31 Aug 2017

New call for sincere New Caledonia rolls

5:52 pm on 31 August 2017

New Caledonia's pro-independence FLNKS movement says for next year's independence referendum to be fair, the electoral roll needs to be sincere.

Wednesday 19-07-2017. Protestors in Noumea the Commission politique et citoyenneté du FLNKS et Nationalistes tweeted - "The protest for a right to vote," with an FLNKS flag emoticon.

Photo: Commission politique et citoyenneté du FLNKS et Nationalistes

Under the Noumea Accord, voting rights are restricted to long-term residents, but for years there have been disputes over the make-up of the roll.

There are claims that some settlers are on the roll although they fail the residency requirements.

At a news conference, the FLNKS restated its demand that all Kanak people, who have customary status and common law status, be automatically inscribed on the general roll.

This is a prerequisite to be allowed onto the referendum roll.

The FLNKS wants the roll dispute to be settled when the signatories to the Noumea Accord meet in Paris in October to finalise the framework for the referendum.

At the weekend, the Labour Party warned of a possible referendum boycott if the roll was not cleaned up.

It said thousands were listed as voters as part of what it calls fraud legalised by the authorities.

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