France–Vanuatu relations
Encyclopedia
The French Republic
& the Republic of Vanuatu
have long-standing bilateral relations which have varied over the years between tense and amicable. Vanuatu, then known as the New Hebrides
, was a Franco-British Condominium
from 1906 to 1980, and maintained formal relations with both of its former colonial masters after gaining independence. Franco–ni-Vanuatu relations were rocked by a series of crises in the 1980s, and broke down completely on several occasions, with Vanuatu expelling the French ambassador in 1981, in 1984 and in 1987. Relations improved from the 1990s onwards, and, today, France provides development aid to Vanuatu. The two countries also share amicable economic and cultural relations; both are members of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie.
and decolonisation; it did not exist as a unified sovereign entity prior to the establishment of the Condominium in 1906, and its accession to independence in 1980. For France's role during the colonial period, see the article on the New Hebrides
.
, the "father of independence", who established a resolutely independent foreign policy
, brought his country into the Non-Aligned Movement
in 1983, promoted the concept of Melanesian socialism
and refused alignment with the Western bloc
during the late stages of the Cold War
. France's reluctance to grant the country independence in the late 1970s -contrasted with the United Kingdom's wish to speedily cut colonial ties- signified a potential legacy of tension, particularly since France had been accused of encouraging a separatist movement on Espiritu Santo
just prior to independence. In addition, ni-Vanuatu politics remained polarised along linguistic lines, with francophones
(who in general were also francophiles) constituting a minority in Opposition against Lini's anglophone
majority.
(FLNKS), the pro-independence movement in neighbouring New Caledonia
, which remained a French territory. Lini described indigenous New Caledonians as ni-Vanuatu's "Melanesia
n brothers", and stated, on the basis of Melanesian solidarity, that they alone should determine the political future of New Caledonia.
In February 1981, Barak Sopé
, secretary-general of Vanuatu's ruling Vanua'aku Pati
, accepted an invitation to speak at the annual congress of the FLNKS. He obtained a visa to New Caledonia from the French embassy in Port-Vila, which was subsequently revoked by French authorities, who declared that a man in Sopé's position speaking at a pro-independence congress in a French territory would constitute unacceptable interference in internal French affairs. Sopé was briefly detained at the airport in Nouméa
. Vanuatu reacted by declaring the French ambassador to Vanuatu persona non grata
. France reacted in turn by reducing the aid it provided to Vanuatu. Relations were normalised in October. In 1984, the French ambassador was again expelled after protesting against Vanuatu's continued support for the FLNKS.
In 1986, Vanuatu campaigned for New Caledonia to be re-inscribed on the United Nations list of Non-Self-Governing Territories
. France responded with economic sanctions.
In 1987, Vanuatu opposed a referendum held in New Caledonia on the island group's political status, and delivered a petition to the French embassy in protest.
. In 1985, the Rainbow Warrior
was greeted and fêted by Lini's government in Port-Vila. Ni-Vanuatu official Charles Rara remained aboard to witness the vessel's protest trip to Mururoa, and shared a cabin with Fernando Pereira
. Following the sinking of the Rainbow Warrior in Auckland, Lini openly accused France of having committed a "terrorist
act".
were the cause of a maritime boundary
dispute between Vanuatu and France (New Caledonia). They had been part of the New Hebrides until 1976, when France annexed them to New Caledonia instead. Lini's government rejected French sovereignty over the islands, and, in 1993, Lini travelled illegally to Hunter Island, where he plant the ni-Vanuatu flag
. A French patrol vessel prevented him from reaching Matthew Island.
The dispute spilled over to Fiji
when, in 1982, Fiji and New Caledonia signed an agreement on mutual recognition of their maritime boundaries, in which Fiji recognised French ownership of the Matthew and Hunter Islands. Vanuatu demanded that Fiji recognise ni-Vanuatu sovereignty over the islands, stating that failure to do so would "constitute a grave blow on peace, solidarity and stability in the region". Fiji did not revoke its signing of the agreement.
, in the lead-up to the 1987 general election
. No proof was provided, and France denied any truth to the accusation, but Lini expelled the French ambassador for the third time. France reacted by cutting its aid from Vt
177,000,000 to Vt 1,900,000. Vanuatu responded in turn by expelling the remaining French diplomats in the country.
called upon the government to seek a normalisation of its relations with France, describing France as a "friend" of Vanuatu. Lini made a first move by cancelling the visa requirement for French nationals visiting Vanuatu. Lini subsequently wrote to French President François Mitterrand
and Prime Minister Michel Rocard
, congratulating them on a recent electoral victory and expressing his wish for an improvement in bilateral relations. Lini underlined the fact that the interruption of French aid had had a dire impact on the education and health sectors, and that a resumption of French aid was urgently needed.
Little was achieved in the short run, particularly when, that same year, Lini criticised the Matignon Accords in New Caledonia. Later, however, Lini declared publicly that his government would no longer speak on New Caledonian issues, and, in October, Foreign Affairs Minister Donald Kalpokas
, addressing the United Nations General Assembly
, unexpectedly praised "the wisdom, sensibility and courage of the current French government" in engaging in productive dialogue in New Caledonia. In June 1989, however, Radio Vanuatu, a State-owned radio, incorrectly accused French gendarmes of having murdered Jean-Marie Tjibaou
and Yéwéné Yéwéné, an incident which prompted France to cut all aid to Vanuatu. During a visit to Suva
in September, Rocard ignored Vanuatu altogether.
Later, however, Rocard met with Kalpokas to discuss a resumption of relations (and aid). Rocard demanded a written statement from Lini, describing the latter's position regarding France. Lini complied, and wrote that he was in agreement with France's policy in New Caledonia. In November 1989, Kalpokas became the first ever ni-Vanuatu Foreign Affairs Minister to pay a State visit to France. He re-iterated Vanuatu's support for the Matignon Accords, and soothed French concern over alleged discrimination against francophone ni-Vanuatu. Relations slowly began to improve.
In 1991, French academic Elise Huffer wrote that Lini had, "it seems, deliberately sought to provoke France so as to make it look responsible for all the archipelago's problems, and so as to justify a policy of submission (if not repression) of the indigenous francophone population".
Elections in 1991
saw Lini voted out of office, and the francophone, pro-French Union of Moderate Parties come to power, led by a new Prime Minister, Maxime Carlot Korman
. The change in the ni-Vanuatu government heralded a normalisation of relations between Paris and Port-Vila.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
& the Republic of Vanuatu
Vanuatu
Vanuatu , officially the Republic of Vanuatu , is an island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is some east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, west of Fiji, and southeast of the Solomon Islands, near New Guinea.Vanuatu was...
have long-standing bilateral relations which have varied over the years between tense and amicable. Vanuatu, then known as the New Hebrides
New Hebrides
New Hebrides was the colonial name for an island group in the South Pacific that now forms the nation of Vanuatu. The New Hebrides were colonized by both the British and French in the 18th century shortly after Captain James Cook visited the islands...
, was a Franco-British Condominium
Condominium (international law)
In international law, a condominium is a political territory in or over which two or more sovereign powers formally agree to share equally dominium and exercise their rights jointly, without dividing it up into 'national' zones.Although a condominium has always been...
from 1906 to 1980, and maintained formal relations with both of its former colonial masters after gaining independence. Franco–ni-Vanuatu relations were rocked by a series of crises in the 1980s, and broke down completely on several occasions, with Vanuatu expelling the French ambassador in 1981, in 1984 and in 1987. Relations improved from the 1990s onwards, and, today, France provides development aid to Vanuatu. The two countries also share amicable economic and cultural relations; both are members of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie.
Prior to the 1980s
Vanuatu is a product of colonisationColonisation
Colonization occurs whenever any one or more species populate an area. The term, which is derived from the Latin colere, "to inhabit, cultivate, frequent, practice, tend, guard, respect", originally related to humans. However, 19th century biogeographers dominated the term to describe the...
and decolonisation; it did not exist as a unified sovereign entity prior to the establishment of the Condominium in 1906, and its accession to independence in 1980. For France's role during the colonial period, see the article on the New Hebrides
New Hebrides
New Hebrides was the colonial name for an island group in the South Pacific that now forms the nation of Vanuatu. The New Hebrides were colonized by both the British and French in the 18th century shortly after Captain James Cook visited the islands...
.
1980s: off to a rocky start
From 1980 to 1991, Vanuatu was governed by Prime Minister Father Walter LiniWalter Lini
Father Walter Hadye Lini was an Anglican priest and the founding Prime Minister of Vanuatu. He was born on Pentecost Island. During the era when Vanuatu was a condominium ruled by the United Kingdom and France, Lini formed the Vanua'aku Pati, which was principally backed by English-speakers...
, the "father of independence", who established a resolutely independent foreign policy
Foreign relations of Vanuatu
Vanuatu maintains relations with more than 65 countries, and has a very modest network of diplomatic missions. However, only Australia, France, New Zealand, and the People's Republic of China maintain embassies, high commissions, or missions in Port Vila. The British High Commission closed in 2005...
, brought his country into the Non-Aligned Movement
Non-Aligned Movement
The Non-Aligned Movement is a group of states considering themselves not aligned formally with or against any major power bloc. As of 2011, the movement had 120 members and 17 observer countries...
in 1983, promoted the concept of Melanesian socialism
Melanesian socialism
The concept of Melanesian socialism was first advocated by Father Walter Lini of the New Hebrides , who became the country's first prime minister upon its independence from France and the United Kingdom in 1980...
and refused alignment with the Western bloc
Western Bloc
The Western Bloc or Capitalist Bloc during the Cold War refers to the powers allied with the United States and NATO against the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact...
during the late stages of the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
. France's reluctance to grant the country independence in the late 1970s -contrasted with the United Kingdom's wish to speedily cut colonial ties- signified a potential legacy of tension, particularly since France had been accused of encouraging a separatist movement on Espiritu Santo
Espiritu Santo
Espiritu Santo is the largest island in the nation of Vanuatu, with an area of . It belongs to the archipelago of the New Hebrides in the Pacific region of Melanesia. It is in the Sanma Province of Vanuatu....
just prior to independence. In addition, ni-Vanuatu politics remained polarised along linguistic lines, with francophones
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
(who in general were also francophiles) constituting a minority in Opposition against Lini's anglophone
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
majority.
The Neo-Caledonian issue
One of Lini's first foreign policy moves upon attaining office was to provide open encouragement for the Kanak Socialist National Liberation FrontKanak Socialist National Liberation Front
The Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front is a militant socialist pro-independence alliance of political parties in New Caledonia. It was founded in 1984 at a congress of various political parties, mainly indigenous but also of disgruntled and progressive New Caledonians of European...
(FLNKS), the pro-independence movement in neighbouring New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
, which remained a French territory. Lini described indigenous New Caledonians as ni-Vanuatu's "Melanesia
Melanesia
Melanesia is a subregion of Oceania extending from the western end of the Pacific Ocean to the Arafura Sea, and eastward to Fiji. The region comprises most of the islands immediately north and northeast of Australia...
n brothers", and stated, on the basis of Melanesian solidarity, that they alone should determine the political future of New Caledonia.
In February 1981, Barak Sopé
Barak Sopé
Barak Tame Sopé Mautamata is a politician from Vanuatu. He is the leader of the Melanesian Progressive Party and was, until 2008, a member of the ni-Vanuatu parliament from the island of Efate...
, secretary-general of Vanuatu's ruling Vanua'aku Pati
Vanua'aku Pati
The Vanua'aku Pati is a political party in Vanuatu.At the last legislative elections, 1 September 2008, the party won 11 out of 52 seats, becoming the largest party in Parliament....
, accepted an invitation to speak at the annual congress of the FLNKS. He obtained a visa to New Caledonia from the French embassy in Port-Vila, which was subsequently revoked by French authorities, who declared that a man in Sopé's position speaking at a pro-independence congress in a French territory would constitute unacceptable interference in internal French affairs. Sopé was briefly detained at the airport in Nouméa
Nouméa
Nouméa is the capital city of the French territory of New Caledonia. It is situated on a peninsula in the south of New Caledonia's main island, Grande Terre, and is home to the majority of the island's European, Polynesian , Indonesian, and Vietnamese populations, as well as many Melanesians,...
. Vanuatu reacted by declaring the French ambassador to Vanuatu persona non grata
Persona non grata
Persona non grata , literally meaning "an unwelcome person", is a legal term used in diplomacy that indicates a proscription against a person entering the country...
. France reacted in turn by reducing the aid it provided to Vanuatu. Relations were normalised in October. In 1984, the French ambassador was again expelled after protesting against Vanuatu's continued support for the FLNKS.
In 1986, Vanuatu campaigned for New Caledonia to be re-inscribed on the United Nations list of Non-Self-Governing Territories
United Nations list of Non-Self-Governing Territories
The United Nations list of Non-Self-Governing Territories is a list of countries that, according to the United Nations, are non-decolonized. The list was initially prepared in 1946 pursuant to Chapter XI of the United Nations Charter, and has been updated by the General Assembly on recommendation...
. France responded with economic sanctions.
In 1987, Vanuatu opposed a referendum held in New Caledonia on the island group's political status, and delivered a petition to the French embassy in protest.
The nuclear issue
In the 1980s, Vanuatu continuously condemned France's nuclear tests in French PolynesiaFrench Polynesia
French Polynesia is an overseas country of the French Republic . It is made up of several groups of Polynesian islands, the most famous island being Tahiti in the Society Islands group, which is also the most populous island and the seat of the capital of the territory...
. In 1985, the Rainbow Warrior
Rainbow Warrior (1978)
The Rainbow Warrior was a former UK Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food trawler later purchased by the environmental organisation Greenpeace...
was greeted and fêted by Lini's government in Port-Vila. Ni-Vanuatu official Charles Rara remained aboard to witness the vessel's protest trip to Mururoa, and shared a cabin with Fernando Pereira
Fernando Pereira
Fernando Pereira was a freelance Dutch photographer, of Portuguese origin, who drowned when French intelligence used two underwater mines to sink the ship Rainbow Warrior, owned by the environmental organisation Greenpeace on July 10, 1985 .The bombing of the boat had been designed to make the ship...
. Following the sinking of the Rainbow Warrior in Auckland, Lini openly accused France of having committed a "terrorist
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
act".
The Matthew and Hunter Islands
The Matthew and Hunter IslandsMatthew and Hunter Islands
The Matthew and Hunter Islands are a group of two small and uninhabited volcanic islands in the South Pacific, located 300 km east of New Caledonia and south-east of Vanuatu archipelago...
were the cause of a maritime boundary
Maritime boundary
Maritime boundary is a conceptual means of division of the water surface of the planet into maritime areas that are defined through surrounding physical geography or by human geography. As such it usually includes areas of exclusive national rights over the mineral and biological resources,...
dispute between Vanuatu and France (New Caledonia). They had been part of the New Hebrides until 1976, when France annexed them to New Caledonia instead. Lini's government rejected French sovereignty over the islands, and, in 1993, Lini travelled illegally to Hunter Island, where he plant the ni-Vanuatu flag
Flag of Vanuatu
The flag of Vanuatu was adopted on February 13, 1980.When the Vanua'aku Party led the country to independence as Vanuatu in 1980, the colors of the party flag - red, green, black and yellow - were chosen to be the basis for the national flag...
. A French patrol vessel prevented him from reaching Matthew Island.
The dispute spilled over to Fiji
Fiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
when, in 1982, Fiji and New Caledonia signed an agreement on mutual recognition of their maritime boundaries, in which Fiji recognised French ownership of the Matthew and Hunter Islands. Vanuatu demanded that Fiji recognise ni-Vanuatu sovereignty over the islands, stating that failure to do so would "constitute a grave blow on peace, solidarity and stability in the region". Fiji did not revoke its signing of the agreement.
Compensation claim
In 1981, Vanuatu requested that the United Kingdom and France pay compensation for damages caused by the secessionist movement on Espiritu Santo the previous year. France and Britain both delayed their responses, provoking diplomatic tensions when Vanuatu became increasingly insistent on the issue.Accusations of French political interference
In 1987, the ni-Vanuatu government accused France of having funded the electoral campaign of the francophone Opposition Union of Moderate PartiesUnion of Moderate Parties
The Union of Moderate Parties is a conservative Francophone political party in Vanuatu.At the last legislative elections, 1 September 2008, the party won 7 out of 52 seats...
, in the lead-up to the 1987 general election
Vanuatuan general election, 1987
General elections were held in Vanuatu on 30 November 1987. Ni-Vanuatu voters were invited to elect the 46 members of an expanded national Parliament, which had previously held 39 seats....
. No proof was provided, and France denied any truth to the accusation, but Lini expelled the French ambassador for the third time. France reacted by cutting its aid from Vt
Vanuatu vatu
The vatu is the currency of Vanuatu.The vatu has no subdivisions.-History:The vatu was introduced in 1982, after independence, to replace the New Hebrides franc at par...
177,000,000 to Vt 1,900,000. Vanuatu responded in turn by expelling the remaining French diplomats in the country.
1988: ni-Vanuatu moves for normalisation
In 1988, ni-Vanuatu President Ati George SokomanuAti George Sokomanu
Ati George Sokomanu, MBE is a Ni-Vanuatu politician who served as the first president of the country. He was elected President by the Parliament when Vanuatu gained independence in 1980, and served until the end of his term in 1984...
called upon the government to seek a normalisation of its relations with France, describing France as a "friend" of Vanuatu. Lini made a first move by cancelling the visa requirement for French nationals visiting Vanuatu. Lini subsequently wrote to French President François Mitterrand
François Mitterrand
François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand was the 21st President of the French Republic and ex officio Co-Prince of Andorra, serving from 1981 until 1995. He is the longest-serving President of France and, as leader of the Socialist Party, the only figure from the left so far elected President...
and Prime Minister Michel Rocard
Michel Rocard
Michel Rocard is a French politician, member of the Socialist Party . He served as Prime Minister under François Mitterrand from 1988 to 1991, during which he created the Revenu minimum d'insertion , a social minimum welfare program for indigents, and led the Matignon Accords regarding the status...
, congratulating them on a recent electoral victory and expressing his wish for an improvement in bilateral relations. Lini underlined the fact that the interruption of French aid had had a dire impact on the education and health sectors, and that a resumption of French aid was urgently needed.
Little was achieved in the short run, particularly when, that same year, Lini criticised the Matignon Accords in New Caledonia. Later, however, Lini declared publicly that his government would no longer speak on New Caledonian issues, and, in October, Foreign Affairs Minister Donald Kalpokas
Donald Kalpokas
Donald Masike'Vanua Kalpokas is a ni-Vanuatu politician and diplomat who served as prime minister of Vanuatu twice.Kalpokas was born on Efate island. Along with Walter Lini he founded the Vanua'aku Pati a political party which supported political independence for Vanuatu, socialist policies, and...
, addressing the United Nations General Assembly
United Nations General Assembly
For two articles dealing with membership in the General Assembly, see:* General Assembly members* General Assembly observersThe United Nations General Assembly is one of the five principal organs of the United Nations and the only one in which all member nations have equal representation...
, unexpectedly praised "the wisdom, sensibility and courage of the current French government" in engaging in productive dialogue in New Caledonia. In June 1989, however, Radio Vanuatu, a State-owned radio, incorrectly accused French gendarmes of having murdered Jean-Marie Tjibaou
Jean-Marie Tjibaou
Jean-Marie Tjibaou was a leader of the Kanak independence movement and a politician in New Caledonia. The son of a tribal chief, Tjibaou was ordained a priest but abandoned his religious vocation for a life in political activism...
and Yéwéné Yéwéné, an incident which prompted France to cut all aid to Vanuatu. During a visit to Suva
Suva
Suva features a tropical rainforest climate under the Koppen climate classification. The city sees a copious amount of precipitation during the course of the year. Suva averages 3,000 mm of precipitation annually with its driest month, July averaging 125 mm of rain per year. In fact,...
in September, Rocard ignored Vanuatu altogether.
Later, however, Rocard met with Kalpokas to discuss a resumption of relations (and aid). Rocard demanded a written statement from Lini, describing the latter's position regarding France. Lini complied, and wrote that he was in agreement with France's policy in New Caledonia. In November 1989, Kalpokas became the first ever ni-Vanuatu Foreign Affairs Minister to pay a State visit to France. He re-iterated Vanuatu's support for the Matignon Accords, and soothed French concern over alleged discrimination against francophone ni-Vanuatu. Relations slowly began to improve.
In 1991, French academic Elise Huffer wrote that Lini had, "it seems, deliberately sought to provoke France so as to make it look responsible for all the archipelago's problems, and so as to justify a policy of submission (if not repression) of the indigenous francophone population".
Elections in 1991
Vanuatuan general election, 1991
General elections were held in Vanuatu on 2 December 1991. Ni-Vanuatu voters were invited to elect the 46 members of the national Parliament....
saw Lini voted out of office, and the francophone, pro-French Union of Moderate Parties come to power, led by a new Prime Minister, Maxime Carlot Korman
Maxime Carlot Korman
Maxime Carlot Korman is a ni-Vanuatu politician, formerly serving as Speaker of the Parliament and formerly as acting President. He served as Prime minister of Vanuatu for nearly five years, first from 16 December 1991 to 21 December 1995 and again from 23 February 1996 to 30 September 1996...
. The change in the ni-Vanuatu government heralded a normalisation of relations between Paris and Port-Vila.