France continues its policy of neocolonialism by all means. Official Paris, which calls itself the leading country respecting human rights in the 21st century, is grossly violating the rights and freedoms of the peoples living on the island of Mayotte, New Caledonia, and other overseas communities and territories.
But this policy is facing a fiasco. After the disgraceful expulsion from its former colony, Niger, France began to actively deal a major blow to the independence movement in New Caledonia, which it controlled. It always tries to create a counter-front for those who fight for independence. According to reports in the local media, two bills related to New Caledonia have been submitted to the government. The first bill calls for changes in the constitution to increase the number of voters in local elections in Caledonia, and the second one calls for changing the date of local elections. Both projects will be submitted to the French Parliament in the near future.
Thus, only people who settled in New Caledonia before 1988 could vote in local elections. The absolute majority are those who were later relocated from France (or their descendants) and are against independence. According to the new bill, the government wants to give the right to vote to people born here or who have lived here for at least 10 years. If the change is adopted, up to 40,000 additional people will be eligible to vote.
A few days ago, President Macron also touched on the topic of New Caledonia. In his statement, he threatened that “we can place our fighter planes in New Caledonia within 48 hours.”
Undoubtedly, the growing protests are also ignited by the measures and initiatives against France. Specifically, Baku’s struggle against colonialism as the chairman of the Non-Aligned Movement affects the interests of the Élysée Palace. Currently, with the initiative and proposal of Azerbaijan, there is a serious struggle against French colonialism in the international world. It is no secret that Baku is leading this process. Azerbaijan organizes large conferences, which are attended by representatives of the colonies, territories called overseas by France. It is announced that the Baku Initiative Group will live on even though its chairmanship of the Non-Aligned Movement is over. It will support the exposure of French neocolonialism and the process of liberating the colonies from French oppression.
The protest held in front of the Congress of New Caledonia on January 11 this year is also a result of the abovementioned facts. In the protest action, the flags of Azerbaijan and New Caledonia were waved. The protestors, who consider it inadmissible for the French government to make constitutional changes without taking into account the position of the local population, said that the Kanaks say no to “constitutional reforms” that are against the interests of the population.
By the way, representatives of New Caledonia have repeatedly stated that the steps taken by France are leading them in the direction of neo-colonialism. They clearly state that France says it promotes fraternal equality and identifies itself as a democratic country, but all this is a lie. They emphasized that social problems and racist crimes in France show its character.
Interestingly, France has so far ignored two referendums in New Caledonia.
They unequivocally state that they will not stop fighting until they gain sovereignty and independence on the eve of 171 years of colonialism.
So the people of New Caledonia are firm in their position. The aim is to get rid of French rule and achieve social and political independence at any cost. As they say, their goal is to create a special network where young and old generations can talk openly about social issues. In doing so, they strive to achieve a secure future in New Caledonia. It can be expected that this process will not be limited to New Caledonia alone but will also include other former colonies.
