Subj : New Caledonia: Help coming for Kiwis - what's behind the unrest? To : All From : News Date : Mon May 20 2024 12:49 pm The New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) is ready to rescue New Zealanders trapped in New Caledonia amid widespread unrest in the French territory - but they're waiting for final approval from French authorities, Defence Minister Judith Collins says. The Pacific archipelago has been in a tumultuous state of unrest for about a week, with about 230 people arrested and six dead so far. About 250 New Zealanders are there. Hundreds of French troops have been deployed to secure the road to the the Noum‚a-La Tontouta airport. The violence broke out over proposed changes to New Caledonia voter lists, debated by the French government in Paris, that thrust the issue of New Caledonian independence into the spotlight. Asked about the Kiwis trapped in New Caledonia, Defence Minister Judith Collins told 1News: "[The] New Zealand Defence Force tell me that they are ready and willing to go and get the New Zealanders back to New Zealand. "But discussions are ongoing with the French government and that's through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade." And Collins had advice for New Zealanders in the French territory. "Stay at home, wherever you can, just stay indoors. Keep in touch with MFAT, with the consul-general," she said. "Make sure that you are informed on what's going on. "The New Zealand Defence Force is coming to get you but it's all about making sure that we go through the right channels as well." The Minister acknowledged the situation was concerning. "Please stay inside, don't go out on the streets," she repeated. 'A perfect storm' - expert Anna Powles from Massey University's Centre for Defence and Security Studies told Breakfast this morning: "What we are witnessing is a perfect storm of frustration amongst the Kanak population in New Caledonia, who comprise around 41% of the population." The archipelago's indigenous Kanaks have generally driven independence efforts, while descendants of colonisers generally want to remain part of France. There are "deep frustrations" over the proposed electoral roll changes, which would allow residents who have lived in New Caledonia for 10 years to cast ballots in provincial elections, Powles said. "[The changes would] effectively unfreeze the electoral roll, which has been in its current form since around 2007. "What it would mean is, New Caledonia would see approximately an additional 25,000 French residents added to the roll, which would tip the balance in terms of the makeup of pro-independence versus anti-independence within the government." For the first time, the territory has a pro-independence government in place, she added. "Then, of course, you have decades of frustration over poor outcomes for the Kanak population, massive economic and social inequality across the territory, poverty, poor education, limited access to good-quality housing." Those issues were exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic, Powles explained. Why is the territory so important to the French? "New Caledonia and French Polynesia, and Wallis and Futuna, their exclusive economic zones combined provide France with the largest exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the world," Powles said. "So the importance of New Caledonia and French Polynesia, of those Pacific territories, is geo-strategic. "It's a reflection of France's strategic narrative as this maritime nation and it's become increasingly important as a consequence of France's interest in the Indo-Pacific." Powles added that - after New Zealand had evacuated Kiwis from the violence-wrought territory - there needed to be discussion around New Zealand's role moving forward. "Obviously the situation cannot continue," she said. 'They need to... go back to France' - advocate Indigenous rights advocate Tina Ngata said the conflict stemmed right from the French annexation of New Caledonia. "All of those really unfortunate, horrifying outcomes - actually, if you look closely at them - are ones that we as Maori are very familiar with. "They are the results of colonisation," she said. "There is no reason why France should still be occupying that space. "They need to demilitarise and go back to France. "What we're seeing is completely predictable, but also completely preventable." What is France doing about the situation? RNZ reports French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal - after a 12-day presidential state of emergency was declared mid-week - was now chairing daily meetings of an "inter-ministerial crisis cell", also involving Home Affairs and Overseas Minister G‚rald Darmanin, his deputy Marie Gu‚venoux, Army Minister S‚bastien Lecornu and Justice Minister Eric Dupont-Moretti. A "dialogue mission" was likely to be set up and to travel to New Caledonia in an attempt to restore trust between Paris and its South Pacific dependency. This mission had been called for by several key players within the French political scene and names mentioned as potential envoys included Senate President G‚rard Larcher or National Assembly President Ya‰l Braun-Pivet. --- Mystic BBS v1.12 A44 2020/02/04 (Windows/64) * Origin: S.W.A.T.S BBS Telnet swatsbbs.ddns.net:2323 (63:10/102) .