Kanak Liberation Party (PALIKA), a member of the FLNKS umbrella, during a press conference on 28 August. Photo: RRB
Analysis - New Caledonia's pro-independence movement, gathered under the umbrella of the FLNKS since 1984, is more divided than ever following a controversial extraordinary Congress meeting, held at the weekend, which saw the movement de facto split in two.
However, the meeting spokesperson has denied any "breakup" within the FLNKS.
The FLNKS (Kanak Socialist National Liberation Front) was set up in 1984 with four member parties - the Union Calédonienne (UC), the Rassemblement Démocratique Océanien (RDO), the Kanak Liberation Party (PALIKA) and the Progressist Union in Melanesia (UPM).
But since last year, UC had engaged in a series of increasingly radical moves and a protest movement coordinated by its CCAT (Field Action Coordinating Cell), which culminated in an escalation that led to violent riots.
The unrest has plagued New Caledonia since 13 May, causing 11 deaths, the destruction by fire and looting of up to 800 businesses, over 20,000 job losses and estimated financial damage of €2.2 billion (Euros).
The protests, originally coordinated by UC-appointed CCAT head Christian Téin (who was arrested in June, indicted and is currently serving preliminary detention in a French jail in Mulhouse) were aimed at showing opposition from the indigenous Kanaks to a French plan.
The plan was to modify the conditions of eligibility for local provincial elections, a move pro-independence movements perceived as a way to reduce the indigenous political voice.
56-year-old Téin (whom UC describes as a "political prisoner"), is awaiting trial, facing charges related to the organisation and masterminding of criminal activities.
Divisions within pro-independence camp
In New Caledonia's political spectrum, the pro-independence camp has been increasingly divided between a radical UC and more moderate PALIKA and UPM, whose leaders have publicly voiced their opposition to UC's hard-line stance and the violence that has erupted over the past three and a half months.
An attempt to hold a FLNKS congress was aborted in June, for security reasons, after hundreds of CCAT supporters and militants had gathered at the proposed Congress venue, waiting to be allowed into the debates.
Two of the four FLNKS parties in attendance
This weekend (31 August-1 September), in the village of Pagou (in the rural town of Koumac, north of New Caledonia's main island), the situation was less confrontational: this is because in separate releases late last week, both PALIKA and UPM had made it clear they would not attend and that, therefore, the gathering and any of its outcomes and political motions could not validly represent FLNKS as a whole.
"Since two of the four components (of FLNKS) will not attend, this meeting cannot be described as a FLNKS Congress and anything resulting from it will not commit PALIKA," the party clarified on Friday.
PALIKA and UPM also earlier said the main priority was for all violence to cease and all roadblocks to be lifted so that some form of normalcy is restored before any political meeting takes place.
The two pro-independence moderate parties made the decision as UC had already announced the main points of the agenda ahead of the gathering.
The prominent and controversial points were UC's intention to nominate CCAT leader Téin at the post of President of FLNKS, a position that has been vacant since 2001.
Since 2001, the FLNKS had been operating under a system of rotating position of "animator" between member parties.
Alosio Sako (RDO) speaks at the FLNKS’s 43rd Congress gathering in Koumac, New Caledonia, on Friday 30 August. Photo: RRB
Another controversial point was to officially integrate CCAT as an officially-recognised "mobilisation tool" for FLNKS.
Without PALIKA and UPM, debates and speeches in Koumac placed a strong focus on the need for the pro-independence movement to have a "chief" and to foster "unity" for the sake of the independence and sovereignty cause.
"Who is the chief? Who is speaking? The (FLNKS) political bureau, which was supposed to be in charge of implementing our orientations, has now reached its limits," RDO President Aloisio Sako told the meeting.
Meeting spokeswoman Laurie Humuni (who is also the secretary-general of RDO) told local media at the weekend that another resolution was that FLNKS was willing to resume talks on New Caledonia's political future, but only with the French State and no longer with opposing (anti-independence) local parties.
The Congress's "historic" decisions were made on Saturday, Humuni said.
She however conceded that "some blockades need to be lifted to allow the population to access essential services, but this doesn't mean we will give up our fight", she stressed, referring to the pro-independence's "struggle for Kanaky sovereignty".
But she denied any "breakup" within the FLNKS.
Political reactions
On the moderate pro-independence side, in the face of a "fait accompli", UPM President Victor Tutugoro confirmed to public broadcaster NC la 1ère that his party "does not recognise itself" in the decisions made at the UC-led meeting.
On the contrary, he said "under the name of FLNKS, another line has been crossed by (UC) which was perfectly aware that some of the (FLNKS) components were absent".
Tutugoro also targeted Téin's appointment: "we know all too well he is the CCAT leader and responsible for riots, destruction and arson that have been committed over the past months and that are still going on".
'Risk of implosion'
Tutugoro said the "risk of implosion of FLNKS" was now very real "since a lot of militants don't recognise themselves" in the motions endorsed at the weekend meeting.
PALIKA spokesman Charles Washetine also pointed out that since 2002, the FLNKS "had been working on a collegial (consensual) basis"
Loyalist camp denounces radicalisation, provocation
Reactions from other political parties, mainly from the loyalist (anti-independence) camp, kept pouring.
Both Les Loyalistes and Rassemblement-LR parties, in a joint release on Sunday, denounced the "radical pro-independence (parties) imposing an extremist line on FLNKS by appointing Christian Téin as President".
"It is an insult to all (New) Caledonians who have suffered, directly or indirectly, from the CCAT-planned and driven exactions," it said.
"This is also an immense outrage to those who, in the pro-independence camp, courageously stood up against this extremist political project."
They labelled the move as "a point of no return" and a "provocation", adding that they now regarded FLNKS as "infiltrated" and eventually "absorbed" by CCAT.
"It can no longer be regarded as a legitimate interlocutor", the two parties jointly stated, adding FLNKS "can no longer be associated with economic reconstruction talks" or discussions on New Caledonia's future political status.
They further liken the latest moves as "attempts to finalise a coup" following a "strategy of chaos".
They also call for "all reasonable political leaders, democratic, in good faith, pro or anti-independence, to meet as quickly as possible".
Possible future repercussions
The new development could have several repercussions and raises many questions, including on New Caledonia's political future.
French President Emmanuel Macron recently mentioned a possible meeting for talks with New Caledonia's political leaders, some time in "September" in Paris.
The Pacific Islands Forum is also planning to send a fact-finding mission (initially scheduled to take place late August, before the PIF leaders summit held in Tonga from 26 to 30 August) sometime in September or October.
But in both cases, the question was now who would be the legitimate interlocutors.
As a front representing the pro-independence movement, the FLNKS signed the autonomy Nouméa Accord in 1998, with pro-France party RPCR (Rassemblement pour la Calédonie dans la République, no longer in existence) and the French State.
Signed at the time by then French Prime minister Lionel Jospin and his Secretary of State of Overseas Jean-Jack Queyranne, it also bears the signature of such prominent pro-independence leaders as Roch Wamytan, Paul Néaoutyine, Victor Tutugoro and Charles Pidjot.
They all signed on behalf of and under the united flag of FLNKS.
The Nouméa Accord details a roadmap towards increasing autonomy for New Caledonia, including a gradual transfer of powers.
Wamytan, still a prominent UC figure, was last week voted out as President of New Caledonia's Congress through a change of alliance between a small group of three MPS who changed sides to form a new majority in the 54-member house.
UPM and PALIKA have not yet made their intentions known as to whether they would pursue the matter in court or through other means.
There was no immediate reaction from the French State or its representative in New Caledonia.