A surprise decision by France to arrest seven New Caledonian independence activists and remove them to France has sparked another round of violence in the French territory.
The activists were suspected of being members of a “Field Action Coordinating Cell” (CCAT) that was set up last year by Union Calédonienne (UC).
The UC is one of the more radical parties that formed the loose pro-independence Kanak Socialist National Liberation Front (FLNKS). It has also directed the recent protests against electoral law changes, which saw nine people killed, hundreds wounded, and damages estimated at US$1.6 billion.
The activists face charges including complicity in attempted murder, organised theft with a weapon, organised destruction of private property while endangering people, and participation in a criminal group with an intent to plan a crime. Another 38 people have been imprisoned locally.
They were rioting against reforms to extend voting rights to people who had lived in the Pacific island for more than 10 years. That led to the declaration of a 12-day state of emergency, and extra police, military personnel, and equipment were flown in to quell demonstrations.
French President Emmanuel Macron then visited New Caledonia and suspended the proposed reforms to allow “a return to order.”
Ongoing Talks
In late May, French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal hosted a parliamentary liaison committee meeting involving representatives from New Caledonia’s parliament and French parliamentary groups specialising in the Pacific archipelago.It resolved to embark on “impartial” and “bipartisan” talks in Paris—a decision that met with approval from the French government, opposition MPs, and the island’s pro-independence leaders.
There was no warning of the sudden sweep by armed gendarmes which saw the seven FLNKS figures immediately extradited to France, where they are being held in pre-trial detention.
“This transfer was organised during the night by means of a plane specially chartered for the mission,” Yves Dupas, the public prosecutor in Noumea, said in a statement on June 23.
Mr. Dupas said the move was necessary “due to the sensitivity of the procedure and in order to allow the investigations to continue in a calm manner, free of any pressure.”
Among those extradited was high-profile CCAT leader Christian Tein, who was charged in connection with the riots, looting, and arson.
Mr. Tein was detained as he prepared to hold a news conference.
The UC condemned the arrests as “abusive,” claiming that “local anti-independence leaders and criminal militiamen are able to swagger about in total freedom.”
Daniel Goa, president of the UC, said he was “astonished” that they had been flown to France and called it “political deportation.”
French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin called CCAT a “mafia-style organisation.”
Escalating Violence
As the news spread, pro-independence demonstrators reacted by setting fire to a town hall, police station, and several other buildings.A firefighting vehicle was attacked, possibly with gunshots, and some schools were forced to close due to the protests.
Firefighters pleaded with local leaders to allow a return to calm.
Union spokesman Gwenval Cambon told local newspaper Les Nouvelles Caledoniennes that “despite the dedication of firefighters, violence has escalated among young people” as municipal vehicles and institutions increasingly came under attack.
Barricades are once again blocking roads throughout the main island, and clashes between law enforcement and protesters have resumed with greater intensity.
One youth activist told local media that French police were “shooting from everywhere and the independents just had stones” and that social media posts described the situation in one area, Dumbéa, as “like Baghdad.”
A dusk-to-dawn curfew has been reimposed, and the possession, sale and transportation of firearms, ammunition, and alcohol remain banned until further notice.
French loyalist politicians in New Caledonia claimed that a third of local businesses had been destroyed.
Domestic Politics May Have Driven The Change
The sudden pivot from diplomacy to detention in a territory 17,000 kilometres from Paris may have resulted from domestic French politics.Marine Le Pen’s nationalist, anti-immigrant Rassemblement National (RN) party came first in European Union elections two weeks ago, prompting Mr. Macron to dissolve parliament and call an election that will take place just before the start of the Paris Olympics on July 26.
For her part, Ms. Le Pen is gambling that Mr. Macron won’t be able to work with 28-year-old RN leader Jordan Bardella as prime minister and will call a Presidential election before 2027, when it’s scheduled. She hopes to win that contest.
With so much at stake for Mr. Macron’s Renaissance Party, a headline-making hardline sweep of unruly independence protesters sends a message to swing voters—not just in New Caledonia but across France—that they don’t need to turn to the right to find a party prepared to take a tough line on law and order.
