Commemorations are planned at the Tiendanite tribe in New Caledonia to remember the ten dead aged 25 to 56 murdered by neighboring owners on December 5, 1984. Among the deaths to be deplored were two brothers of Jean-Marie Tjibaou.
Around 7 p.m., Wednesday December 5, 1984, two vehicles in which were the 17 activists returning from a FLNKS meeting in Hienghène Cultural Center, are stopped by a coconut tree trunk lying across the road. When suddenly, a gunshot rings out during the night and a gunfight ensues. The occupants of the vans fled using the river. They are hunted down by the perpetrators of the shots who kill the wounded and mutilate the corpses. In total, ten dead aged 25 to 56, are to be deplored. Only seven militants survived.
For the Tiendanite tribe, which then numbered eight families, it was a real massacre. Half of its male population died that evening, including the two brothers of independence leader Jean-Marie Tjibaou, Louis and Vianney. This killing occurs in a climate of tension and unrest due to the active boycott of the elections to the Territorial Assembly advocated by the FLNKS. Roadblocks erected by separatists forced the descendants of settlers to leave the area.
On the site of the tragedy now stands the memorial of Waan Yaat where the carcasses of the vehicles are exhibited with a marble plaque bearing the inscription “Son of Kanaky, remember…” and a tribute to those who were “cowardly murdered”.
The Goa Ma Bwarhat cultural center in Hienghène is planning a commemoration mass from 9 a.m. and a laying of wreaths on the graves of the ten slain militants from the Tiendanite tribe.
In Koné, a 50-seater bus will leave the market at 6 a.m. to take passengers to a place called Wan Yaat. A contribution of 1000 francs is requested.
