Melanesia 2000 was the first festival of Melanesian arts, first held in Noumea, New Caledonia in September 1975, supported by

Jean-Marie Tjibaou Jean-Marie Tjibaou (January 30, 1936 – May 4, 1989) was a French politician in New Caledonia and leader of the Kanak independence movement. The son of a tribal chief, Tjibaou was ordained a Catholic priest but abandoned his religious vocation fo ...

. It had its origins in the women's association, Smiling Melanesian Village Women's Groups which was formed in 1971 and advocated the idea of a cultural festival to promote

Kanak The Kanak (French spelling until 1984: Canaque) are the indigenous Melanesian inhabitants of New Caledonia, an overseas collectivity of France in the southwest Pacific. According to the 2019 census, the Kanak make up 41.2% of New Caledonia' ...

arts.

References

External links

Recording of Melanesian 2000
Culture of New Caledonia 1975 in Oceania 1975 in New Caledonia {{NewCaledonia-stub