New Caledonia

thumb|The flags of New Caledonia New Caledonia (French: Nouvelle-Calédonie) is a sui generis collectivity of overseas France in the southwest Pacific Ocean, south of Vanuatu, about 1,210 km (750 mi) east of Australia, and 17,000 km (11,000 mi) from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre (New Caledonia) Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Chesterfield Islands, the Belep archipelago, Isle of Pines (New Caledonia) the Isle of Pines, and a few remote islets. The Chesterfield Islands are in the Coral Sea. French people, especially locals, call Grande Terre "Le Caillou" ("the pebble"). It is one of the European Union's Overseas Countries and Territories (OCTs), but is not part of the European Union. Quotes France’s Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin told his country’s legislature that some 42,000 people – about one in five possible voters in New Caledonia – are denied the right to vote under the 1998 Noumea Accord between France and the independence movement that froze the electoral roll. Stephen Wright and Stefan Armbruster, "New Caledonia curfew imposed after rioting over French constitutional change", Benar News (May 13, 2024) External links New Caledonia Category:Geography of France Category:Geography of Oceania