Emmanuel Macron warned on Wednesday that a Congress would be convened “before the end of June” to ratify a contested constitutional revision on New Caledonia if separatists and loyalists do not find an agreement on a more global text, while calling for “calm” in the archipelago.
“It will be a question, collectively and responsibly, of finding an agreement which goes beyond the mere thaw (of the electorate, Editor’s note) and takes into account the path traveled and the aspirations of each person”, writes the Head of State in a letter inviting Caledonian representatives to discussions with the government in Paris. “In the absence of this agreement, which I continue to call for, and which is desirable in all respects for the Caledonians, the Congress would meet before the end of June,” he adds.
After the Senate, the National Assembly in turn adopted during the night from Tuesday to Wednesday the constitutional revision reforming the electoral body of the provincial election of New Caledonia, against a backdrop of riots in Nouméa against this text. In his letter, Emmanuel Macron condemned the “unworthy and unacceptable nature” of the violence.
The current electorate is essentially limited to voters registered on the lists for a previous consultation in 1998 and their descendants, de facto excluding residents who arrived after 1998 and many natives.
Emmanuel Macron specifies that he asked Prime Minister Gabriel Attal and Minister of the Interior and Overseas Gérald Darmanin to receive “representatives of pro-independence and non-independence political forces in Paris”. The Prime Minister and the minister “will set a date in the coming weeks”, he continues. The wish, on the executive side, is that the meeting can take place as quickly as possible.
VIDEO. New Caledonia: violence, burned houses, curfew, arrests… Update on the situation
“From now on, they are at your disposal to organize your visit to Paris and to create the conditions for a dialogue that engages everyone,” underlines the Head of State. If an agreement is reached for a broader constitutional revision, a “new constitutional bill” will be tabled by the government, specifies Emmanuel Macron.
Discussions could notably focus on the organization of future self-determination and the distribution of powers between the provinces and the government of New Caledonia.
