New Caledonia: the referendum on self-determination maintained on December 12

Caledonians who wish to go to the polls on December 12, 2021, will be able to choose whether or not they want to remain in the French fold.

THEO ROUBY / AFP

Text by: Anthony Lattier Follow

2 min

The third and last referendum on the self-determination of New Caledonia will take place.

The French government has decided to keep it until December 12.

A decision contested by the Kanak separatists who demanded a postponement of the poll due to the Covid-19 epidemic.

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The Kanak separatists, the indigenous people of New Caledonia,

 three weeks ago: the health situation does not allow a referendum to be held in good conditions.

Logically, the Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front (FLNKS) therefore 

: it calls for not participating in the third and last referendum provided for by the process of decolonization of this Pacific archipelago which had been colonized in the mid-nineteenth century. century.

The conditions met for the holding of the poll

On the contrary, the French authorities consider that the conditions are met for the holding of this ballot.

New Caledonia has long been spared by Covid-19, but the situation worsened in September.

There were then several hundred new cases of Covid per day, 272 people died.

Since then, the peak of contamination has been reached and we have fallen back to 40 cases per day.

And vaccination is progressing.

The health situation is under control, assures the High Commissioner of the Republic in New Caledonia.

He specifies that the decision to maintain the date of December 12 was taken during a meeting chaired by President Emmanuel Macron.

For the government, it is a duty to organize this referendum on time, as provided for by the

.

A decision applauded by supporters of the "no" to independence.

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In the background, supporters of the "no" and the French government say that the separatists are afraid of losing this referendum.

"

", annoys a French government source.

The "no" to independence has already won in the first two referendums of 2018 and 

.

The separatists will not recognize the result

Can the choice of the separatists derail the process of self-determination?

The question is valid.

The FLNKS announces that it will not recognize the result, although the process has been under way since 1988 and the Matignon Accords, confirmed by the Nouméa Accord.

But on the side of the Ministry of Overseas, we want to be confident and reassuring.

And it is recalled that, whatever the result of the third and last ballot, discussions will open just after in the archipelago.

A transition period of one and a half years is planned, during which the Caledonians will reflect on the institutional future of the archipelago and the degree of autonomy they want.

The process of self-determination is therefore not going to stop.

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