Home News New Caledonia independence leader appears in court over unrest

New Caledonia independence leader appears in court over unrest

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Christian Tein is the leader of an independence group that French authorities say played a leading role in the weeks of violence that erupted in May.

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Thein appeared before the capital court, namedalong with ten other people arrested on Wednesday in the conflictive French territory from Pacific.

Local media reported that the eleven appeared before prosecutor Yves Dupas on Saturday morning.

They are suspected of having participated in the deadly violence that devastated the archipelagowhere the Kanak indigenous people They have been trying to free themselves from France for a long time.

The arrests are part of a police investigation that began on May 17, a few days after the first riots broke outon a wave of armed clashes, looting, fires and other acts of violence that turned parts of the city of Noumea and its suburbs into prohibited zones.

The revolt led France to declare a state of emergency in the archipelago already send reinforcements to police forces which were quickly overwhelmed. The violence caused nine deaths, including two gendarmes, and the widespread destruction of shops, businesses and homes.

Arrests and appearances for alleged crimes

Last week, the prosecutor said that The arrests were part of a police investigation about a wide range of alleged crimes, including complicity in murder and attempted murder, armed robbery, arson and membership in a group created to prepare violent acts.

The possible charges allow investigators hold detainees to interrogate them for a maximum of 96 hours, said. An investigating judge would then have to decide whether police have gathered enough evidence to justify formal charges.

With France immersed in a frenetic campaign to early parliamentary electionsPresident Emmanuel Macron has suspended reforms that would have altered the right to vote in New Caledonia.

Now that the unrest is subsiding, the French Pacific territory has shortened its nightly curfew by two hours this week, delaying its start from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. The international airport, closed to commercial flights for more than a month, has also reopened.



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