Future Kanak Independence in New Caledonia: Reality or Illusion?

The article examines various issues related to the international legal right of self-determination under the context of the Melanesian Kanaks, the indigenous people in New Caledonia. It is the right that is recognized by the Charter of the United Nations it has not yet been accepted by all countries around the world. As a French colony, these people have clashed with the French government for more than a century. Moreover, the prospects for achieving the referendum on the Kanaky self-determination and the impact of the French colonialism on their culture, socioeconomic structures and legal institutions are also discussed. It is stated that the process of decolonization is unlikely to be completed and the promised referendum is just a ploy to buy time and weaken the demand for independence.