New Caledonia votes against independence from France

PARIS: The South Pacific archipelago of New Caledonia voted against independence from France on Sunday in a long-awaited referendum that capped a 30-year long decolonisation process.

A "yes" vote would have deprived Paris of a foothold in the Indo-Pacific region where China is expanding its presence, and dented the pride of a former colonial power whose reach once spanned the Caribbean, sub-Saharan Africa and the Pacific Ocean.

Based on provisional results and with a participation rate of nearly 80 percent, the "No" vote stood at 56.9 percent around 1300 GMT, local TV station NC La 1ere reported on its website. "The New Caledonians have chosen to remain French.

It is a vote of confidence in the French republic, its future and its values," President Emmanuel Macron said in a speech on French television.