Polls open in New Caledonia’s first provincial elections since 2019

The New Zealand nationalist broadcaster, RNZ, reported that astir 2,500 constabulary were deployed to unafraid and show polling stations.

Polls person opened successful New Caledonia for its archetypal provincial elections since 2019, with a dense constabulary beingness astatine voting stations connected the French-ruled Pacific archipelago.

On Sunday morning, astir 2,500 constabulary officers were deployed to unafraid and show polling stations connected predetermination day, which began astatine 8am section clip connected Sunday (21:00 GMT Saturday), the New Zealand nationalist broadcaster, RNZ, reported.

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It said voters were already successful a agelong queue extracurricular a polling presumption astatine the Hotel de Ville successful the capital, Noumea, earlier voting started.

About 192,000 voters volition elite 76 councillors for the 3 provincial assemblies: 40 successful the southbound province, 22 successful the northbound province, and 14 successful the Loyalty Islands.

From there, 54 of those elected volition go members of the Pacific archipelago’s legislature – the territory’s main governing body, authorised to walk section laws.

However, the election, initially planned for 2024, was delayed arsenic the land was dealing with convulsive unrest betwixt Indigenous Kanaks and French loyalists. It is expected to beryllium important successful shaping aboriginal talks with France connected the presumption of the territory.

A ballot container is seen astatine the Salle Omnisports during provincial elections, successful Noumea, New Caledonia [AFP]

New Caledonia, successful the southwest Pacific, astir 1,500km (930 miles) eastbound of Australia, is location to immoderate 270,000 people, including 41 percent Melanesian Kanak and 24 percent of European origin, mostly French.

In 1863, New Caledonia was colonised by France and became an overseas territory successful 1946. It has been the taxable of a decades-long quality implicit France’s relation successful its affairs.

Sunday’s predetermination comes aft the main pro-independence radical rejected a woody with France that was intended to bring stableness to the overseas territory.

The accord would person created a Caledonian authorities and established a Caledonian nationality protected successful the French constitution; however, it would person scrapped immoderate aboriginal referendums connected independence.

So far, 3 referendums person been held connected the aboriginal of the archipelago’s independency – successful 2018, 2020, and 2021 – and each 3 returned majorities successful favour of remaining portion of France.

Pro-independence groups boycotted the 3rd vote, which was held during the COVID-19 pandemic.