PARIS (AP) — France announced Wednesday it is imposing a state of emergency in the French Pacific territory of New Caledonia for at least 12 days, boosting police powers in an attempt to quell deadly unrest that has left four people dead.
PARIS — France announced Wednesday it is imposing a state of emergency in the French Pacific territory of New Caledonia for at least 12 days, boosting police powers in an attempt to quell deadly unrest that has left four people dead.
“The priority is to restore order, calm, serenity,” Thevenot, the government spokeswoman, said. The emergency measures will go into force at 8 p.m. Paris time on Wednesday night, which is 5 a.m in New Caledonia. There have been decades of tensions on the archipelago between Indigenous Kanaks seeking independence and descendants of colonizers who want to remain part of France.
Opponents say the measure will benefit pro-France politicians in New Caledonia and further marginalize indigenous Kanak people. They once suffered from strict segregation policies and widespread discrimination. The vast archipelago of about 270,000 people east of Australia is 10 time zones ahead of Paris.The territory’s top French official, High Commissioner Louis Le Franc, warned of the possibility of “many deaths” if calm isn't restored.
“The situation is not serious, it is very serious," Le Franc said. “We have entered a dangerous spiral, a deadly spiral.”
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