Page 11 - IB December 2024

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PACIFIC PERSON OF THE YEAR:

EMMANUEL TJIBAOU

By Nic Maclellan At a time of major political crisis in France—with two
Prime Ministers dismissed since July—Tjibaou must work
For Kanak cultural and political leader Emmanuel Tjibaou, with parliamentary colleagues in the National Assembly on
2024 has been quite the year. economic reform and assistance for his homeland. Above
On 13 May, after months of peaceful protest, New all, given his strong commitment to independence for New
Caledonia erupted in violence as young people rioted across Caledonia, he must persuade pro-French New Caledonians
the capital Noumea and neighbouring towns. Independence that the legacies of this year’s conflict can be bridged through
supporters soon began a series of protests and clashes with dialogue, reconciliation, and consensus.
French security forces, which lasted for six months, leaving It’s a significant burden for the young leader, especially
14 dead, a shattered economy, and political division. because he has limited experience as a politician. For most
In June, as French President Emmanuel Macron called snap of his working life, he has focused on promoting Kanak
elections for France’s National Assembly in Paris, Emmanuel languages, culture, and identity.
Tjibaou was chosen
as a candidate for New generation
New Caledonia’s As the second of six
independence and children of Jean-Marie
nationalist movement. and Marie-Claude
Running in the islands’ Tjibaou, Emmanuel
second constituency comes from a family
against conservative that has been at
leader Alcide Ponga, the heart of New
Tjibaou won a stunning Caledonian life for
victory with 57% of the many decades.
vote. It was the first Staunch members of
time in 38 years that the Catholic church,
a pro-independence the Tjibaou clan are
Kanak had won a seat in customary leaders
the French legislature. of the Wérap and
Then in November, Tiendanite tribes in
Tjibaou was elected the Hoot ma Whaap
as President of Union Emmanuel Tjibaou (centre), our Pacific Person of the Year, at a recent FLNKS cultural region, in
Calédonienne (UC), the meeting the mountains above
oldest political party in the northern town
New Caledonia and the largest member of the independence of Hienghène. His mother, Marie-Claude Wetta, came from
coalition Front de Libération Nationale Kanak et Socialiste the Tchamba-Naweta tribe near the east coast town of
(FLNKS). After outgoing UC president Daniel Goa announced Ponérihouen, in the Paicî customary region.
that he would not seek re-election, Tjibaou was the only After schooling in the capital Noumea, Emmanuel Tjibaou
candidate for the party presidency. studied the ethnolinguistics of Kanak languages in France, at
At just 48, Tjibaou’s new prominence symbolises the rise the National Institute of Oriental Languages and Civilisations
of a new generation of political leadership not only in New (INALCO) in Paris.
Caledonia, but also across Melanesia and the wider Pacific. Returning to New Caledonia, he began working with the
For this reason, Islands Business has named him ‘Pacific Agence de développement de la culture kanak (ADCK),
Person of the Year’. the agency that manages cultural programs and also the
Tjibaou now faces multiple challenges. Within UC, a new, Jean-Marie Tjibaou Cultural Centre – a striking complex
younger executive elected in November must persuade that is a hub for artistic display and research in Noumea. In
radicalised Kanak protesters that a path of dialogue and 2011, he was appointed as director of the Cultural Centre,
negotiation remains important. With other FLNKS members pledging to “take the centre beyond its walls, out into the
Palika and UPM angered by UC policy and suspending their neighbourhoods”. He later relocated to New Caledonia’s
involvement in the coalition, Tjibaou must try to reunite the Northern Province to serve as director of cultural programs in
movement, divided over the best way forward in looming the rural north. Only this year did he stand for political office.
political status talks. It’s a path that has interesting parallels to other young

Islands Business, December 2024 11