On Friday, at the end of his whirlwind visit to the archipelago, the French President demanded that law and order be restored

Emmanuel Macron in sheriff mode? New Caledonia ‘is not the Wild West’, ‘so the Republic must re-establish its authority in all respects’, declared the Head of State on Friday 24 May in an interview broadcast by Nouvelle-Calédonie La 1ère. ‘In France, it’s not every man for himself’, he added before leaving the archipelago, referring to the violent riots that have shaken the territory over the past ten days and the militia groups organising the defence of their neighbourhoods.

Emmanuel Macron attempts to ease tensions

New Caledonia remained in limbo on Friday after the visit of the President, who gave assurances that the electoral reform contested in the archipelago would not be imposed by force. The head of state nevertheless called for ‘the resumption of dialogue with a view to a comprehensive agreement’ to enable a greater number of voters to cast their ballots between now and the end of June, so that ‘this agreement can then be submitted to the Caledonian people for a vote’.