A New Caledonian member of the French National Assembly says a consensus needs to be found on New Caledonia's future statute after last month's referendum saw a third rejection of independence from France.
Philippe Gomes Photo: AFP
The vote formally concluded the decolonisation process provided under the 1998 Noumea Accord.
Philippe Gomes, who is a former New Caledonian president, was speaking in Paris in the first parliamentary debate after the December vote, which had been marked by the boycott of the pro-independence camp determined not to recognise its outcome.
96.5 percent voted against independence, but more than 56 percent of the electorate didn't take part in the referendum.
Because of the impact of the pandemic on the indigenous people, the mainly Kanak pro-independence parties wanted the vote to be deferred to September this year, but France insisted on the December date.
French National Assembly member, Moetai Brotherson Photo: AFP
Mr Gomes said in the Pacific, political decisions build on consensus, and New Caledonia could become a nation without becoming a state.
He said the anti-independence side expects to remain under the protection of the French state while the rival pro-independence parties want a sovereignty which restores their dignity.
Mr Gomes said a joint approach needs to be found to sidestep a process such as referendums.
Speaking on behalf of New Caledonia's Kanaks, French Polynesia's Moetai Brotherson said the latest referendum is of no consequence to them, and likened the vote to a recolonisation.
Rejecting the outcome of the plebiscite as illegitimate, the pro-independence parties last mounted a court challenge in France, and plan to campaign internationally for its annulment.
Leader of French left-wing party La France Insoumise (LFI) and candidate for the presidential election Jean-Luc Melenchon Photo: Christophe ARCHAMBAULT / AFP
A left-wing French presidential candidate Jean-Luc Melenchon said New Caledonia should be maintained for another ten years under the provisions of the Noumea Accord to avoid any confrontation.
The French overseas minister Sebastien Lecornu said it would take time to assess the abstention but adds that it must be noted that voters rejected independence three times.
Paris plans to draw up a new statute by June next year and submit it to a vote.
Pro-independence leaders have ruled out any formal negotiations with Paris before this year's French presidential and legislative elections.
They have also said they won't want to discuss another statute within the French republic but negotiate independence.