Shane Te Pou (Ngāi Tūhoe) is a commentator, blogger and former Labour Party activist.
OPINION
Dedicated to the late Susanna Ounei – Kanak freedom fighter
New Caledonia, a jewel in the Pacific, bears scars of French colonialism etched deep into its cultural fabric. The Kanak people, the original custodiansof this land, have endured centuries of oppression, yet their spirit remains unbroken.
Now, as the world watches, the time has come for justice to be served and for the Kanak people to be given their right to exercise self-determination.
France has a shameful record of colonial exploitation and brutal repression of indigenous people from Algeria to Indochina to New Caledonia. Aotearoa has its own experience with the brutality of French colonialism when its spies committed an act of terrorism in the heart of Auckland.
France has used force to kill and intimidate Kanak uprisings again and again for over 100 years while encouraging immigration by the French to make the Kanaks a minority in their own country.
For too long, the French colonial project has cast a dark shadow over New Caledonia. The French sought to exploit the land and its resources – especially its huge nickel deposits – for their own gain, without regard for the rights or aspirations of the Kanak people. Land was seized, traditions were suppressed, and a system of inequality was imposed upon the indigenous population. The Kanaks were confined to reservations and had their identity wiped out by France’s peculiar colonialism that treats islands in the South Pacific as “integral parts of France”.
As a young, radical teenager, I went on a rangitahi solidarity tour to New Caledonia. As an activist in the anti-apartheid and trade union movement, I had known about the struggle of our indigenous sisters and brothers, but not in great detail. The 12 days I spent in Kanaky were eye-opening.
Smoke rises during protests in Noumea, New Caledonia, on May 15. Photo / AP
Just like in Aotearoa, the indigenous languages had been suppressed. However, the French took things one step further. At birth, names had to be registered as French names, so indigenous Kanak names were not allowed. In effect, Kanak land had been taken, the indigenous people depopulated through the ravages of disease, and even their base whakapapa removed through the imposition of French names only.
Yes, the parallels with colonial history in Aotearoa New Zealand are unmistakable. But I genuinely believe we have turned a corner in this country, while France continues to try to force the Kanaks to be French, even by force.
Don’t underestimate what a heavy hand France uses to keep the Kanaks under their thumb. The French security forces in New Caledonia number 2000 soldiers, 2000 gendarmerie, and 1000 police. One for every 20 Kanaks. Proportionally, that’s on the same scale as the British forces in Northern Ireland during the Troubles. Kanaks are routinely harassed, intimidated, and imprisoned by what are, effectively, occupation forces with no legitimacy in the indigenous community.
The latest violence is the result of France’s continued efforts to weaken the Kanak’s voice in their own country. France insisted on carrying out the third referendum guaranteed by the Noumea Accords during the Covid pandemic, forcing the independence movement to boycott. France is now moving to dilute the Kanak vote by letting more recent French immigrants vote in the local elections.
The threat of a future without a voice is the reason why young Kanaks are taking to the streets. Rather than address those concerns, the French response has been shootings by security forces, who are being bolstered with armoured cars with machine guns and more armed police.
But let there be no mistake: the struggle for self-determination is far from over. The Kanak people will not be silenced, nor will they be deterred by the intransigence of the French state. Their voices will continue to ring out, demanding justice, equality, and freedom.
It is time for the international community to stand in solidarity with the Kanak people. The principles of self-determination and indigenous rights must be upheld, and the French government must be held to account for its colonial crimes. The people of New Caledonia deserve the right to decide their own fate, free from the shackles of colonial oppression.
