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Armed forces were protecting New Caledonia’s two airports and port, and hundreds of French police were on their way to the Pacific territory after third night of violent riots which killed four people.
In three communes of the French community, gendarmerie faced about 5,000 rioters, including between 3,000 and 4,000 in the capital Noumea, French High Commissioner Louis Le Fran said.
By Thursday, 200 people had been arrested and 64 gendarmerie and police officers were injured, while road barricades set up by protesters were causing a “terrible situation” for medicine and food for the population, Le Franc added.
France announced state of emergency in New Caledonia starting at 5 a.m. on Wednesday, giving authorities additional powers to ban gatherings and ban people from moving around the island.
The police reinforcements added 500 officers to the 1,800 normally present on the island after rioters torched vehicles and businesses and looted shops.
Noumea resident Ioan Fleuro said he had seen looting and destruction of property. Some store owners allow their shelves to be raided, praying their stores won’t be destroyed, he said.
The blockades were difficult to pass, he was the subject of insults and threats of violence, he said.
“I’m a New Caledonian, but I don’t know my country anymore,” he said.
“Caledonia will hardly recover from this crisis… Everything, 80%, is destroyed.”
Main and secondary roads in Noumea were blocked by barricades of burning cars and their shells – some with gas cylinder mines and ignition systems, Le Franc said.
“I call on those at the helm of CCAT to stop these actions, which are murderous, deadly actions that can leave families in mourning,” he said, referring to the Coordination Field Action Group (CCAT), organizers of the protests, started on Monday.
He said CCAT was a “thug organization that engages in acts of violence” and distinguished it from the main pro-independence party, the FLNKS, and other pro-independence political groups.
FLNKS condemned the violence and called for dialogue to resolve the situation.
There have been confrontations between active CCAT members and self-defense groups or militias formed to protect themselves, he said, adding that the militia is also in violation of the curfew and the ban on carrying weapons.
The unrest erupted over a bill passed by the French parliament in Paris on Tuesday that would allow non-Caledonian French who have lived in New Caledonia for 10 years to vote in provincial elections, a move some local leaders say will dilute the local Kanak vote.
Three young Kanaks died in the riots, while a 24-year-old policeman died of a gunshot wound.
A state of emergency was imposed for 12 days and authorities banned the video app TikTok.
The electoral reform is the latest flashpoint in decades of disputes over France’s role in the mineral-rich island community, which lies in the southwest Pacific Ocean 1,500 km (930 miles) east of Australia.
Australian Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong said Australians had been advised to reconsider their need to travel to New Caledonia due to “civil unrest, travel disruption and limited essential services”.
“Again I repeat and take this opportunity to reiterate Australia’s call for calm. We respect and support the referendum process… and the discussions that are taking place between all parties, and we encourage all parties to work together to shape New Caledonia’s future.
With Reuters
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