Image copyright AFP Image caption Supporters of independence remained defiant despite the result

Voters in the French Pacific territory of New Caledonia have rejected a bid for independence.

Final results showed that 56.4% chose to remain part of France while 43.6% voted to leave - a tighter result than some polls had predicted.

Turnout was about 81%. The vote was promised in a 1988 deal that put an end to a violent campaign for independence.

President Emmanuel Macron said it showed "confidence in the French republic".

"I have to tell you how proud I am that we have finally passed this historic step together," he added.

The referendum passed peacefully but some unrest was reported after polls closed.

Cars and a shop were set ablaze in the capital, Nouméa, local media reported, and the high commissioner's office said some roads were closed by protesters.

Image copyright AFP Image caption There were some disturbances after the result became clear

New Caledonia has large deposits of nickel, a vital component in manufacturing electronics, and is seen by France as a strategic political and economic asset in the region.

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption The New Caledonia referendum is the climax of 20 years of peace

It is one of the UN's 17 "non-self governing territories" - where the process of decolonisation has not been completed.

About 175,000 people were eligible to vote in Sunday's referendum New Caledonia, east of Australia, where indigenous Kanaks make up 39.1% of the population.

French nationalism is strong among the territory's ethnic Europeans - constituting 27.1% of the population - and observers say even some Kanaks back staying part of France.

The remaining third of the population of New Caledonia's 268,000 inhabitants are also largely said to oppose independence.

The remote islands receive about €1.3bn (£1.1bn; $1.5bn) from the French government every year.

Image copyright AFP Image caption Pro-independence groups said they wanted "a multicultural, peaceful nation"

Image copyright AFP Image caption President Emmanuel Macron, in a televised speech, said the result was "a sign of confidence in the French republic"

During a visit to Nouméa in May, Mr Macron said that France would be "less beautiful without New Caledonia".

France first claimed the islands in 1853 and once used them as a penal colony.

In the 1980s there were deadly clashes between French forces and Kanaks.

The climax of that conflict came when Kanak separatists killed four French gendarmes and took another 23 hostage in a cave. The subsequent French assault cost the lives of 19 Kanaks and two soldiers.

Image copyright AFP Image caption About 80% of those eligible voted

In 1988 representatives from the both pro- and anti-independence camps agreed to end the violence and eventually hold a self-determination referendum.

A No vote may not spell the end of the independence drive. Two further referendums on independence can still be held before 2022.

A Yes vote would have made New Caledonia the first French territory to break away since Djibouti (1977) and Vanuatu (1980).

New Caledonia is represented in the French parliament by two deputies and two senators.

It has a congress which elects an executive with powers over some policy areas - notably policing, education and local laws.</s>While heavily dependent on state handouts, the Pacific islands of New Caledonia have long felt overlooked by Paris. But the French government has hailed the “vote of confidence”. Home to 269,000 people, New Caledonia is one of a handful of French island outposts – a legacy of the country's 19th-century empire – which retain strategic importance. “The New Caledonians have chosen to remain French… It is a vote of confidence in the French republic, its future and its values,” President Emmanuel Macron said in a televised speech from the Elysée Palace, as he expressed his “immense pride” that the French had “taken this step together”. More than 80 percent of the nearly 175,000 registered voters went to the polls, ignoring a call to boycott the ballot by some leaders of the indigenous Kanak separatist groups.

Separatists has repeatedly urged voters to choose self-determination for ‘Kanaky,’ their name for New Caledonia, and free themselves from the shackles of the “colonial” authorities in Paris. Voters had been asked the question: “Do you want New Caledonia to gain full sovereignty and become independent?” Some 56.7 percent of voters said “no,” while 43.3 percent said “yes”. But the unexpectedly tight result shows that separatists have expanded their influence, and could demand greater autonomy from the mainland despite the “no” vote. A “yes” vote would have deprived Paris of a foothold in the Indo-Pacific region where China is gaining ground, and dented the pride of France, a former colonial power whose reach once spanned the Caribbean, sub-Saharan Africa and the Pacific Ocean. Many also feared the referendum would re-ignite tensions between the Kanak people and the white population, which has settled since France annexed the islands in 1853.

More than 1,000 gendarmes were deployed to the streets to maintain order, and the carrying of firearms and the sale of alcohol were banned during the weekend. However few violent incidents were reported. Several cars – seven, according to police sources – were torched in the hours following the announcement of the result. Mr Macron said he understood the disappointment of those who had voted in favour of independence, but added that the French state would ensure “liberty, equality and fraternity” for everyone. “The only loser is the temptation of contempt, division, violence and fear; the only winner is the process of peace and the spirit of dialogue,” the 40-year-old leader said. Located some 18,000 kilometres from the French mainland, New Caledonia is home to a quarter of the world’s known supplies of nickel – a vital electronics component. Despite this, islanders are heavily dependent on state handouts – £1.14bn (€1.3 billion) a year – especially the native Kanak community, which is plagued by high school dropout rates, chronic unemployment and poor housing conditions. These differences caused ethnic tensions in the 1980s which claimed more than 70 lives. This led to the 1998 Noumea Accord which paved the way for a steady devolution of powers as well as Sunday's referendum.</s>By The Associated Press

PARIS (AP) — French President Macron: A majority of voters in New Caledonia have chosen to remain part of France.

PARIS (AP) — French President Macron: A majority of voters in New Caledonia have chosen to remain part of France.

Copyright © 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.</s>Foreign Minister Marise Payne has offered her congratulations to New Caledonia in the wake of a vote against independence, vowing to help the islands integrate into the Pacific region.

New Caledonians voted against independence from France in a long-awaited referendum, with Senator Payne acknowledging the efforts made to ensure the vote could occur.

"As New Caledonians enter the next phase of their history, Australia will remain a steadfast friend and partner of both New Caledonia and France," she said in a statement on Monday.</s>There are fears that the referendum could reignite old tensions between indigenous Kanak people and whites who have settled on the islands, which are home to a quarter of the world's known nickel supplies, a vital component in electronics manufacturing.

Ringed by dazzling white beaches and turquoise waters, New Caledonia is one of a handful of French island outposts scattered around the globe -- a legacy of the country's 19th-century empire-building -- which retain strategic importance.

The referendum will be a test of the appeal of remaining part of France for such far-flung territories, which are heavily dependent on state handouts but where many feel overlooked by Paris.

Both French Guiana in South America and the Indian Ocean archipelago of Mayotte have been rocked since last year by major protests over living standards and perceived neglect.

Yet few expect New Caledonia, home to 269,000 people, to vote for independence from France, which claimed the archipelago in 1853.

Indigenous people make up less than half of the electorate, and not all of them want to break free from Paris, 18,000 kilometres (11,000 miles) away.

"We have everything we need with France -- schools, hospitals," said Marceline Bolo, a housewife in the Noumea suburbs, describing herself as "proud to be French".

Surveys suggest between 60 and 69 percent will vote against a split in Sunday's vote, the culmination of a two-decade process that has seen powers devolved to local authorities.

Hundreds of separatists turned out for a final rally in Noumea on Tuesday, waving a sea of colourful Kanak flags to a backdrop of local Kaneka music.

Over the noise of the crowd, Roch Wamytan, leader of the separatist UC-FLNKS alliance, urged Kanaks to seek self-determination from "colonist" France, which he said was hanging on to "the last shreds of its empire".

Yet many "no" voters point to the 1.3 billion euros the French state pours into New Caledonia's coffers every year, fearing for the economy if the archipelago was to go it alone.

Others worry that China could use an independent New Caledonia as a vehicle for its growing influence in the Pacific, following major investment in Vanuatu, another territory which broke from France in 1980.

New Caledonia already runs its own affairs in many areas, although defence, foreign affairs and higher education are still decided by Paris.

"We are already a semi-independent country -- we exercise many powers, so it wouldn't be a leap into the unknown," said Paul Neaouytine, head of the northern province, a separatist stronghold.

Others say this is precisely the reason why New Caledonia does not need to split from France.

"I don't really understand why we're having such a vote," said retired doctor Rene Gagnolet, resolutely opposed to independence, as he sat in Noumea's market.

The referendum will only serve to "whet the appetites of some against us whites", he predicted.

His table-mate and former patient Sosefo Taofifenua, part of a large minority hailing from another French Pacific territory, Wallis and Futuna, was meanwhile torn.

"My heart is voting with the Kanaks, but my head tells me to stay French," the 72-year-old said, still unsure if he will vote on Sunday.

Decades of resentment, not least over the thousands of hectares (acres) of land seized from indigenous people by colonisers, boiled over into deadly clashes in the 1980s.

The violence, which claimed more than 70 lives, led to the 1998 Noumea Accord which paved the way for devolution and efforts to redress the economic balance..

Yet sharp inequalities remain and New Caledonia's former high commissioner Alain Christnacht, who helped draft the 1998 deal, worries the referendum could revive old animosities.

"Kanaks are working as managers, doctors, engineers, airline pilots. Society has moved forward a lot," he said.

"But there is also, among Kanaks, a faint concern that immigration will bring them to just 20 or 10 percent of the population, like the Maoris in New Zealand or Aboriginal Australians," he added.

"A common society is under construction there, but it's a fragile one."

Under the 1998 deal, in the event of a "no" vote two further referendums on independence could still be held before 2022.</s>New Caledonia in Pacific to vote on independence from France

PARIS (AP) — New Caledonia, a French archipelago in the South Pacific, is preparing for an independence referendum — the last step in a three-decades-long decolonization effort.

Sunday's vote is key to settling tensions between the native Kanaks, who once suffered from strict segregation policies, and descendants of European colonizers. It is also a test of the depth of the links between France and the territory, which lies east of Australia and has about 270,000 inhabitants.

Voters have to answer the question "Do you want New Caledonia to gain full sovereignty and become independent?" Observers say that, based on past electoral results and polls, voters are likely to back remaining in France.

The territory enjoys a large degree of autonomy, but relies on the French state for its defense, police, foreign affairs, justice and education.

The referendum is the result of a process that started 30 years ago after years of violence that pitched pro-independence Kanak activists against those willing to remain in France.

In 1988, 19 Kanak tribesmen died after they took French police hostage in a cave on the New Caledonian island of Ouvea. Four soldiers were also killed.

The violence represented a "tremendous shock" and a "key moment" for France, French historian Isabelle Merle said. "This is the first time a carefully thought-through peaceful decolonization process has been considered," she said.

The Ouvea events prompted a peace deal that year between rival loyalist and pro-independence factions that laid the ground for the referendum.

Visiting the territory in May, French President Emmanuel Macron acknowledged the "pain of colonization" and paid tribute to the courage of those involved in the peace process.

He also handed the Caledonian government a document that stated the archipelago became a French possession in 1853 — a gesture intended to symbolize the final chapter in the period of colonization.

"We are no longer in a time of possession, but a time of choice", he said.

Under French colonial rule, the Kanaks were forced to live on reserves in remote areas, pay specific taxes and do mandatory work for very low wages. They had to respect curfews and were not allowed into some places reserved for European settlers.

Merle, whose researches focus on France's decolonization process, said this led to "a big gap between the local communities."

"In the whole French colonial emprise, the Kanaks have probably been those who have been despised the most, in the sense that they were seen as savages," she said.

Today the Kanaks represent about 40 percent of New Caledonia's population, while people of European descent make up about 27 percent. Others include those who emigrated from Asia and other Pacific islands.

Long used as a prison colony, New Caledonia remains an important part of France's overseas holdings that stretch from the Caribbean to the Indian Ocean and the northeast coast of Canada.

Together, they enable France to lay claim to the world's second largest maritime domain — the area within 200 nautical miles from the coast in which each country is sovereign and can exploit natural resources — almost equivalent to that of the United States.

New Caledonia's turquoise lagoons are a tourism magnet, and its mines contain a quarter of the world's known nickel supplies, a metal used in electronics manufacturing and many other industries.

But like other French overseas territories, the territory suffers from much higher unemployment and poverty than in the mainland, and many residents share a feeling of being neglected by Paris.

French overseas economies are largely dependent on the French state. France's global budget for overseas amounts to 17 billion euros ($19,3 billion) this year, including 1.3 billion euros ($1.5 billion) for New Caledonia, according to a Senate report.

Once the second largest colonial empire in the world after Britain, French power had extended to west and north Africa, southeast Asia and islands in the Caribbean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, reaching its height between the World Wars. In 1939, five percent of the world's population was living under French rule.

Most of France's African and Asian colonies broke free in the 1950s and 1960s. The vote in New Caledonia is the first time a self-determination referendum is being held on a French territory since Djibouti, in the Horn of Africa, voted for independence in 1977.

French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe will travel to New Caledonia the day after the vote to discuss the archipelago's future with local politicians.

Whatever the referendum's result, Merle said pro-independence Kanaks will keep pushing for New Caledonia to be its own country.</s>French President Emmanuel Macron says the majority of New Caledonians who voted in a referendum on independence chose to remain part of France.

In a televised address from Paris, Macron pledged "there is no other path than that of dialogue" on the future of the South Pacific archipelago that has been part of France since 1853.

French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe will meet with officials in New Caledonia to discuss future plans.

The referendum was the result of a process that started 30 years ago to end years of violence between supporters and opponents of separating from France.</s>Voters were asked the question “Do you want New Caledonia to gain full sovereignty and become independent?”

A “yes” vote would have seen Paris without a strong position in the Indo-Pacific region where China is expanding its presence and hit the pride of a former colonial power whose reach once spanned the Caribbean, sub-Saharan Africa, and the Pacific Ocean.

Based on early results and with a participation rate of nearly 80%, the “No” vote stood at 56.9% around 1400 CET, local TV station NC La 1ere said on its website. “The New Caledonians have chosen to remain French…It is a vote of confidence in the French republic, its future, and its values,” President Emmanuel Macron said in a speech on French television.

It’s the first vote on independence in French territory to be held since Djibouti in the Horn of Africa voted in favour of independence in 1977.

During a previous trip to the archipelago in May, Macron acknowledged the “pains of colonisation” and saluted the “dignified” campaign for autonomy led by the indigenous Kanaks.

He and his administration have sought to strike a neutral tone on the vote.

Voters were asked the question “Do you want New Caledonia to gain full sovereignty and become independent?”

Despite lying over sixteen thousand kilometres away off the coast of eastern Australia, French nationalism is strong among the island population of 268,000.

However, the Kanak people are mainly pro-independent, and turn-out is expected to be high. Nevertheless, early indications are that the islands will stay with France, which subsidises New Caledonia’s economy to the tune of 1.5 billion euros a year.</s>Voters in New Caledonia are deciding whether the French territory in the South Pacific should break free from the European country that claimed it in the mid-19th century.

A referendum being held on Sunday marks a milestone in the process of the archipelago's decolonization and will help define New Caledonia's future as an independent country or as a continuing extension of France.

More than 174,000 registered voters are invited to answer the question: "Do you want New Caledonia to gain full sovereignty and become independent?"

Observers expect a majority to favor remaining a part of France, based on opinion polls and previous election results.

Polling stations open at 8 a.m. (10 p.m. Saturday in mainland France; 9 p.m. GMT) and close 10 hours later. Results are expected later Sunday.

New Caledonia, a cluster of islands, is home to about 270,000 people. They include the native Kanaks, who represent about 40 percent of the population, people of European descent (about 27 percent) and others from Asian countries and Pacific islands.

It relies on France for defense, law enforcement, foreign affairs, justice and education, yet has a large degree of autonomy. New Caledonia receives about 1.3 billion euros ($1.5 billion) in French state subsidies every year, and many fear the economy would suffer if ties are severed.

The referendum is the result of a process that started 30 years ago to end years of violence between supporters and opponents of separating from France.

The violence, which overall claimed more than 70 lives, prompted a 1988 deal between rival loyalist and pro-independence factions. Another agreement a decade later included plans for an independence referendum.

Most Kanaks have tended to back independence, while most descendants of European settlers have favored keeping the French connection.

To ensure security during the vote, additional police were sent to New Caledonia. Authorities also banned the carrying of firearms and alcohol sales immediately before and during the vote.

If voters say no to independence Sunday, the 1998 agreement allows two more self-determination referendums to be held by 2022.</s>NOUMEA, Nov 5 — Islanders on the French Pacific territory of New Caledonia yesterday rejected independence in a referendum that revealed weaker-than-expected support for Paris in the resource-rich and strategic outpost.

On the final count, 56.4 per cent of people rejected the proposition that New Caledonia — some 18,000km from the French mainland — become independent. Turnout was high at 80.63 per cent.

President Emmanuel Macron expressed his “immense pride that we have taken this historic step together” in an address to the nation, adding it was “a sign of confidence in the French republic, in its future and its values.”

The island is home to a quarter of the world’s known supplies of nickel — a vital electronics component — and is a foothold for France in the Pacific where China is gaining influence.

But the winning margin in New Caledonia, sometimes referred to in France as “the pebble”, might cause some concern in Paris, as well as in Australia which has been alarmed by Beijing’s designs in the Pacific and its investment in island nations.

Polls beforehand had forecast an emphatic 63-75 per cent of New Caledonians would vote “no” when asked if the archipelago should “attain full sovereignty and become independent”.

Under a 1998 deal called the Noumea Accord to devolve powers to the territory, two further votes on independence can be held by 2022 — a right independence leaders look set to invoke.

“We’re a short step away from victory and there are still two votes to come,” Alosio Sako, head of the separatist movement FLNKS, said after the results were announced.

French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe arrived on the island today where he will meet political forces on both sides of the independence vote to discuss the future of the territory.

As well as being home to French troops and being a source of nickel, the territory gives France a large, exclusive economic zone in the Pacific and rich fishing resources.

Macron visited island in May but largely stayed clear of the campaign.

However, he has raised concerns over increasing Chinese influence in the Pacific, where Beijing has invested heavily in Vanuatu, a territory which broke from France and Britain in 1980.

Accusing the US of “turning its back on the region in recent months”, Macron said China was “building its hegemony step by step” — suggesting an independent New Caledonia could be Beijing’s next target.

During visits to New Delhi and Canberra since taking power last year, Macron has talked up France’s Pacific presence to propose an axis of democratic Asian maritime powers that would include India and Australia.

There were fears that the referendum in New Caledonia could inflame tensions between indigenous Kanak people, who tend to favour independence, and the white population which has settled since France annexed the islands in 1853.

Several cars were burned and a couple of incidents of stone-throwing were reported late last night, local authorities said, but the vote was otherwise peaceful.

Tensions in New Caledonia boiled over into ethnic strife in the 1980s which claimed more than 70 lives.

That led to the 1998 Noumea Accord which paved the way for a steady devolution of powers, as well as yesterday’s referendum and possibly two others before 2022.

In recent years, France has faced protests and calls for independence in several of its overseas territories, which are a legacy of the country’s colonial history and are sometimes dubbed “the confetti of the French empire”.

French Guiana in South America and the Indian Ocean archipelago of Mayotte have been rocked by major protests over living standards and perceived neglect.

Closer to home, the Paris government also faces renewed calls for independence from nationalists on the Mediterranean island of Corsica, which have been rebuffed by Macron.

Separatists had urged Kanak voters to choose self-determination for Kanaky, their name for New Caledonia, and throw off the shackles of the “colonial” authorities in Paris.

The Kanak community is economically disadvantaged compared with the white population and plagued by high school dropout rates, chronic unemployment and poor housing conditions.

But indigenous people make up less than 50 per cent of the electorate and some Kanaks back staying part of France, not least due to the 1.3 billion euros ($1.5 billion) the French state hands to the islands every year.

Going it alone, “I’m not sure we have all the assets we’d need to succeed,” said Marc Gnipate, a 62-year-old pensioner. — AFP
New Caledonians vote against becoming an independent country from France.