New Caledonia pushing ahead with a referendum on independence from France this weekend, despite the risk of an outbreak of violence.
France's decision to hold the last of a series of three votes on Sunday, against the wishes of Indigenous Kanaks, has drawn condemnation in neighboring Pacific islands where sensitivities over colonization are high.
Pro-independence groups have accused France of refusing to delay the vote until later in 2022, as allowed under the Accord, to reduce the chance of a"Yes" vote and to placate nationalists ahead of a French presidential election early next year. Roch Wamytan, president of New Caledonia's legislature and a pro-independence leader, in Noumea on Nov. 25. On Thursday he raised concerns about the referendum with the United Nations.Meg Taylor, former secretary general of the Pacific Islands Forum, wrote with the former leaders of Tuvalu, Kiribati, Palau and the Marshall Islands to French President Emmanuel Macron on Nov. 23, warning of potential violence if the poll went ahead.
Taylor told Reuters that decolonization was a priority for Pacific island nations:"Will it be a legitimate process when people don't attend?"
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