Kanaky: the era of colonies must end

Wednesday 8 April 2026, by Cathy Billard

The Senate vote on the constitutional bill concerning New Caledonia marks a new stage in the erosion of the Kanak people’s right to self-determination. Behind an institutional veneer, the government is pursuing a strategy of strong-arming, which must be stopped by mobilization.

On February 24, 215 senators gathered in Paris and voted in favour of "the constitutional bill relating to New Caledonia," with 41 votes against and 89 abstentions. The right wing supported the text, the socialist group abstained—except for one senator from Guadeloupe—while the Communist and Green senators, including FLNKS senator Robert Wienie Xowie, voted against it—as did the three RN senators , but on the grounds that it "opens, without saying so, the door to independence," a claim that is, to say the least, exaggerated.

Another attempt to force the issue…

This is becoming the hallmark of the Macron governments on this issue. Darmanin and Lecornu are showing zeal to put an end to the Matignon-Oudinot (1988) and Nouméa (1998) agreements, which recognized the right to self-determination of the Kanak people and opened a path towards independence.

In 2018, the first referendum was held, despite the absence of 22,000 Kanaks from the electoral roll. The second referendum in 2020 showed a significant increase in the pro-independence vote. The third, in 2021, was held against the wishes of the independence movement, which had requested a postponement due to the post-Covid mourning period, leading to Kanaks refusing to participate. Yet it was this referendum that served as the basis for the plan to unfreeze the electoral roll, intended to make Kanaks ¬a minority in their own territory.

In May 2024, the presentation of the bill to the National Assembly triggered a Kanak youth uprising, which was repressed using the worst colonial methods: 13 Kanaks killed, hundreds injured, 2,235 arrested and imprisoned, including seven pro-independence leaders deported to France. In a community of just over 110,000 people, the scale of the repression was considerable, hitting those most affected by precarious living conditions, difficulties accessing employment and housing, and, since the uprising, difficulties accessing education, healthcare, transportation, and work.

… to be prevented by mobilization

The bill passed by the Senate relied on the exhaustion of the population in Kanaky and indifference in mainland France to ratify the end of the right to independence. The creation of a "state" of New Caledonia, maintained within France and whose powers could not contradict French interests, is nothing like true independence. The gradual unfreezing of the electoral roll again means marginalizing the Kanak people and the "victims of history." Strengthening the provinces would exacerbate the concentration of wealth in the Southern Province, where the Kanaks are already a minority, fostering a logic of apartheid—all under the threat of economic strangulation of heavily indebted communities.

The vast majority of the independence movement rejects the bill. The only Kanak organization to have accepted it is disavowed by many of its activists , notably by Paul Néaoutyine, president of the Northern Province and the last living signatory of the Nouméa Accord.

In Kanaky, the time for mobilization has arrived. Pro-independence groups held their congress with strong participation. Thousands of activists are engaged in the municipal elections, focusing on local issues and the future of the country, and the fight on the nickel front is underway against a project of plunder for the benefit of multinationals and Europe.

On March 21st, the various Kanak and Caledonian collectives in France, along with the Kanaky Solidarity Collective, are calling for a demonstration to express their rejection of the government’s colonial policies and their solidarity with the struggle of the people of Kanaky - New Caledonia, urging members of parliament to reject the proposed legislation at the end of March. The aim is to force the reopening of discussions within the framework of the Nouméa Accord to guarantee the inalienable right of the Kanak people to decide their own future.

Published on Wednesday, March 4, 2026 in the weekly L’Anticapialiste number 790.

Attached documents

• kanaky-the-era-of-colonies-must-end_a9486.pdf (PDF - 955.6 KiB)
  Extraction PDF [->article9486]

Kanaky: Mobilization on 21 March against colonialism

Thursday 26 March 2026, by An Gwesped

For several months, the French government has been trying to impose on Kanaky an exit from the framework of the Nouméa Accords, by calling into question the decolonization process, even though it is recognized by the UN. The so-called “Bougival Agreement”, imposed in July 2025 against the advice of the Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front (FLNKS), provides for the creation of a “state” of Kanaky-New Caledonia integrated into the French republic. A formula that in no way corresponds to independence.

On 24 February 2026, the French Senate adopted the corresponding constitutional revision, despite strong criticism, including from the non-independence camp. However, all the signals are red: the absence of local consensus, a historical condition of political equilibrium in Kanaky, poses the risk of a new explosion. The executive nevertheless persists in moving forward, in continuity with the methods already at work during the third referendum imposed in 2021 or the attempt to unblock the electoral body in 2024.

Upholding the right to self-determination

It is in this context that the mobilization of 21 March is being organized, on the occasion of the International Day against Racial Discrimination and the opening of the Anti-Colonial and Anti-Racist Week. The organisers call for “the immediate abandonment of the Bougival draft agreement” and for “respect for the Kanak people’s right to self-determination”.

While the text is due to be examined by the National Assembly at the end of March, the challenge is clear: to prevent a new passage by force and to impose the reopening of discussions within the framework of the Noumea agreements. More broadly, it is a question of recalling that no lasting solution can be imposed against the will of the Kanak people.

Repression and colonial justice

This policy is accompanied by massive repression. The opinion issued in January 2026 by the National Consultative Commission on Human Rights (CNCDH) draws a damning conclusion: “violent, sometimes lethal repression”, different judicial treatment between Kanak and non-Kanak, "collective retaliation measures” targeting the Kanak populations. More than 2,500 police custody cases were recorded, almost exclusively targeting Kanaks, while loyalist militias were not prosecuted.

In this context, the death on 6 February of Frédéric Grochain, a 31-year-old Kanak transferred to mainland France after the 2024 revolts, was deeply shocking. Found dead in his cell after months of isolation, he embodied the consequences of a prison policy that prolonged colonial domination: forced release, isolation, failures in health care. For the FLNKS, he is “a direct victim of the colonial judicial and prison system”.

l’Anticapitaliste

Attached documents

• kanaky-mobilization-on-21-march-against-colonialism_a9467-2.pdf (PDF - 2.2 MiB)
  Extraction PDF [->article9467]

Kanaky

• Decolonisation now in Kanaky!
• No to the Darmanin law! Respect for the Kanak people’s right to self-determination!
• Kanaky – put a stop (really) to the time of colonies!
• An insurrectional climate?
• A referendum that is far from a level playing field

• An Gwesped

 

Supply Boat Caught Smuggling Drugs Now Issued a Distress Call off Australia

French troops boarded the vessel off Polynesia and seized nearly 5 tons of cocaine (High Commissioner of French Polynesia)

Published Mar 13, 2026 8:33 PM by The Maritime Executive

 

Nearly two months after French authorities intercepted a small vessel smuggling a large amount of cocaine across the Pacific, the same vessel has now turned up off Australia and issued a distress call. ABC News Australia reports the vessel was escorted into Sydney harbor on Friday, March 13, after the Australian Maritime Safety Authority became involved.

The vessel named Raider is reported to have made a distress call on Thursday, reporting a shortage of food and fuel. A representative of the International Transport Workers Federation told ABC News that when they contacted the ship, they were told it was down to just 200 liters of water for the 11 crew onboard.

AMSA coordinated the response, including the provisioning of supplies to the vessel. It escorted the Raider to a detention area in Sydney while reporting they were also working with the Australian Border Force and New South Wales Police.

The Raider first drew attention from the French Navy, which boarded the vessel in French Polynesian waters on January 16. A search discovered 96 bales containing a total of 4.87 tons of cocaine. In a decision that was later questioned by some, the French forces decided to seize the drugs but released the vessel and its crew. The cocaine was disposed of in the ocean, and the Raider was permitted to continue on its voyage.

Authorities noted at the time that the drugs were likely being smuggled to Australia and were not destined for French Polynesia. They said the region had become part of a known smuggling route for drugs from South America.

The ship next turned up in the Cook Islands after issuing another distress call. It stopped in the Cook Islands to make engine repairs. Later, ABC News reports it was heading toward Australia but briefly diverted toward New Caledonia before arriving off the Australian coast.

ITF’s Australian coordinator, Ian Bray, told ABC News the crew is from Ecuador and Honduras, and they were hired in December to sail the vessel from Panama to Australia. They understood they were delivering the Raider to its new owners in Australia.

ABC reports the crew has not been arrested. They are unlikely to face any charges, as the drug smuggling was discovered outside Australian authority.

The crew is expected to be held in immigration detention, reports ABC. AMSA is checking the Raider to determine if the vessel is seaworthy. The crew from the Raider is likely to be repatriated to Central America, while it is unclear what will happen to the vessel.

 

Recovery from whaling reveals the role of age in Humpback reproduction 

Older singing male whales increasingly successful at siring offspring compared to younger males.

University of St. Andrews

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Humpback whale song  New Caledonia

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Credit: University of St Andrews

New research from the University of St Andrews published today (27 February) in Current Biology, has shown that the role of age in male humpback whale reproduction has changed as populations recover from centuries of exploitation.   

Whaling drove many large whale populations to the brink of extinction. But its legacy runs deeper than a drastic decline in numbers. Decades after commercial whaling ended, its impacts continue to shape whale populations, influencing not just how many whales there are, but which males get to reproduce.   

The study assessed nearly two decades of data from humpback whales breeding in New Caledonia in the South Pacific. Drawing on long-term monitoring conducted by the NGO Opération Cétacés, the scientists examined changes in age structure, behaviour, and paternity in male whales.  

They found that during the early years of recovery, the population was dominated by young males. Over time, as overall numbers increased, the age structure shifted to a more even age distribution amongst older and younger males. Crucially, as older individuals became more common, they became increasingly successful at siring offspring compared to younger males.  

Humpback whales have never been observed mating in the wild, meaning that who fathers a calf remained largely unknown until now.  

The international team led by the Sea Mammal Research Unit at the University of St Andrews applied genetic analyses to identify paternity and used a so-called ‘epigenetic molecular clock’ to estimate the age of individual whales; all from just a small piece of whale skin.  

Male humpback whales are famous for producing some of the most elaborate songs in the animal kingdom. Their powerful vocal displays can often be heard far across breeding grounds and are thought to play a role in mating. Males may also escort females or engage in intense physical competition with rival males.  

Senior author of the study, Dr. Ellen Garland of the Sea Mammal Research Unit, said: “Mating behaviour, and who was successful at mating, changed with these shifts in age structure. As the population recovered, there were more older males than expected singing, escorting females, and successfully fathering calves compared to younger animals”.  

The findings suggest that male humpback whales may need time to learn and refine their singing and competitive tactics, giving experienced males a clear advantage. Additionally, as the population grows, females may also become more selective, which could lead to more success among males with favourable traits or the strongest performance.  

The new study highlights the importance of ongoing research on recovering populations to understand how the consequences of exploitation shape population dynamics and reproduction over time. It also shows how most of our knowledge has come from studying a shifted baseline – scientists never actually studied these behaviours in an unexploited population as all modern research came during or after whaling.  

Dr Franca Eichenberger, lead author of the study from the Sea Mammal Research Unit at the University of St Andrews, said: “It is only now, as whale populations recover and new analytical tools become available, that we are beginning to understand how far-reaching the consequences of whaling truly are. The impacts extend beyond population size — they shape behaviour, competition, and reproduction.”  

Dr Eichenberger added: “Virtually all populations of whales have changed due to whaling; our work shows that they continue to change as they recover. This is why the continued long-term monitoring of previously exploited whale populations is so important. Humpback whales have shown a remarkable comeback over recent years. Now is the time we can learn so much more about their behaviour and life history. We just need to keep looking.”  

---

Journal

Current Biology

DOI

10.1016/j.cub.2026.01.018 

Method of Research

Meta-analysis

Subject of Research

Animals

Article Title

Changes in age-related sexual selection in a humpback whale population recovering from exploitation

Article Publication Date

27-Feb-2026'

A breaching humpback whale off New Caledonia in the South Pacific. 

Credit

Photo credit: Opération Cétacés - Claire Garrigue

A group of male humpback whales physically competing to be closest to the female of the group, as observed on their breeding ground in New Caledonia in the South Pacific.

Credit

Opération Cétacés - Claire Bonneville.

A humpback whale lunging its head out of the water with the New Caledonian coastline in the background.

Credit

Opération Cétacés - Claire Bonneville.

French Senate backs New Caledonia reform, but consensus remains elusive

France’s Senate has approved a controversial constitutional reform aimed at reshaping the future of New Caledonia, setting the stage for a political battle as the bill heads to the National Assembly.


Issued on: 25/02/2026 - RFI

The Senate chamber, the upper house of the French Parliament. © Alain Jocard / AFP

Backed by a comfortable majority of 215 votes to 41 on Tuesday, the text – championed by the government as a pathway to renewed stability in the Pacific territory – now faces a far more uncertain reception among MPs.

Opening the debate, Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu framed the reform as a necessary step forward.

“The status quo is not a viable option,” he told senators, warning that inaction would amount to abandoning “republican ideals, social progress and the renewed construction of peace” in the archipelago.

The government has presented the proposal as a carefully negotiated compromise, built on agreements reached with a majority of New Caledonia’s political forces – notably the Bougival Agreement of July 2025 and the Élysée–Oudinot Agreement signed in January 2026 under President Emmanuel Macron.

The bill lays out a two-step roadmap. First, it provides for a local referendum to be held before 26 July, 2026, asking New Caledonian voters to approve or reject the Bougival agreement.

Second, it proposes embedding in the French Constitution the creation of a “State of New Caledonia” – a unique entity within the Republic, with its own nationality and the capacity for international recognition.

Senators also backed an amendment setting 20 December, 2026 as the latest possible date for long-delayed provincial elections – a crucial vote that will determine the composition of the territory’s local government after repeated postponements since 2024.

New Caledonia independence bloc rejects deal giving powers but no referendum

No easy alternative

For the government, the reform represents the best route forward, with ministers warning that the alternative to a political process is continued uncertainty.

That argument has found backing among the Senate’s right-leaning majority, which broadly supports the agreements as the most realistic compromise on the table.

Yet the situation on the ground remains fragile. The pro-independence FLNKS movement has rejected the deal, arguing it falls short of full sovereignty – a position that raises questions about the reform’s legitimacy in the territory.

Several lawmakers have warned that pushing ahead without broader consensus risks reigniting tensions in Nouméa, particularly given the memory of the deadly unrest in May 2024.

Doubts also extend beyond the independence camp, with some non-independence figures questioning whether the reform can deliver lasting stability.

The Socialist Party, meanwhile, abstained in the Senate, signalling a cautious stance and calling for more time to rebuild dialogue.

Independence party walks away from French deal on New Caledonia

Potential pitfalls

While the Senate vote gives the government some momentum, the road ahead looks far less certain.

The bill faces a difficult passage in the National Assembly from 31 March, with opposition expected from both the left and the far right, and the risk of procedural battles complicating debates.

Much will depend on Socialist MPs, who hold a pivotal position but remain wary. They have already signalled that, without changes to the timetable or approach, they are likely to vote against the reform.

Critics argue the government has prioritised speed over consensus, raising concerns over both its method and its ability to secure a durable settlement.

(with newswires)