Dear MEL Topic Readers,
New Caledonia to become a state in 'historic' agreement, but will
remain French
New Caledonia is a group of islands in the southwest Pacific Ocean,
about 1,200km east of Australia. It was colonized by France in 1853 and became
an overseas territory after World War II. Of the 270,000 population, about 40%
are the Kanaks, the indigenous Melanesian inhabitants. Despite the full French
citizenship and economic support from France, New Caledonians were calling for full
independence. A referendum on independence was held in 2018 and again in 2020, both
of which resulted in favor of the status quo. The 2021 referendum was boycotted
by pro-independence groups over the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the
Kanak population, and the political situation of New Caledonia has since been
deadlocked. On July 12, France announced a deal with New Caledonia to grant
more autonomy. It proposes the creation of a “State of Caledonia”, with its own
nationality, but not full independence. It allows New Caledonia to control its
foreign policy immediately and create a Caledonian nationality along with
French nationality. Also, it paves the way to become a member state of the
United Nations. Since the agreement still needs to be approved in New Caledonia,
more negotiations and concessions might be made for ratification.
Read the article and learn about a French archipelago territory 17,000km
from Paris.
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