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The Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) will send a high-level delegation to New Caledonia to assess the current political crisis ahead of the forum leaders’ meeting in Tonga next month.
This was confirmed by Forum Chairman and Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown in an interview in Tokyo after the PALM10 meeting. Brown said the New Caledonian government had requested a delegation and needed French support.
The Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) strongly opposes France’s handling of the situation of the Kanak people in New Caledonia, concerns shared by the Pacific Islands Forum. Brown stressed that the Kanak people boycotted the third referendum and questioned its validity due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the mourning period.
Fijian Prime Minister Sitiweni Rabuka announced that he would lead a forum fact-finding mission to New Caledonia, and Rabuka also plans to visit Indonesia to discuss West Papua.
In May, Paris lawmakers sparked unrest after they approved a controversial amendment to the ballot measure that has now been suspended by French President Emmanuel Macron.
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