Visit by president intended to quell serious unrest over plans in Paris to expand voting eligibility to include more French nationals
The French president, Emmanuel Macron, has arrived in New Caledonia in an urgent bid to calm tensions in the French Pacific territory, after more than a week of riots that have left six dead.
The unrest was sparked by anger among Indigenous Kanak people over constitutional changes backed by Paris that give would tens of thousands of non-Indigenous residents voting rights. Local leaders fear the change will dilute the Kanak vote, amid long-running efforts to secure independence.
Continue reading…
Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/world/article/2024/may/22/macron-arrives-in-new-caledonia-amid-calls-for-france-to-withdraw-voting-changes
Author : Mathurin Derel in Noumea with agencies
Publish date : 2024-05-22 21:35:20
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.