The arrest of 11 people in the inflamed French colony a month after the beginning of the rebellion
report Mehr News Agency, according to the Associated Press, New Caledonia police today arrested 11 people, including an independent leader, in connection with the recent violent and deadly rebellion in this archipelago located in the Pacific Ocean.
The New Caledonia Prosecutor’s Office announced in a statement that the police started arresting the suspects this morning. According to the prosecutor’s office, one of the detained people is Christian Thien, the leader of an independence group, who, according to the French authorities, played the main role in the weeks of violence in this country following the approval of the electoral reform law.
This archipelago, which was colonized by France in the 19th century, has always rebelled and protested against foreign laws throughout history. Their last armed rebellion ended in 1988; When Paris agreed to grant more autonomy to this island.
After the recent unrest, the French authorities declared a state of emergency in this colony and sent an auxiliary force to suppress the protests. The violence in this area led to the death of 9 people, including two gendarmes, as well as widespread destruction of public and government property.
According to the New Caledonian Prosecutor’s Office, the detainees are accused of committing crimes such as complicity and attempted murder, armed robbery, arson and being a member of a group for the purpose of sedition and evil actions. .
With France currently engaged in early parliamentary elections and internal upheavals, French President Emmanuel Macron has suspended electoral reforms in New Caledonia. . France’s National Assembly, which has now been dissolved by Macron’s order, passed a bill allowing non-native citizens to run in New Caledonia’s regional elections. According to New Caledonian independence activists, this bill reduces the voting power of the natives.
