Pallade Veneta - New Caledonia sees fourth night of troubles but France says Pacific territory 'calmer'

Opposition to a French plan to impose new voting rules have spiralled into deadly violence in the archipelago between Australia and Fiji, which is one of several territories around the globe that remain part of France.

State of emergency powers had enabled security forces to impose "a calmer and more peaceful situation" around the capital Noumea for the first time since the troubles started on Monday, the French government office on the island said in a statement early Friday.

But it said there had been "fires at a school and two companies".

The violence is the worst seen in New Caledonia, which has a population of aboout 270,000, since troubles involving independence radicals in the 1980s.

Palm-lined boulevards in Noumea were littered with debris and patrolled by armoured vehicles, while some mainly indegenous locals piled up objects to make roadblocks on Thursday.

A second gendarme was killed on Thursday, officials said, with a source telling AFP the officer had been hit by friendly fire. Three men aged between 17 and 36 have also died in the troubles.

Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said about 1,000 extra security forces would be sent to New Caledonia -- adding to the 1,700 already present -- while authorities would push for "the harshest penalties for rioters and looters".

Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said reinforcements had started arriving Thursday. Troops have been called in to secure New Caledonia's international airport, which has been closed to commercial flights, and main ports.

TikTok has been banned because it was being used by protesters, according to authorities.

The social media giant called the decision "regrettable" in a statement and said that "no request or question, no demand to withdraw content, had been made by local authorities or the French government".

As part of the state of emergency about 200 of an estimated 5,000 "rioters" have been detained, French authorities said.

Security forces placed five suspected independence activists accused of organising violence under house arrest, according to authorities.

It added that "people have been ambushing law enforcement officers" with "sustained fire from hunting rifles".

Sixty-four of the injured are police and security forces.

- 'People are on edge' -

Onlookers wandered around burnt-out shops, looted shelves and discarded packaging.

Between 80 and 90 percent of the grocery distribution network in Noumea -- from shops to warehouses and wholesalers -- had been "wiped out", Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCI) president David Guyenne said. The CCI has said about 200 million euros of damage has been carried out.

Nicole George, an Australian professor visiting Noumea, told AFP she had seen residents armed with improvised weapons manning barricades.

"It is a very tense situation. People are on edge. They are frightened. They are tired," she said.

- 'Interference' -

While it has on three occasions rejected independence in referendums, the cause retains strong support among the Kanak people, whose ancestors have lived on the islands for thousands of years.

Colonised by France from the second half of the 19th century, it has special status, unlike the country's other overseas territories.

French lawmakers on Tuesday pushed forward plans to allow outsiders who moved to New Caledonia at least 10 years ago to vote in the territory's elections.

Pro-independence forces say that would dilute the vote of Kanaks, who make up about 40 percent of the population.

A group of independence movements in French territories around the world convened by Azerbaijan issued statements about the riots on Tuesday and Thursday, prompting Darmanin to accuse Baku of "interference".

Baku swiftly rejected the allegation as "baseless".

Voting reform must still be approved by a joint sitting of both houses of the French parliament.

But a videoconference between Macron and New Caledonian lawmakers planned for Thursday was cancelled as "the different players did not want to speak to one another", his office said.

C.Conti--PV