Élu il y a trois mille ans : Zur staatlichen Einbindung traditioneller Autoritäten in Neukaledonien

The Nouméa Accords of 1998 installed a new institution in the French Overseas Territory of New Caledonia. The Sénat Coutumier, the customary senate was intended as a kind of second parliamentary chamber representing the interests of the Kanak People, the original inhabitants of New Caledonia. Senate members were chosen by the eight customary spheres that were defined on linguistic assumptions. Each sphere delegates two members to the senate that is based in the capital city of Nouméa, most of whom are traditional high chiefs or their representatives. Some efforts were undertaken towards a greater legitimization of the senate by including women and the application of an election system for the designation of its members. Both suggestions where firmly refused by the senate. The senators rejected its development towards a second chamber of parliament and opted instead for supremacy over all traditional chiefdoms. To achieve this, they acquired the collection of yams cultivars developed by a French research agency and engaged in the reestablishment of original place names in the Northern Province of New Caledonia.