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Do you want New Caledonia to gain full sovereignty and become independent? For the third and last time, Caledonians are called upon to answer this question. The referendum provided for by the 1998 Nouméa Accord takes place this Sunday, December 12.
With 420 head of cattle on 250 hectares, there is no time to be idle with the Creugnets. In this Caledonian cowboy family, breeding is a tradition, the work is done on horseback, a method borrowed from Australian neighbors. Karl-Heinz Creugnet cultivates another heritage, that of his ancestor, a Frenchman who accompanied convicts at the end of the 19th century, a Charentais who became a trader. “We are pure Caledonians and we are claiming our share. We have helped make the country prosper.”, he said.
Julien’s choice to work in breeding with his father. At 24, the breeder describes a daily life, the premises of a common destiny, he who says he has lived with the Kanaks since his childhood. Among those supporters of maintaining New Caledonia within France, no worries before the third referendum, rather a conviction. “I would prefer that we remain French for the moment. I don’t think that we are ready to become autonomous yet”, says Julien Creugnet. Their hope: that political uncertainty will stop slowing down the activity of their exploitation and beyond, that of New Caledonia.