Imprisoned Kanak leader calls for renewed push for full sovereignty PHOTO

Christian Tein, the imprisoned President of the Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front, has addressed his comrades and the Kanak people from a French prison.

In his message, he emphasised that the Nouméa Accord remains the foundation for future negotiations, Caliber.Az reports, citing local media.

"The key elements of the Kanak Agreement must include: the realisation of the right to self-determination, the transfer of sovereign powers, the recognition of national identity status for the electorate in the future, and full acknowledgement of international responsibility. The decolonisation process must be fully completed. Full sovereignty is the only guarantee of lasting peace for the Kanak people. I call on the entire independence movement today, on the eve of upcoming elections, to unite—not for the sake of vote counts, but around the most important issues.

The struggle for the independence of the Kanak people must be brought to completion. We bear responsibility before our people for the commitments we have made," the statement reads.

Kanaky–New Caledonia, a French overseas territory in the South Pacific, has been the focus of a long-standing independence movement led primarily by the indigenous Kanak people. The roots of this struggle go back to the colonial era when France annexed the territory in 1853. For decades, the Kanaks have sought to reclaim political control and assert their cultural and national identity in the face of French dominance and a settler-majority population.

In recent months, tensions escalated again as France moved to unilaterally amend New Caledonia’s electoral rolls, potentially diluting the voting power of the indigenous population. This has reignited fears of marginalisation and fueled mass protests and civil unrest. In this volatile environment, Christian Téin was arrested in 2024 on charges related to the protests—an act that supporters view as political repression.

The Nouméa Accord is a political agreement signed on May 5, 1998, between the French government, the pro-independence Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front (FLNKS), and anti-independence parties in New Caledonia (or Kanaky). It laid out a roadmap for decolonisation and gradual transfer of powers from France to local New Caledonian institutions.

By Khagan Isayev