France’s parliament on Thursday rejected a law to grant New Caledonia partial statehood, a reform the government hoped would bring stability to the overseas territory.<\/p>\n
Here’s what to know.\u00a0<\/p>\n
– Where is New Caledonia? –<\/p>\n
New Caledonia, an archipelago that is home to some 270,000 people, lies between Australia and Fiji in the Pacific.<\/p>\n
It is one of several French overseas territories left over from colonial times that have limited autonomy.<\/p>\n
British explorer Captain James Cook named it New Caledonia in the 18th century, saying it reminded him of Scotland.<\/p>\n
France seized the archipelago in 1853, initially using it as a penal colony. It then declared it an overseas territory in 1946, giving its inhabitants French citizenship.<\/p>\n
It is rich in nickel, a key ingredient for manufacturing stainless steel and making batteries that power electric vehicles.\u00a0<\/p>\n
– Who lives there? –<\/p>\n
Indigenous Melanesians known as Kanaks make up around 40 percent of the population, according to a 2019 census, followed by descendants of European settlers known as Caldoches and other newer residents.<\/p>\n
Around a third of Kanak households live below the poverty line, whereas less than 10 percent of non-Kanak families do, the census shows.<\/p>\n
– Who wants independence? –<\/p>\n
Tensions have blighted the archipelago’s modern history, starting in 1878 when an insurgency against land dispossession and the colonial order left 200 Europeans and 600 rebels dead.<\/p>\n
Clashes between Kanaks and Caldoches in the 1980s culminated in Kanak separatists mounting an attack and hostage-taking in 1988, when six police officers and 19 militants were killed.<\/p>\n
A landmark deal between France and opponents and supporters of independence followed in 1998, giving the islands more autonomy.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The voter roll has been frozen since then.<\/p>\n
Three referendums on independence in 2018, 2020 and 2021 have returned a majority in favour of staying with France. But pro-independence groups boycotted the third held during the Covid pandemic.<\/p>\n
The independence movement retains support, particularly among the Kanaks.<\/p>\n
– What happened in 2024? –<\/p>\n
Unrest broke out in 2024, leaving 14 people dead, after a planned update to give voting rights to thousands of non-Indigenous long-term residents.<\/p>\n
Kanaks feared this would leave them in a permanent minority, crushing their chances of winning independence.<\/p>\n
– What’s the reform? –<\/p>\n
In a bid to ease tensions, French officials and a delegation of New Caledonian pro-independence and anti-independence representatives in July last year reached an agreement to create a “State of New Caledonia” within the French Republic.<\/p>\n
The so-called Bougival Accord provides for the creation of a Caledonian state with Caledonian nationality to be enshrined in France’s constitution.<\/p>\n
But under the agreement, which needs approval from the French parliament and New Caledonia residents, there will be no further referendums on independence.<\/p>\n
What is more, New Caledonia residents who arrived after 1998 are to be allowed to vote, provided they have lived 10 years on the archipelago.<\/p>\n
New Caledonia’s main pro-independence group — the Socialist Kanak National Liberation Front (FLNKS) — wants to scrap the accord, which it says makes achieving full sovereignty too difficult.<\/p>\n
– What’s next? –<\/p>\n
France’s right-leaning Senate has approved the reform, but the lower house of parliament on Thursday rejected it, complicating it coming into law.<\/p>\n
The left had said they could not approve it if the FLNKS did not, while far-right parliamentary leader Marine Le Pen has said the bill is “dangerous for national unity”.<\/p>\n
Naima Moutchou, France’s minister for overseas territories, has warned a motion to reject the bill would bring negotiations “years backwards”.<\/p>\n
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