Macron in New Caledonia: “Calm returns as soon as possible. I arrive here with a lot of respect and humility.”

The French president, Emmanuel Macron, has arrived in New Caledonia for a visit which aims to re-establish dialogue between the Paris government and the inhabitants and restore public order in the archipelago, which has been in the throes of violent unrest for 9 days. Upon his arrival in Nouméa, Macron said he hoped for “the return of peace and calm as soon as possible” to the rebellious archipelago and that he had “no limit” on the time he could spend there. “My will – he said as soon as he got off the plane, shortly after 8 in the morning local time – is to be at the side of the population so that we can return to peace, calm and security as soon as possible”. He added that he carried out his visit with “much respect and humility” and that at the end of the scheduled talks “decisions will be made”.

Macron will meet local politicians and entrepreneurs from the archipelago. The president will also have to install an ad hoc mission made up of 3 senior officials, who will remain in New Caledonia “as long as necessary”, with “the aim of bringing out a local political dialogue in order to reach a global political agreement”, as already explained by the prime minister, Gabriel Attal, before the Senate. In Nouméa and its surroundings, the night passed peacefully, said the representative of the central government, Louis Le Franc.

Since the beginning of the violence, which erupted following the approval in Parliament in Paris of an electoral reform disliked by the Kanaka component of the population (around 41%), 6 people have been killed, including 2 gendarmes. 86 policemen and gendarmes injured.