “to be alongside the people and see a return to peace, calm and security as soon as possible”.

Mr. Macron added that he would discuss the resources needed to repair the damage wrought by days of shootings, arson and other violence that has left at least six dead. The destruction is estimated to be in the hundreds of millions of euros (dollars).

“We will discuss questions of economic reconstruction, support and rapid response, and the most delicate political questions, as we talk about the future of New Caledonia,” he said. “By the end of the day, decisions will be taken and announcements will be made.”

When asked by a reporter whether he thought a 12-hour visit was enough, Mr. Macron responded, “We will see. I don’t have a limit.”

The violence erupted May 13 as the French legislature in Paris debated amending the French Constitution to make changes to New Caledonia voter lists. The National Assembly approved a bill that will, among other changes, allow residents who have lived in New Caledonia for at least 10 years to cast ballots in provincial elections.

Opponents fear the measure will benefit pro-France politicians in New Caledonia and further marginalize the Kanaks, who once suffered from strict segregation policies and widespread discrimination.

There have been decades of tensions over the issue of independence between the Kanaks and descendants of colonists and others who settled in the territory of 2,70,000 people and want to remain part of France.

Mr. Macron, in the past, has facilitated dialogue in New Caledonia between pro-independence and pro-France factions. The efforts culminated in a 2018 referendum, the first of three, in which New Caledonians voted to remain part of France by a narrow margin.

The violence is the most severe in New Caledonia since the 1980s, the last time France imposed on state of emergency on the archipelago. French authorities say more than 280 people have been arrested.

The French government has declared a state of emergency in New Caledonia, the semi-autonomous French Pacific territory, after three nights of deadly clashes resulted in four deaths and hundreds of injuries. Apart from deploying troops in the area, the government has also banned TikTok. 

After the clashes, streets were filled with debris from burned buildings and materials used in riots. Armoured vehicles were patrolling the now-empty streets, while locals set up makeshift roadblocks — made of wooden pallets, bedframes, wheelbarrows, tree fronds etc — out of fear. 

Why French government has declared emergency

The government’s declaration of an emergency comes after they initiated a “massive” mobilisation of security forces as an effort to restore order. French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal announced that troops were sent to secure ports and the international airport, which, for now, is closed to commercial flights.

The security forces responded by putting five suspected leaders under house arrest and planning house searches. Over 200 “rioters” were arrested, with reports of hundreds injured, including 64 police officers. TikTok was banned because it was used by rioters, with almost 20 related accounts identified by AFP.

France is creating an “air bridge” to quickly send troops, police reinforcements, and essential supplies to New Caledonia. French President Emmanuel Macron has offered to talk with New Caledonian lawmakers and urged them to engage in political conversations and negotiations to address the current situation.

Why the people of New Caledonia are protesting

The unrest stems from protests over a proposed amendment to the French Constitution that would impose new local voting rules in the Pacific archipelago. The violence erupted from pro-independence protests, largely led by indigenous groups, reports said. The clashes, including gunfire that claimed the life of a police officer, mark the deadliest violence seen in the region since the 1980s. 

New Caledonia, located between Australia and Fiji, remains under French control  but with a “special status”. While it rejected independence in past elections, many Kanak people, whose ancestors have lived on the islands for thousands of years, still support the idea.

As people protested on the streets, miles away, the French National Assembly voted to allow residents who have lived in New Caledonia for 10 years to vote. However, this reform still needs approval from both houses of the French parliament. Pro-independence groups argued that this change would weaken the voting power of Kanaks, who make up about 41% of the population. On the other hand, supporters of the reform say that voter lists haven’t been updated since 1998, which leaves out newer residents from voting in provincial polls. 

What the state of emergency means

The state of emergency allows authorities to enforce travel bans, house arrests, and searches, along with a night curfew and bans on gatherings, weapon possession, and alcohol sales. Nearly 1,800 law enforcement officers are deployed, with 500 reinforcements planned, according to a French government spokeswoman.