New Caledonia: reconciling colonial past and common destiny

The subject of this dissertation is reconciliation in New Caledonia. More specifically, it focuses on spiritual reconciliation in Kanak lands, in the light of Kanak custom and the historical churches. The use of memory is discussed. The different uses that are discussed and analyzed are: the logic of rapprochement, the logic of distancing and the work of memory. Next, the two Kanak reconciliations (1998, 2004) held in the archipelago are evoked and studied in the light of theories relating to the politics of reparation. Finally, the preamble to the Nouméa Accord - in its singularity - lays the foundations for a settlement of the colonial dispute. This dissertation highlights the undeniable need for memory work in the settlement of the colonial dispute between Paris and Nouméa.