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RNZ News
2 days ago
- Politics
- RNZ News
New Caledonia's FLNKS to reject France's Bougival project
The French-fostered Bougival project was signed on 12 July. Photo: AFP / Ludovic / Marin New Caledonia's pro-independence front, the FLNKS, is set to reject the French-fostered Bougival project, signed on 12 July, prompting its Minister for Overseas Manuel Valls to travel again next week. The FLNKS held its extraordinary meeting on Saturday with high on its agenda its much-awaited, albeit widely anticipated stance regarding the agreement signed near Paris one month ago. The meeting, in Mont-Dore (near Nouméa), is reported to have unanimously endorsed its rejection of the document, even though it has not yet made it official and hints at a statement on Tuesday (12 August). It was officially opened by FLNKS President Christian Téin via telephone from mainland France. He called on FLNKS militants to "clearly and unequivocally" reject the Bougival document which, he said, demonstrated "the administrating power's (France) contempt towards our struggle for recognition as the colonised people". He however called on the FLNKS to "remain open to dialogue", but only focusing on ways to obtain "full sovereignty" after bilateral talks only with the French State, not the opposing local political parties. Some of the mentioned deadlines, he said, were 24 September 2025 and eventually before the end of President Macron's mandate in April 2027. Téin was released from jail mid-June 2025 pending his trial on crime-related charges he still faces in relation to his alleged involvement in the May 2024 riots in New Caledonia. He was released under the condition that he does not return to New Caledonia for the time being. As leader of the CCAT (field action coordinating cell), he was jailed for one year in mainland France, but was elected President of FLNKS in absentia late August 2024. The CCAT was created by Union Calédonienne late 2023 to protest against a proposed French Constitutional amendment to alter voters' rules of eligibility at local elections. On 13 May 2024, the protests degenerated into fully-fledged riots and caused 14 dead, as well as over 2 billion Euros in material damage. In late August 2024 CCAT was admitted as one of the new components of FLNKS, just like a number of other organisations such as trade union USTKE, the Labour party and other smaller pro-independence movement components. Also late August 2024, in a de facto split, the two main moderate pillars of FLNKS, UPM and PALIKA, at the same time, distanced themselves from the pro-independence UC-dominated platform, materialising a persisting rift within the pro-independence umbrella. They asked their supporters to stay away from the riot-related violence, which also materialised through arson, looting and the destruction of hundreds of local businesses, causing in turn thousands of job losses. UPM and PALIKA once again did not take part in the latest FLNKS meeting at the weekend. Politicians who signed the Bougival agreement on 12 July 2025 held a joint meeting with the public on 6 August 2025. Photo: Supplied / UNI-PALIKA On 31 July, Union Calédonienne (UC), now the overarching component of FLNKS, with a larger hard-line base, set the tone when it "formally" denounced and rejected the Bougival document, labelling it a 'lure of sovereignty' and saying that "the fundamentals of our struggle and the principles of decolonisation are not there". UC's chairperson Emmanuel Tjibaou, who was FLNKS chief negotiator during the Bougival talks, said his signature on the document "didn't mean an acceptance on our part". He said he looked at this document as "temporary" and subject to further discussions. He argued with local reporters that he understood his signature on the document was merely a commitment that once back in Nouméa, he was to explain the text and then get -or not- the approval of the political base. He did not and was sanctioned: Tjibaou and every member of his negotiating team who signed the document on 12 July were since demoted and stripped of their mandate by FLNKS, until a new negotiating team is appointed, if required. In a simultaneous release, UC states that the Bougival text cannot be regarded as a balance between two visions, but rather a way of "maintaining New Caledonia French". "With the label of a 'State', a fundamental law (a de facto Constitution), the capacity to self-organise, an international recognition, this document is perceived as a project for an agreement to integrate (New Caledonia) into France under the guise of a decolonisation". UC is also critical of plans to extend the list of persons entitled to vote at New Caledonia's local elections, the very issue that triggered deadly and destructive riots in May 2024 because it is perceived by the Kanak movement as a way of "diluting" the indigenous vote. Considering current population trends and a fresh system of representation at the Congress that will allow more representatives from the Southern province (about three quarters of New Caledonia's population), UC said "in other words, it would be the non-independence (camp) who will have the power to authorise us -or not- to ask for our sovereignty". The document, mediated by French minister for Overseas Manuel Valls and under the Presidency of French Head of State Emmanuel Macron (who convened the Bougival meeting), came after ten days of intense negotiations between pro-France and pro-independence parties. It was signed by some 18 politicians representing New Caledonia's parties at the local Congress (Parliament). The signatures were perceived as a commitment from all signatories to support its general guidelines, including the proposed notion of a "State of New Caledonia" within France, a dual French/New Caledonian citizenship - provided future New Caledonian citizens are French nationals in the first place - and the transfer of some key powers (such as foreign affairs, provided it does not contradict France's key interests) from France to its Pacific entity. The text is described as a "project", a blueprint for an agreement that would shape New Caledonia's political future. It also envisages stronger powers for each of the three provinces (North, South and Loyalty Islands), especially in terms of revenue and tax collection. Parties who have signed the Bougival document and unreservedly pledged their support are: on the pro-France side, Les Loyalistes, Rassemblement-LR, Wallisian-based Eveil Océanien and Calédonie ensemble and on the pro-independence side, UNI-FLNKS (which comprises moderate parties UPM -Union Progressiste en Mélanésie- and PALIKA -Kanak Liberation Party-). Over the past four weeks, back in New Caledonia, all of these parties have played the game and defended the agreement. This involved numerous meetings - sometimes daily - and sessions with their respective supporters and militants, mostly to explain the contents of what was signed. Most of the leaders who have inked the text have also held lengthy interviews, in explanation mode, with local media. Last week, in a rarely seen event hosted by local business leaders, both pro-France (Les Loyalistes, Rassemblement-LR, Calédonie Ensemble) and moderate pro-independence parties (namely PALIKA and its leader Jean-Pierre Djaïwé) were all present together to take part in an interactive session with the general public to explain their respective reasons for defending the Bougival document. In the same spirit, pro-independence PALIKA leader Jean-Pierre Djaïwé, last Friday, in a lengthy interview, also told pro-France Radio Rythme Bleu the Bougival "compromise" could only work if both sides agreed to give and take. "You have delegations who want full sovereignty, others who want New Caledonia to remain part of France. So we have to find a middle position for everyone. So we agreed, all together, to choose an option of more shared sovereignty with France. This is what is called a 'bet on trust'. And it's what comes out of a respect for giving our word. Because in order to have trust, you need to keep your word", he said. "Of course, we have militants (in our party) who are asking questions, who are sceptical, who have reservations". "You cannot have an agreement that suits everyone. The (1988) Matignon Accord was also criticised (...) And we all know what happened to the one who signed (for FLNKS)", Djaïwé recalled. The signatory was the late Jean-Marie Tjibaou who, in 1988, shook hands with pro-France leader Jacques Lafleur to end half a decade of quasi civil war, also related to the independence issue. He and his closest associate, Yeiwéné Yeiwéné, were gunned down by a radical pro-independence militant, Djubeli Wéa, in 1989. Jean-Marie Tjibaou was the father of Emmanuel Tjibaou. Said Djaïwé: "Independence now is not possible. There is no independent country in this world. You always depend on someone, but you are sovereign when all key powers belong to you". "You can't have everything all at once. It's a gradual process. Full sovereignty means when all of the key powers are retroceded (by France) to New Caledonia. "Even if this means giving some of these powers (such as defence) back to France. Because if you have to monitor an Exclusive Economic Zone as large as mainland France, you might as well consider giving it back if you don't have the means", he explained in defence of the concept of "shared sovereignty". Djaïwé also referred to the three referendums on self-determination held between 2018 and 2021, which resulted in three rejections of independence (even though the last one, in December 2021, was largely boycotted by the pro-independence movement). "Democracy has been allowed to express itself, it has to be respected (...) Now we have to find a way to go further along our path to full sovereignty. But not by way of a 'yes or no' referendum. This is the job we have to do now through this Bougival agreement. It allows to have those signs of sovereignty such as this State of New Caledonia. Some say it is nothing but a window display exercise, but that can still evolve in the future and be later recognised by the international community", the moderate pro-independence leader told the local radio. Late July 2025, FLNKS president Christian Téin told French media the Bougival document was "far from being akin to full sovereignty". Téin said that during the days that led to the signing of the document in Bougival "the pressure" exerted on negotiators was "terrible". In the face of FLNKS's rejection, not only the pursuit of more negotiations, but also the drafting of necessary related documents (such as a "fundamental law" -a de facto constitution- for New Caledonia and other key documents such as the instruments to enshrine this in the French Constitution) are now increasingly regarded as potentially jeopardised. Djaïwé said now everyone was needed around the table to further refine what was signed in Paris because, he said, "this is an opportunity" that arises to clarify any misunderstanding or misconception when a "drafting committee" is held later this month. The committee is expected to write documents that will later be used to implement the Bougival guidelines in legal and constitutional terms, along the lines of the compromise that was found in July 2025. Djaïwé said there was no time to waste as another very real factor was French national politics with a fragile Parliament majority and the ever-looming threat of another motion of no-confidence against Prime Minister François Bayrou's current government in Paris. "If this happens, we don't know and this is a constraint we have to take into account. So we cannot go on playing like this, because at least this minister (Valls) has demonstrated he is determined to take New Caledonia somewhere with positive results. So we, all of us, must engage in the construction of our country. And we all have one thing in common: the love of our country." Between early 2022 and May 2024, numerous attempts (and half a dozen travels to Nouméa) to initiate inclusive talks among all political parties by Manuel Valls's predecessors (including Home Affairs and Overseas Minister Gérald Darmanin) also failed to eventuate, because Union Calédonienne had already and persistently refused to attend. The confrontation, which crystallised around a Constitutional project to amend the French Constitution to modify the list of eligible voters at local provincial elections, peaked into the riots that erupted on 13 May 2024. French Overseas Territories Minister Manuel Valls meets the press at the Haut-commissariat in Noumea to announce that no agreement has been reached between pro-independence and non-independence parties on the institutional future of New Caledonia at the end of 'conclave' discussions held at the Sheraton in Deva. Photo: AFP / Delphine Mayeur The latest political developments in New Caledonia on Sunday prompted Valls to swiftly issue a release. In advocacy mode, the former French prime minister said if this stance was to be formally confirmed by FLNKS, he "would regret that (FLNKS) chose to turn its back on the Bougival agreement, (even though) it was signed by its fully informed representatives". Valls also underlined that the FLNKS now has a "new configuration" following "the withdrawal of historic PALIKA and UPM parties". As in previous messages, he also stressed that the document is a "historic compromise" and "since February (2025) stems from months of labour, difficult exchanges with all delegations, including FLNKS's conducted by Emmanuel Tjibaou. Everyone put their signature". He said tTe document now required to be clarified and completed. "This is the very purpose of this drafting committee that I have suggested," he said, "to clarify the spirit" of the document, including what role and place the indigenous Kanak identity holds in New Caledonia's future society. He assured the indigenous people's roles and place were already widely recognised in the previous 1988 Matignon and even more in the 1998 Nouméa Accords, and that they remained fully valid and could not be questioned by the new document. Valls also announced he will be travelling once again to New Caledonia on the week "beginning 18 August" to "listen to all of those who refuse sterile confrontations" and "want to move forward together on the only possible path: the path of trust". These, he said, would include not only politicians, but also chiefly authorities, economic and social stakeholders, "as many (New) Caledonians as possible". "I am not giving up. My door remains open. Dialogue is the only way. But I'm saying one more time, directly: to refuse the agreement is to choose confrontation and let the situation rot away. "And this would be a failure for everyone. Without a compromise, no sustainable reconstruction, no real economic recovery, and social and health fractures will only worsen". Valls said he wanted to reassure the population that "we will not allow uncertainty to set in. The (French) State must guarantee for everyone the exercise of security and democracy, which cannot live under threats of violence." "I am determined to implement the Bougival Accord and its agenda, and to create the conditions for New Caledonia to finally recover the stability, peace, confidence and success it deserves," he added.
The Guardian
13-06-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
French court releases New Caledonia independence leader detained over deadly riots
A French court freed an independence leader from the overseas territory of New Caledonia who had been detained for a year over deadly riots in 2024. Christian Tein, who is indigenous Kanak , was charged and incarcerated over the rioting on the Pacific archipelago in May last year that left more than a dozen dead. He has been held in custody in eastern France since June 2024 but has always denied accusations of instigating the violence and sees himself as a political prisoner. In a hearing attended by Agence France-Presse, the Paris appeals court ordered the release of Tein on Thursday after a video call with him in which he promised to respond to future judicial summons and to live with his partner in eastern France. They ordered his release under judicial control on condition he does not return to New Caledonia nor enter into contact with other suspects in the case, a source close to the case said. Prosecutors have lodged an appeal. One of Tein's lawyers, Francois Roux, on Thursday hailed what he called 'a first victory'. 'This is a decolonisation case that is being followed by the United Nations,' he said, adding it was regrettable to see 'pro-independence activists being treated like terrorists'. New Caledonia, nearly 17,000km (10,500 miles) distant from mainland France, in the Pacific Ocean, is one of several overseas territories that remain part of France.
Straits Times
12-06-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
French court orders release of New Caledonia pro-independence leader
FILE PHOTO: People demonstrate as French President Emmanuel Macron's motorcade drives past in Noumea, France's Pacific territory of New Caledonia on May 23, 2024. LUDOVIC MARIN/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo PARIS - A French appeals court ordered New Caledonia pro-independence leader Christian Tein freed from prison on Thursday, affirming a lower court ruling after deadly riots in the French Pacific territory last year. "The Paris Court of Appeals confirmed the order for Christian Tein's release and his placement under judicial supervision," a judicial source said, without providing more details. In spring 2024, violent protests swept New Caledonia after French lawmakers approved a plan to grant voting rights in the territory to thousands more French citizen residents. President Emmanuel Macron declared a state of emergency. Indigenous Kanaks feared the change would dilute their votes and make it harder for an independence referendum to pass. In June 2024, police arrested Tein, who led an offshoot of Caledonian Union called the Field Action Coordination Cell (CCAT), which organised protest barricades across the capital Noumea. He was extradited to France that same month. France scrapped the voting overhaul in October 2024. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
RNZ News
12-06-2025
- Politics
- RNZ News
Téin released from French jail after appeal fails
New Caledonia's CCAT leader Christian Téin speaks during a press conference held at Union Calédonienne headquarters in Nouméa. Photo: RRB A Court of Appeal in Paris on Thursday ruled for the release of Kanak pro-independence leader Christian Téin from custody, almost one year after his arrest in New Caledonia. His release conditions include regular judicial summons and residing at his partner's residence, in north-eastern France, which is also a region where he spent the past twelve months in jail, pending his trial. In an earlier ruling on 3 June, the three magistrates, after interviewing Téin on 27 May, found there were insufficient grounds to keep him in custody. Their initial ruling, which was upheld on Thursday after appeal, was that the Kanak leader should be released from jail, but that he should be kept under judicial supervision and prevented from returning to New Caledonia or interfering with persons related to the case. This was appealed by the public prosecution . Téin, 57, is the head of a Field Action Coordinating Cell (CCAT), a group created late 2023 by New Caledonia's largest and oldest pro-independence party Union Calédonienne. Reacting to the latest ruling, one of Téin's defence lawyers said this was "a first victory, but the battle goes on". The same ruling of "release under judicial control" also applied to four other militants who also spent the past twelve months in several prisons in mainland France. Since his arrest in June 2024 and his transfer (with others) by plane from New Caledonia to mainland France, Téin has been jailed in Mulhouse. In late August 2024, Téin, from his Mulhouse jail, was also nominated, in absentia, president of the pro-independence Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front (FLNKS), of which the Union Calédonienne party is a dominant member. In January 2025, the case, initially investigated out of Nouméa, was removed from the former investigating judges in Nouméa and transferred to a panel of three Paris judges. On 30 May, another person part of the group that was transferred to France in June 2024 was allowed to return home to New Caledonia - Frédérique Muliava, a former Congress staffer . French president Emmanuel Macron confirmed he would host fresh political talks to foster a comprehensive agreement between all tendencies (pro-independence and pro-France) of New Caledonia's political spectrum. Photo: Screenshot Présidence de la République française Speaking to Pacific leaders earlier this week in Nice, France , at a 'Pacific-France' summit on the margins of the UN Oceans conference, Macron said he would host the New Caledonian talks in Paris, in the "coming weeks". Macron said this fresh roundtable was part of efforts to come up with "a new project". He told Pacific leaders building a political solution for New Caledonia was still work in progress "with a lot of humility, together."
