BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 20. The French Armed Forces once more resorted to their weapons against peaceful protesters in New Caledonia, resulting in two civilians caught in the crossfire—one tragically lost their life while the other sustained serious injuries, TurkicWorld reports.
Simultaneously, the winds of change began to blow in the Caribbean island of Martinique, as protests against French rule took to the streets.
The French government has thrown down the gage in Martinique by imposing a curfew, much like the one in New Caledonia. The security forces really went overboard against the peaceful protesters, throwing caution to the wind. In a bid to raise a ruckus over the French government's misdeeds, the Front for the Liberation of New Caledonia (FLNKS) threw down the gauntlet with a statement.
"For the Kanak people, this Thursday is a day of mourning: so history is repeating itself 43 years after the unsolved murder of Pierre Declercq and 36 years after the operation of Victor.
FLNKS (Kanak Socialist Front for National Liberation) expresses its anger and deep sadness at the tragic incident that occurred this morning when two Kanak youths were gunned down by law enforcement in the St. Louis tribal territory of the Mont-Dore commune.
FLNKS opposes police enforcement's cruel and humiliating techniques, including killing one of the young guys mentioned. Since May 2024, these deaths have risen. Two of the 13 dead are gendarmes.
We demand an immediate end to the military intervention in the south of our country, especially in the city of St. Louis, where militarization and pressure exist.
Since the last FLNKS congress held from August 30 to September 1, 2024, we have seen a softening of the situation in the commune of Kumak Paku. In this way, blockades were gradually lifted throughout the territory. Only in St. Louis did the situation remain unstable.
Precisely for this purpose, the front organized a meeting on September 8 between the FLNKS, CCAT (Territorial Coordination Network), and the people of St. Louis to convey the decisions of its congress. In the following days, other meetings between the chapters and the High Commission were organized in the city to resolve the crisis without bloodshed.
However, the state (France), through the local representatives of the High Commission and the prosecutor (we repeatedly demanded their repatriation), under the influence of the extremist right-wing, only decided to kill the Kanaks.
FLNKS urges the entire population not to surrender to violence, despite the pain and provocations. Nowadays, more than ever, we must continue our action in the name of peace and justice, in the name of preserving the stability of our country.
We turn to France and the international community to take into account the gravity of the situation in New Caledonia. Once again, we ask for international observers to be sent to guarantee the transparency of operations and to help restore dialogue. We express the importance of resuming negotiations on the institutional and political future of our country to meet the aspirations of the Kanak people for full sovereignty under the obligations under the Nouméa Accord.
FLNKS is finally extending its support to the St. Louis settlement, its people, and the families concerned, encouraging the youth to cherish their lives and generally mobilize the population with full responsibility," the statement reads.
