This consultation on the independence of the territory had been promised by the former Minister of Overseas, Sébastien Lecornu. But in the absence of discussions, this schedule seemed difficult to keep.
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The Minister Delegate for Overseas Territories, Jean-François Carenco, declared on Monday that there would be no “project referendum” mid-2023 in order to validate a new legal framework for the territory, as promised by his predecessor, Sébastien Lecornu. “We cannot say: ‘I come to listen on behalf of Mr. Darmanin, Mrs. Borne and the President of the Republic’ and say ‘it’s like that’ (…). No, there will be no project referendum there (…) in July/September 2023”said Mr. Carenco, interviewed on the local channel Caledonia.
It was the former overseas minister, Sébastien Lecornu, who promised a “project referendum” for June 2023, in order to validate a new legal framework for the territory. But since the referendum won by supporters of France at the end of 2021, which had been boycotted by the separatists, discussions between the partners of the Noumea agreement have stalled.
The context is all the more tense as the independence movement FLNKS (National Kanak and Socialist Liberation Front) is currently going through a phase of turbulence, due to a disagreement between its two main components, the Palika and the Union Calédonienne on the space to be given to the community party L’Eveil Océanien, which defends the interests of the large Wallisian community in the area.
Last September and October, the separatists had chosen not to return to the committee of signatories, a monitoring body for the Nouméa agreement, desired by the Minister of the Interior Gérald Darmanin in September-October. They had also recalled on the eve of Mr. Carenco’s visit that they would only discuss “on the date of full sovereignty and the right to decolonization”.
Jean-François Carenco, whose mission letter given by the President of the Republic, is “to renew the threads of dialogue” had warned before his departure for New Caledonia that the “dialogue would take the time it takes”.