One person was killed in last night’s riots in French New Caledonia

According to the international group Tasnim news agency, protests against Constitutional reform has intensified in the French island group in the South Pacific Ocean.

According to the “Standard” newspaper, serious unrest in the French overseas territory of New Caledonia continues and now. It continues for the third day in a row.

The public television network 1ère Nouvelle-Calédonie reported that last night at least 60 police officers were injured and 130 people were arrested in the violent protests of supporters of Esteghlal. became According to eyewitnesses, the strong smell of fire could be smelled over Noumea, the capital of this region. According to television station BFMTV, at least one person has been killed during the protests. are closed Long queues have formed in front of many shops due to fear of food shortages. It would give thousands of French voters in the South Pacific island nation the right to vote and thus more political influence.

Specifically, under the new regulations, French citizens who have lived in the region for more than ten years can also vote in local elections. After the Senate, the National Assembly of Paris also approved this controversial text on Wednesday night. According to the France 24 TV channel, now the Congress of the two parliaments, which is convened for special occasions in the Palace of Versailles, must also express its satisfaction with this plan. However, a date has not yet been determined for it.

Due to the intensification of unrest in this region, French President Emmanuel Macron invited the political representatives of New Caledonia to He invited a meeting in Paris led by Gabriel Atal, the Prime Minister of this country. These negotiations are expected to be held at the end of May.

During these protests and unrest in Noumea, many buildings and cars were burned. The air monitoring association Scal’Air announced that air pollution due to heavy smoke was significant. In some parts of the city, the highest level of alert was declared due to the presence of dangerous dust.

New Caledonia is about 17,000 km away from France, but geopolitically, militarily And because of the nickel deposits in Paris, it is of particular importance. Residents of the region voted to remain in France in three referendums in 2018, 2020 and 2021. But the pro-independence activists boycotted the final vote and declared that they would not accept the result. Meanwhile, Paris hopes to conclude a new agreement in the coming weeks.

The territory of about 270,000 people was previously granted autonomy through the Noumea Agreement in 1998. It was widely achieved. As part of the decolonization of New Caledonia, it was agreed that up to three votes on independence would be held. Since the last vote, which supporters of independence boycotted, the fronts have become more difficult.

New Caledonia is a group of French-owned islands in Noumea, the capital of this restricted area. has imposed curfews and public gatherings.

The French High Commission in New Caledonia announced on Tuesday that in Noumea, shops such as car dealerships, boutiques, pharmacies and cameras The surveillance was severely damaged and a large number of police officers were injured in these riots. It was organized in response to French plans to extend the right to vote in local elections to French citizens who have lived longer on the island. In a press conference, France’s Supreme Court called on pro-independence leaders to use their influence to end the violence and warned that there would be deaths if the violence did not stop. New Zealand’s foreign minister, Winston Peters, also canceled his visit to the region that was planned for later this week due to the unrest.

In the Noumea agreement in In 1998, France pledged to gradually transfer more political power to the Pacific island nation of roughly 300,000 people.

French President Emmanuel Macron in During a visit to the region last year, he said he wanted a revised constitutional status for New Caledonia to be in place by early 2024. Macron sought to reiterate the importance of the region in the Pacific, where China and the United States are competing for influence.

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