New Caledonia's

New Sensation In

Prison Scandal

From Fred Dunn in Noumea THERE was a new sensation in New Caledonia’s sensational prison scandal on April 26 when the death was announced of Roger Maylie, head of New Cale donia’s prison department.

An official statement said, enigmatically, that Maylie had died “during an acute crisis of depression”.

Maylie, a fonctionnaire from France, who had been in Noumea since 1954, was responsible, among other things, for the ad ministration of Noumea’s Nouville Prison, whose chief warder, Henri

Pommelet, is at present in custody awaiting trial.

Pommelet and six assistants were arrested and imprisoned following the death in January of a prisoner, Marx Arsapin, 25, who was beaten up at Nouville ( PIM, Feb., p. 15).

Two other prisoners, who had escaped from the prison with Arsapin, and who had been re captured on New Year’s Eve, were also beaten up.

At the height of the Arsapin scandal, Noumea newspapers clamoured loudly for Maylie’s head, attributing to him the final responsibility for Pommelet’s actions.

Subsequently, a report of a two man commission of inquiry into conditions at Nouville stated that “Pommelet’s superiors knew noth ing of the continued brutalities taking place at the prison”.

However, one of the two members of the commission—a

Melanesian, Theophile Wakolo Puye—refused to sign the report.

The other member was Mr.

Arnold Daly, a European lawyer.

Attacks by the Press on Maylie and others were cited by the French High Commissioner, Mr. Jean Risterrucci, in a speech to open the current session of the Territorial Assembly when he bitterly criticised New Caledonians over their attitude towards Metro politan Frenchmen, particularly fonctionnaires.

Members of the Assembly were astonished by the speech, and bitterly counter-attacked. The president of the Assembly, Mr.

Ohlen, said it was only the dignity of parliamentary procedure which prevented him from walking out.

The Nouville prison scandal has thus grown into something far bigger than it was at first. It has fanned flames of resentment of the New Caledonians towards their imported administrators.