New Caledonia: already two deaths, an “insurrection” feared by the authorities

Two people were arrested. killed during the riots in New Caledonia. The High Commissioner of the Republic, Louis Le Franc, judges the situation to be “insurrectional” and regrets a "mortal spiral".

New Caledonia experienced a second night of riots from Tuesday May 14 to Wednesday May 15. But the toll of the last few hours is much heavier: two people were killed. Youées announced Louis Le Franc, the high commissioner of the Republic on the archipelago. The first victim died from a gunshot wound. Nouméa, "not from a shot from the police or the gendarmerie, but from someone who certainly wanted to defend themselves" explainedé the representative of the French State çat; the press, without giving more details. Concerning the second death, no details have been given. made on the circumstances of the death by the office of the high commissioner.

In addition to the two deaths, hundreds of injured people are at risk. deplore according to Gérald Darmanin. Among these victims are "around a hundred gendarmes who wereé evacuated while the attack was underway. the ax of their gendarmerie and that they were fired upon live bullets" added the Minister of the Interior.

Face &agrav; the scale of the violence, Emmanuel Macron called for calmly and addressed a letter to local elected officials. The head of state condemned  "unworthy"violence and invited Caledonian independentist and loyalist representatives to find an agreement on a more global text than the current reform & ;quot;before the end of June" and the meeting of Parliament in Congress to adopt the text on the expansion of the local electoral body. The President of the Republic also convened a Defense and Security Council. national this Wednesday morning to look at the situation in New Caledonia which is experiencing its most significant violence since the 1980s.

The High Commissioner of the Republic refers to an “insurrectional” situation

While the violence continues, despite Given the measures put in place in New Caledonia such as the curfew or the massive deployment of law enforcement, the authorities fear the worst. "I let you imagine what will happen if militias start à “shooting people with guns,” he said. Louis Le Franc who describes the situation as insurrectional. Several exchanges of buckshot between the rioters and groups of civil defense & Nouméa and Paita" and an "attempted intrusion & the brigade of Saint Michel" have been é censuses.

The tensions and violence affecting the archipelago have been exacerbated. revived by the vote of the National Assembly which adopted the constitutional reform highly contested by the independentist Caldonian elected officials. Some independence parties are calling for the text to be withdrawn and appeasement, judging that calm cannot return as long as the reform in its current version is in the pipeline. The presidents of the Caledonian independence parties denounced the and condemned the outbreak of violence and calls for violence &agrav; continue discussions.

140 arrests à Nouméa

The High Commissioner of the Republic also reported, this Wednesday, only 140 arrests in the country. Nouméa. Schools "will remain closed until 30:00 new order" specifies the vice-rectorate of New Caledonia. Tontoura airport remains closed for the time being. to commercial flights. "The time is not serious, it is very serious. If the call for calm is not heard, there will be many deaths in the Noum'a area today. We have entered a dangerous spiral, a deadly spiral" regretted Louis Le Franc during a press conference. "If necessary I would call on the military forces, by request for assistance" he said.