A majority of voters in New Caledonia chose to remain part of France instead of backing independence in a referendum Sunday that led the French president to call for dialogue after a three-decade decolonization effort in the South Pacific archipelago. The overseas ministry said 53.3% of voters chose to maintain ties with France while 46.7% supported independence. Turnout was high, with more than 85% of voters casting ballots one hour before poll stations closed.
Sunday’s independence referendum was among the final steps of longstanding plans to settle tensions on the archipelago between native Kanaks seeking independence and residents willing to remain in France.
New Caledonian politicians acknowledged Sunday the need for dialogue between pro- and anti-independence sides.
The archipelago has a population of 270,000, including both native Kanaks, who once suffered from strict segregation policies and widespread discrimination, and descendants of European colonizers.
New Caledonia became French in 1853 under Emperor Napoleon III — Napoleon’s nephew and heir — and was used for decades as a prison colony. It became an overseas territory after World War II, with French citizenship granted to all Kanaks in 1957.
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