France approves Pacific mission to investigate crisis in New Caledonia

France approved a Pacific mission to investigate the ongoing crisis in its overseas territory of New Caledonia, a French ambassador told local media Friday.

The French ambassador to the Pacific, Veronique Roger-Lacan, told the broadcaster RNZ Pacific that a high-level Pacific mission will lead work to find facts about the crisis that started on May 13.

On Thursday, Roger-Lacan wrote on X that she was on her way to Fiji’s capital Suva for the Pacific Islands Forum Foreign Ministers meeting, “with some news” from French President Emmanuel Macron to the “Troika,” a regional political consultative mechanism that includes Prime Minister of Fiji Sitiveni Rabuka, Prime Minister of the Cook Islands Mark Brown, and Prime Minister of Tonga Siaosi Sovaleni.

Roger-Lacan told RNZ that France “welcomes” a Troika mission in New Caledonia, following a request made in a letter to Macron last month by the Pacific leaders.

The curfew in France’s overseas territory was extended to Aug. 19 as the context remains fragile.

The riots and violence in New Caledonia have so far killed 10 people since May.

The Pacific archipelago has been gripped by unrest since mid-May that was sparked by a bill to review electoral rules.

If changes to the electoral rules were adopted, French nationals who have lived on the island nation for at least 10 years would have been eligible to vote in local elections.

Locals, however, were concerned that the changes would dilute the indigenous Kanak population’s vote.

France declared a state of emergency and deployed additional forces to assist local forces in reinstating order.

Amid dialogue efforts, Macron dissolved parliament and announced early elections after the far-right National Rally swept more than 31% of the vote in the European Parliament elections on June 9.

He also announced on June 12 the suspension of the much-contested electoral reform plan in New Caledonia.