French Ambassador Véronique Roger-Lacan says the unfreezing of electoral rolls in New Caledonia, which sparked last year’s riots, is still under discussion.
The ambassador to the Pacific stressed the need to address misinformation, noting that this was the purpose of last October’s information mission by the Pacific Islands Forum Troika Plus, which included leaders from Tonga, Fiji, the Cook Islands, and the Solomon Islands.
Kei te tēpu tonu te tuku i te mana pōti ki a rāwaho
I te maehe o tērā tau, i tū ai te puehu ki New Caledonia. E rua tekau mano tūranga mahi ka ngaro, ā, e rua ira rua piriona tāra te utu. Nā tētahi whakahoutanga, ki ngā tikanga pōti.
Ko tā te whakahoutanga nei, kia whai mana ngā tāngata o Wīwī, kua noho ki ngā moutere mō ngā tau tekau, ki te tuku pōti. Ki konā, tū ai ngā pihi o te iwi taketake Kanak, he māharahara nō rātou, kei riro tō rātou mana.
E ai ki a Roger-Lacan, i te wā tonu nei, kei te here tonutia te mana tuku pōti, heoi anō, kua tīmata pea te tangatanga haere o tērā toki, me kī, kua tahuri mai ngā iwi taketake ki te tautoko i te mana tuku pōti.
Balancing democracy and Indigenous rights
Te Ao Māori News asked if the unfreezing of electoral rolls happens, how will a democratic majority ensure the protection of the Indigenous minority, their values and practices, and whether the Customary would play a role.
The Customary Senate was established through the Nouméa Accord and consists of representatives from various traditional Kanak councils, who must be consulted on laws affecting Kanak identity.
Roger-Lacan acknowledged that the legitimacy of the Customary Senate is questioned by some Indigenous leaders. She pointed out that one of the tribal heads, who represented the United Nations Committee on Decolonization, resigned, arguing that the Senate did not represent the tribes' interests or uphold Indigenous rights.
Winston Peters' Visit and New Zealand’s Te Tiriti o Waitangi
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters invited Roger-Lacan to Waitangi Day celebrations when he travelled to New Caledonia in December.
During this visit, Roger-Lacan said instead of discussing the issues he intended to address, the Customary Senate “interrogated” him about the Treaty of Waitangi.
Winston Peters said that during his visit, he was pleased to receive a traditional welcome from the Customary Senate, followed by a discussion that included an exchange of perspectives on a broad range of issues, including Te Tiriti o Waitangi
“The example of New Zealand’s Waitangi Treaty is interesting, but I wouldn’t say it is the Torah or the Bible to which everyone in the Pacific should refer,” she said.
Roger-Lacan remarked that while many people are unfamiliar with the Nouméa Accord, it is a significant text in international law, particularly Indigenous peoples' rights.
Te kawenata Nouméa Accord me te huarahi whai i te tino rangatiratanga
I te tau iwa tekau mā rua, e whitu tekau mā rua ōrau i whakaae, ki te kawenata o Noumea, he huarahi e tuku ai te mana motuhake o New Caledonia, ki te iwi taketake. E toru pū anō ngā pōtihanga mana motuhake.
I ngā pōtihanga i te tau 2018, e whā tekau mā toru ōrau i whakaae kia tū ngā moutere nei hei whenua motuhake, heoi anō, i te tau 2021, e toru ira rima noa iho te hunga i whakaae.
Hei tā ngā māngai tautoko i te tū motuhake o te whenua, nā ngā herenga o te kowheori i pērā rawa te iti o te hunga i tuku i te pōti whakaae.
“Three times the New Caledonians decided New Caledonia would remain within the French Republic,” Roger-Lacan said. “Under French law, everyone has the right to vote—or not. If you don’t vote, too bad for you.”
Insights from the October information mission
Prime Minister of the Cook Islands, Mark Brown, was impressed by the high standard of living in New Caledonia, noting that it surpassed what he had seen in other small island states.
Fijian Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka also praised the region’s free healthcare and education systems, as well as the substantial unemployment benefits. He found it ironic that the individuals who had organised the riots, which devastated the industrial system, now depend on unemployment benefits funded by French taxpayers.
An RNZ reporter raised concerns about the stark disparities in income, highlighting that the median income for predominantly Kanak communities on the East Coast is just 40% of that in the capital.
“There are differences, but we have to be clear on the fact that what is offered and [Deputy] Prime Minister Peters witnessed it when he came,” Roger-Lacan said.
“We live in a globalised world, and you have to integrate. Maybe those people who have less income have not engaged in the economical possibilities they that are offered by the Noumea [Accord].”
She pointed out disparities are everywhere in the world, and it isn’t unique to New Caledonia.
