Elio Machoro, victim of French imperialism
Eloi Machoro was general secretary of the Caledonian In fact, the neocolonialist plan concocted by Edgard
Union, the largest of the independence organizations Pisani has the concomitant of resuming operations grouped together in the Kanak Socialist
Ud OT ations are in line with the strategic choice of protect-
Liberation Front (FLNKS), which was formed in Seping the interests of the European colonists. Nonethe-
He was also minister of security in the tember 1984.
the organizational work undertaken by Eloi
Government set up by the FLNKS.
Provisional gether with Marcel Nonarro, FLNKS leader in Canala,
New Caledonia 2,300 CRS (elite militarized police)
ne was assassinated by French colonialist forces on the and gendarmes mobiles (members of a repressive force morning of January 12, at the culmination of a large- scale military operation and a siege that had lasted population of 145,000, of which 64,000 are Kanaks.
the entire preceding night.
And the French government has just sent off a thou-
The FLNKS activists were caught by surprise at a meeting which was held on the property of a Kanak, involved in the military operations in Chad and Lebana member of the FLNKS, and not that of a European
The Mitterrand government has already touched off the typical spiral of colonial war.
colonist, as claimed in the official version put out by high commissioner in New Caledonia, the French for many weeks, the bourgeois press and the government strained every effort to portray the FLNKS
Edgard Pisani.
activists and especially Eloi Machoro, whom they pre-
The two Kanak leaders were shot down as they came out to negotiate by members of the National sented as a blood-thirsty military chief, as criminals.
To the contrary, Eloi Machoro, with whom members
Group (GIGN) sent by
Gendarmerie Intervention of the French section of the Fourth International were
The FLNKS has revealed that the
Edgard Pisani.
action of the repressive forces was carried out in close able to meet on a number of occasions, was representative of a new generation of Kanak nationalist politcollaboration with a group of fascist commandos who were on the spot at the same time.
In the spring of 1984, Machoro spoke at a rally or-
These two Kanak fighters for independence paid ganized by the LCR at Le Bourget [near Paris], with their lives for the commitment to the cause of expressing the FLNKS' rejection of the Lemoine Plan.
Kanak socialist independence.
At the time, he was very favorably impressed by the
Machoro will undoubtedly leave a big empty place in support shown him by the thousands of activists
After the occupation of the town of the FLNKS./ present on that day. Since then, French Fourth In-
Thio, which Machoro led without shedding any blood, ternationalists who went to New Caledonia were alhe set about building a system of self-defense for the ways welcomed by him in a very fraternal way.
Kanak tribes on a national scale to prepare to fend off any violent reaction by the extreme rightist colonists.
Kermel in the town of Thio in New Caledonia on
This was why the French government wanted to get its hands on the independence fight leader.
What is your assessment of change.
Question.
the mobilizations for independence in re- bad sign. In fact, the government keeps town of Thio has been the most imporcent weeks?
Answer. The active boycott campaign succeeded. The results show an abstention rate of 50 percent, which is a lot for a population that is three-fifths non-
Kanak. Nonetheless, the Administrative
Tribunal ratified the election results. The
French government found it difficult to approve the results, but, as always, it did not want to take a clear position. So, we decided to launch actions throughout the islands to get the election results annulled.
Our objective was also to prevent any application of the Lemoine law.
On the last point, the FLNKS
Q.
seem to have achieved some success.
That is not yet certain. The gov-
A.
ernment has not yet taken a clear stand.
Replacing the high commissioner, pushing
Lemoine aside to some extent, and putting the Caledonian question in the hands of the premier may be indications of a sand additional ical activists. The loss of Eloi
The following December 6, 1984. But that could be a good or sending observers here who come to look for a third road, when there is no third
We will never accept a third road, because what we are asking for is simple justice. Like all his predecessors, Edgard Pisani came here to look for a third way. At the present time, the FLNKS and our provisional government have asked us to remove the road blocks so as not to pose obstacles to discussions with government. We are respecting this order. But during the two months that the govrepresentative has gotten to gain an understanding of the Caledonian problem and find a solution, while we may not be on the roads, we will be active in other places.
We are going to maintain the mobilization so that, if need be, we can reoccupy the positions that have already been won, and also so that we can organize
At present there are in This is for a soldiers, paratroopers who were interview was given to Vincent
Q. The action conducted around the tant of these initiatives. What is your explanation for that?
A. In this region, we could have staged actions locally in all the townships. We preferred to conduct an action at Thio because on the east coast this town has always been one of the strongest bastions of the anti-independence forces. The mayor, Roger Galliot, is a member of the extreme rightist Caledonian National
Moreover, in this region there was a crucial question to be settled, in particular since Galliot's party, like the other rightist parties, had begun to try to buy
So, we came from several places in the region to settle the problem at Thio, that is, to assure that the Kanaks, who are the majority in the local population, had control of the town in their hands. The fact is that the Kanaks in the Thio region have become conscious of their strength and
International Viewpoint 28 January 1984
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Rouge ELOI MACHORO ASSASSINE! These oper-
are organizing so as to be still more effective.
What was the attitude of the FLNKS toward the European population of Thio when the town was occupied?
A. We asked for a meeting with the Europeans in the town to explain to them the meaning of our action. ately, they were afraid, and only about a dozen of them came to our meeting. We explained the general objectives of our action, making it clear that we had one specific aim for this town - to make sure that the town was run by people who wanted to work together for the benefit of everyone and not to gain their own personal ends, as was the case of the present mayor, Roger Galliot.
Galliot was the one who obstructed discussion among people. Everyone knew that he belonged to the extreme right. He banded together a half-dozen "super-
We gave a list of their names to the non-Kanak inhabitants of Thio. We also explained to them that their tranquility depended also on their behavior and the relations they maintained
Moreover, we asked the gendarmes in Thio not to come out of their barracks, promising them that order would be maintained. So, we organized to protect the sectors for which we had responsibility.
Q. As regards the negotiations that are to begin with the representative of the French government, Edgard Pisani, you may be offered a referendum to determine the future of the territory with the right to vote accorded to the Europeans and immigrants who have been here for example for more than six or more than ten years. What do you think about that?
A. Such a proposition by the French government would be a bad one. Why ten years and why not the "victims of history," as we have described the European Caldoches whose fathers or mothers were born in New Caledonia? And, to take it further, why not the Kanaks alone? International Viewpoint 28 January 1984
### ILNKS
LING An FLNKS barricade in Ouega (DR) In fact, the government's problem is that it does not want to take a position. It does not want to adopt our point of view so as not to be accused of letting the FLNKS drag it around by the nose. But, the French government should either to stick by the French constitution or to carry out a decolonization policy favorable to the Kanak people.
In all the proposals we have made, we have always demanded a reform of the electoral register to assure that it is the real inhabitants of the territory who decide on its future, and it is in this sense that we have talked about the Kanaks and the "victims of history." quest has been rejected by the National Assembly [in Paris ] as unconstitutional.
At present, we are fighting for the self-determination of the Kanak people alone, and we have legal grounds for this. Article 75 of the French constitution recognizes the special character of the Kanak people by granting them a special status. It is up to the government to choose. We will do everything possible on the ground to tip the balance in our favor.
In order to take up the discussion with Pisani, we made a lot of concessions, such as releasing the subprefect of Lifou, or removing the road blocks. In return for this, they are still killing us, as in Hienghene. In the incidents that have occurred, the Kanaks have never been the ones to start it.
Everytime they have fired, the Kanaks have done so to defend themselves. In Thio, we took over the town without firing a single shot at a European.
The Socialist Party government has been carrying out a right-wing policy here because the right is helping the government keep the territory under the domination of France. The French government does not want to let New Caledonia go because of the strategic position it holds and because of its riches.
The only basis of support for such a position here is the colonialist right. So, decolonialization remains on the agenda, it has not yet started. For the Kanaks, the colonial situation has not changed.
Q. There is a lot of talk about support from Libya [for the Kanaks] and Australian designs on New Caledonia.
Australia, as well as New Zeaare corner stones of the Pacific Nations', Forum. They are also two satellites of the United States. the problem of imperialism and control the years we have seen a shift in the position of Australia and other countries in the Pacific Nations' Forum. At the beginning, they were very favorable to independence because they had designs. They wanted, with the help of the Kanak people, to get France out of here and gain control of the Pacific.
However, as our demands became more well defined, these countries became afraid of removing a power such as France from' the Pacific. We think that it is because of this fear that today they are supporting the policy of France.
Moreover, we are a native people, and so that [a victory for the Kanak people] would pose the threat of provoking reactions from their own native people. Thus, the last position taken by the Pacific Nations' Forum was to support the Lemoine statute that we have rejected.
We knocked for a long time on France's door asking for help in decolonizing our country. The answer was a document [the Lemoine plan] designed for the destruction of the Kanak people. We asked the Pacific Nation's Forum to support our struggle. They supported the policy of the French government. So, we have been obliged to go looking for help elsewhere and we will seek it wherever it may be found.
5
at union meetings up and down the country: •Why aren't our leaders out to reverse cuts in the industry now that we are in the strongest negotiating position ever with the miners out on strike?
The pressure is so great from the rank and file that the Federation (the body