Police have used tear gas and stun grenades on rioters at an airport near Nouméa as the chaos in New Caledonia stretched into its sixth day.

Five people, including two police officers, have died and hundreds of people are injured amid clashes between authorities and pro-independence protesters.

They were sparked by anger at a proposed new law that would allow French residents who have lived in New Caledonia for more than 10 years to vote — which critics say will weaken the indigenous Kanak vote.

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Last night, local media reported rioters on the field at Magenta Airport had thrown hammers and stones at police.

Officers responded with tear gas and stun grenades.

Police warned that if that was not enough to control the situation, the military was authorised to use lethal weapons.

Nouméa is under a nightly curfew, with anyone who violates it warned they could face six months in prison or a fine of up to 895,000 French Pacific francs (NZ$13,000).

A New Caledonia government crisis unit spokesperson said there was enough food in the country to last two months.

However, there was a restocking issue, with some roads impassable due to debris.

A 71-year-old woman who missed out on dialysis treatment this week due to the blockages has finally been transported to Nouméa by boat for treatment.

Meanwhile, cars have been set on fire at Dumbéa town hall. Mayor Yohann Lecourieux told the public television station NC La Première he was “worried about the future”.

Journalists attacked
La Première is strengthening security surrounding its journalists after an incident where a reporting team was attacked by about 20 hooded men.

A reporter said she and a camera operator were attacked yesterday morning near the centre of Nouméa.

The men ordered them to leave, then smashed the windows of their car, the reporter told AFP news agency.

They also snatched the camera operator’s camera from his hands and threatened him with a stone.

The journalists were not injured and were rescued by a passing motorist.

La Première news content director Olivier Gélin told AFP the station’s journalists would be accompanied by security agents until further notice.

“We will now take people to protect the teams during filming, in addition to the classic protections in this type of situation — helmets and bulletproof vests,” he said.

Meanwhile, Coralie Cochin said her husband, a reporter for AFP, was photographing the burnt ruins of a shop when a man started throwing rocks at him.

An intern who had been working with Cochin at the local media outlet, La Première, was also attacked yesterday.

She was also rescued by a passing motorist, but lost her belongings in the ordeal.

END FRENCH SETTLER COLONIALISM IN KANAKY, IN MELANESIA, IN PACIFICA !

WE’RE PEOPLE FROM PACIFICA! https://t.co/6rAyyHLycj

— Rsy (@rosymakalu) May 17, 2024

‘A complete war zone’
A resident of Portes de Fer, in the centre of Noumea, said it was terrifying to witness the chaos unfold.

Hari Simon told RNZ Pacific that businesses, houses, car companies and factories in the area had all been burnt.

It was “a very frightening scene punctuated by the sound of gunshots that broke the silence of the night,” he said.

There was “a threatening sense of danger looming in the air,” he said.

At night, people roamed the streets with guns, burning down buildings and exchanging fire with police officers.

However, since the arrival of the first batch of military police officers (gendarmes) on Wednesday, the situation had died down a little, he said.

Residents did not expect the violence to escalate so quickly and were caught off guard, he said.

“When we became fully aware of the gravity of the situation that Monday night and, more specifically in the early hours of Tuesday morning, road blocks had already been erected.”

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

At least 20 people were wounded when police used batons, water cannon and tear gas to disperse hundreds of people who joined rallies in Indonesia’s West Papua region on the 61st anniversary of an agreement that made the territory part of Indonesia, news agencies report.

The US-brokered 1962 New York Agreement allowed Indonesia to annex the Christian-majority region after the end of Dutch colonial rule, according to a report in the UCA News.

Riot police attacked peaceful demonstrators in three locations near the provincial capital Jayapura yesterday, alleged Emmanuel Gobay, a Catholic and an official of the Papua Legal Aid Institute.

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The demonstrators called on the international community to review the agreement and take action to end ongoing violence and repression in the region, said the report.

“In fact, they only held peaceful demonstrations,” said Gobay, who joined one of the rallies.

He stated that more than 20 people were beaten, with one of them later being treated in hospital.

“One person was seriously injured and was immediately transported to the hospital for treatment,” he said.

Listening to speeches
Videos and photos obtained by UCA News showed police attacked with water canons and fired tear gas while people were listening to speeches from leaders of the West Papua National Committee (KNPB), the protest organiser.

Gobay said that although the authorities viewed the KNPB as a “separatist — pro-independence — group “they should have the right to express their opinion” as guaranteed in the nation’s constitution.

“Moreover, they submitted an official letter notifying police about the programme beforehand,” he added.

He condemned the use of water cannon and tear gas on demonstrators.

These should only be for anarchic demonstrations — “not peaceful demonstrations,” he said.

Gobay alleged that police committed criminal offences by torturing and beating protesters, and called on the Papuan police chief to immediately prosecute the perpetrators so that there was a deterrent effect, said the UCA News report.

Father Bernard Baru from the Jayapura Diocese’s Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation Commission said that this repressive action was a repetition of the discriminatory treatment of Papuans by the state.

Brutal police action ‘normal’
“In Papua, police actions like this are considered normal. This only deepens discrimination against Papuans,” he said.

Police officials were not available for comment.

KNPB spokesman Ones Sahuniap issued a statement to condemn the police brutality and claimed those who were beaten suffered serious head injuries and bled profusely.

Suhuniap said the police used rattan and batons to beat and break up the demonstration.

The KNPB simultaneously held demonstrations in Papua and in other parts of Indonesia, asking the United Nations to review the 1962 New York Agreement.

During the rallies, KNPB leaders called the New York Agreement “a violation of human rights of Papuans” sponsored by Indonesia, the Netherlands and the United States and the United Nations.

Not party to agreement
As per the agreement, later added to the agenda of UN General Assembly, the Netherlands agreed to transfer the control of West Papua New Guinea to Indonesia, pending an UN-administered referendum.

The Papuans were not party to the agreement and it paved the way for the 1969 Act of Free Choice, an independence referendum favoring Indonesian rule in Papua whuch was largely regarded as a sham.

Indonesia’s annexation of Papua and use to force to crush dissent sparked an armed pto-indeoendence movement.

Thousands of civilians, soldiers and rebels have been killed and tens of thousands have been displaced due to the conflict in the easternmost region in the past decades.