Tahiti's Fritch wants to attend UN General Assembly

3:33 pm on 26 May 2016
Edouard Fritch meeting French foreign ministry officials in Paris

Edouard Fritch meeting French foreign ministry officials in Paris Photo: supplied

The French Polynesian president Edouard Fritch says he would like to attend the October session of the UN General Assembly when decolonisation issues will be discussed.

Speaking after meeting officials of the French foreign ministry in Paris, Mr Fritch said it was time another voice was heard on the issue, which reflected the views of the majority of Polynesians.

French Polynesia.

French Polynesia. Photo: By L. Claudel (Sardon - fr:Sardon) via Wikimedia Commons

The move was the culmination of efforts by the pro-independence movement but was decried by its political rivals, including Mr Fritch, who called for France to hold an independence vote.

France rejected the call and denounced the UN decision as a glaring interference.

Paris has all but ignored the world body on the matter.

The head of the French foreign ministry's UN section, Guillaume Dabouis, now said it was legitimate and important for the French Polynesian president to attend the UN General Assembly.

New Caledonia, which is the other French Pacific territory on the UN decolonisation list, is set to have an independence referendum by 2018.

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