The Pacific islands of New Caledonia yesterday voted to remain part of France in an independence referendum that showed support for Paris in one of its many far-flung but strategic outposts.
New Caledonia is home to a quarter of the world’s known supplies of nickel — a vital electronics component — and is a foothold for France in the Pacific where China is increasing its influence.
On the final count, 56.4 percent of voters rejected the proposition that New Caledonia become independent, a clear, but smaller-than-expected victory for loyalists.
Photo: AP
French President Emmanuel Macron expressed his “immense pride that we have taken this historic step together” in a televised address to the nation, adding that it was “a sign of confidence in the French republic, in its future and its values.”
Turnout was high for the vote, at more than 80 percent, but there are fears the referendum could inflame tensions between indigenous Kanak people, who tend to favor independence, and the white population, which has settled since France annexed the islands in 1853.
Several cars were burned and a couple of incidents of stone-throwing were reported late yesterday, local authorities said, but the vote was otherwise peaceful.
Photo: AFP
Tensions in New Caledonia boiled over into ethnic strife in the 1980s, which claimed more than 70 lives. It led to the 1998 Noumea Accord, which paved the way for a steady devolution of powers, as well as yesterday’s referendum and possibly two others before 2022.
“The Kanaks have become aware that they need to show their determination to be free at last,” Alosio Sako, head of the pro-independence movement FLNKS, said after the results were announced.
Polls had forecast a bigger victory — of 63 to 75 percent — for the “no” campaign.
“We’re a short step away from victory and there are still two votes to come,” Sako added, referring to the other two referendums possible under the accord.
Macron had largely stayed clear of the campaign in New Caledonia, but during a visit to Noumea in May, he said that “France would be less beautiful” without the territory.
He also raised concerns over increasing Chinese influence in the Pacific, saying Beijing was “building its hegemony step by step” in the Pacific — suggesting that an independent New Caledonia could be Beijing’s next target.
The paramount chief of a volcanic island in Vanuatu yesterday said that he was “very impressed” by a UN court’s declaration that countries must tackle climate change. Vanuatu spearheaded the legal case at the International Court of Justice in The Hague, Netherlands, which on Wednesday ruled that countries have a duty to protect against the threat of a warming planet. “I’m very impressed,” George Bumseng, the top chief of the Pacific archipelago’s island of Ambrym, told reporters in the capital, Port Vila. “We have been waiting for this decision for a long time because we have been victims of this climate change for
Rainfall is expected to become more widespread and persistent across central and southern Taiwan over the next few days, with the effects of the weather patterns becoming most prominent between last night and tomorrow, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Independent meteorologist Daniel Wu (吳德榮) said that based on the latest forecast models of the combination of a low-pressure system and southwesterly winds, rainfall and flooding are expected to continue in central and southern Taiwan from today to Sunday. The CWA also warned of flash floods, thunder and lightning, and strong gusts in these areas, as well as landslides and fallen
MASSIVE LOSS: If the next recall votes also fail, it would signal that the administration of President William Lai would continue to face strong resistance within the legislature The results of recall votes yesterday dealt a blow to the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) efforts to overturn the opposition-controlled legislature, as all 24 Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers survived the recall bids. Backed by President William Lai’s (賴清德) DPP, civic groups led the recall drive, seeking to remove 31 out of 39 KMT lawmakers from the 113-seat legislature, in which the KMT and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) together hold a majority with 62 seats, while the DPP holds 51 seats. The scale of the recall elections was unprecedented, with another seven KMT lawmakers facing similar votes on Aug. 23. For a
All 24 lawmakers of the main opposition Chinese Nationalists Party (KMT) on Saturday survived historical nationwide recall elections, ensuring that the KMT along with Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) lawmakers will maintain opposition control of the legislature. Recall votes against all 24 KMT lawmakers as well as Hsinchu Mayor Ann Kao (高虹安) and KMT legislative caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (傅崐萁) failed to pass, according to Central Election Commission (CEC) figures. In only six of the 24 recall votes did the ballots cast in favor of the recall even meet the threshold of 25 percent of eligible voters needed for the recall to pass,