Commemorations have been held in New Caledonia to mark the 30th anniversary of the assassination of the pro-independence leader Jean-Marie Tjibaou.
The Kanak independence leader Jean-Marie Tjibaou, who was killed on the New Caledonia island of Ouvea in 1989. Photo: AFP or licensors
Mr Tjibaou was killed along with Yeiwene Yeiwene, who was another senior politician of the pro-independence FLNKS movement.
The two Kanak leaders were gunned down on the island of Ouvea by a local independence advocate Djubelly Wea who was upset with the signing of the 1988 Matignon Accords which ended years of unrest.
Mr Wea was shot dead by a guard.
In Ouvea, there was also a remembrance of the 19 Kanaks killed by French commandos in the Ouvea hostage crisis a year earlier.
In Hienghene in the north of the main island, where Mr Tjibaou used to be the mayor, this year's Tjibaou Cup sports events have been timed to conincide with the anniversary.
