Police in New Caledonia arrested 11 people on Wednesday, including independence leader Christian Tein, for alleged organized crime offenses and involvement in the violent protests that have taken place in the country since May 13, according to an interview with prosecutor Yves Dupas. The detainees were placed under police custody for up to 96 hours.
The French prosecutor stated that the arrests were part of a broader investigation that started on May 17 by Nouméa’s prosecution service. The criminal accusations include association to prepare a crime or an offense, armed theft and organized gang robbery, destruction of property by arson in an organized gang, and complicity by instigation in the crimes of murder and attempted murder of a person holding public authority.
The police roundup began early on Wednesday morning with house arrests. Yves Dupas specified that later that day, Christian Tein voluntarily contacted authorities and told them that he wanted to appear before investigators regarding the accusations brought against him. Christian Tein is a New Caledonian pro-independence leader and main spokesperson of the CCAT (Field Action Coordinating Cell), he was the only detainee named by the prosecutor in the interview. The detained activist has increasingly mobilized over the past months, alongside other activists, against a proposed electoral reform initiated by France. The prosecutor added that two other accused individuals voluntarily presented themselves to the police.
Dupas made it clear that the house arrests conducted by the police took place without any incident or difficulty. He added that the police also carried out searches in the headquarters of the CCAT but not in the headquarters of the Caledonian Union (Union Calédonienne, UC), as the latter was not targeted by the investigation.
The UC is a pro-independence in New Caledonia and the oldest political party in the collectivity. The CCAT is a pro-independence activist group created in November last year to raise awareness of and contest the controversial reform, a constitutional amendment proposed by the French National Assembly.
The proposed amendment is the cause of the unrest in the Pacific archipelago because it would enfranchise French residents who have lived in the collective for ten years. This is contested by indigenous Kanaks who fear that the amendment would marginalize them and dilute their vote.
Prosecutor Dupas asserted that following the arrests, the prosecution will open a preliminary investigation which will eventually lead to the opening of a judicial investigation.
