Mont-Dore Mayor Eddie Lecourieux (centre) signs security agreement with French High Commissioner Louis Le Franc (right) and Gendarmerie General Nicolas Matthéos (left) in New Caledonia – 6 February 2025 Photo: Haut-Commissariat de la République
New Caledonia's Mont-Dore Mayor Eddie Lecourieux has signed a security pact with law enforcement authorities, including the Gendarmerie Nationale and the French High Commission.
Mont-Dore is a township near New Caledonia's capital, Nouméa.
Parts of the deal are said to reinforce cooperation and "coordination" between the French gendarmes and the local Mont-Dore 35-strong municipal police, as well as pre-existing citizen neighbourhood watch initiatives.
"Some have wanted to call these 'militias'. I think they were just citizens who, above all, wanted to protect their streets and their houses," Lecourieux said.
French High Commissioner Louis Le Franc mentioned the notion of "resilience".
"After those troubled times we've been going through, I think it's important to remind everyone of the rules", Lecourieux told a press conference.
The deal also covered such areas as clarification of jurisdiction, shared intervention and communication means, sometimes in joint operation mode for road checks and crime prevention purposes.
He said another aim of the new agreements was to instil a "culture of (crime) prevention" and "information sharing" between the population and law enforcement agencies.
The deal comes as Mont-Dore has just reopened the key access Provincial Road RP1, linking the capital Nouméa to the South of the main island.
French gendarmerie checkpoints monitoring the reopening of the Route Provinciale 1 near the village of Saint Louis, near Nouméa on 3 February 2025 Photo: Haut-commissariat de la République en Nouvelle-Calédonie
In a post-riot tense climate, in the weeks following the beginning of the May 24 riots, the RP1 was regarded as unsafe for motorists, especially near the village of Saint-Louis, widely regarded as a pro-independence stronghold.
Several clashes between locals and law enforcement agencies took place there, as well as carjackings, thefts and assaults.
The road portion, which at times had been cordoned off and closed to traffic, was finally reopened on 27 January 2025 under tight police security.
However, at least 100 gendarmes remain mobilised daily on this segment to monitor any possible criminal activity, Gendarmerie head, Major General Nicolas Matthéos, said during the same signing ceremony, in early February.
