Communication Dans Un Congrès Année : 2025

Nuclear Testing and Militarization: French Imperialism and Tahitian Sovereigntie from the 1960s to the present day

Résumé

Between 1946 and 1996, the United States, the United Kingdom, and France conducted nuclear tests in Oceania (Marshall Islands, Kiribati, Johnston Atoll, Australia, French Polynesia). The nuclearization and militarization of the region shaped Oceanian history in the latter half of the 20th century and beyond. These three powers followed a common imperial pattern: selection of isolated and sparsely populated sites through a “selection of the irradiated”, asymmetrical relationships with local populations, projection of military power into “pioneer frontiers”, mobilization of local workers, concealment of health and environmental impacts from the tests, and suppression of opposition. Scholars such as Robert A. Jacobs (2013, 2022), Becky Alexis-Martin (2019), and many other researchers emphasize the mimetic behavior of these three powers as they exert nuclear imperialism and colonialism (H. M. Barker, 2004; C. R. Hill, 2018; A. Maurer, 2019). However, this comprehensive approach can be further refined, nuanced, and debated by considering France in greater depth. Thanks to declassified archives in 2021, it is now possible to trace in more detail the role of French Polynesia in this history. While France did follow this imperial model by militarizing French Polynesia, there are notable distinctions in its approach during tests at the Centre d’expérimentation du Pacifique (CEP): France structured its own “imperial system” (testing campaigns, relations with the territory, integration of local elites, manipulation of public opinion, “Frenchification” of Polynesians, an overt nuclearization coupled with concealment of the risks, and covert operations) as compared to the U.S. and British precedents. This perspective challenges the notion of a single form of nuclear imperialism: instead, we speak of multiple imperialisms. France positioned itself as a sovereign power in the Pacific, despite anti-nuclear protests and the emergence of Polynesian nationalism, thus amplifying the colonial character of its “imperial system”. The “global imperialism” approach tends to place the three powers on an equal footing, overlooking anti-nuclear actions and the agency of local populations in their own environments. Nuancing this approach emphasizes the critique of France’s argument that it “did no worse” than the Americans and the British.

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Dates et versions

hal-05287354 , version 1 (28-09-2025)

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  • HAL Id : hal-05287354 , version 1

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Renaud Meltz, Manatea Taiarui. Nuclear Testing and Militarization: French Imperialism and Tahitian Sovereigntie from the 1960s to the present day. ASAO 2025 Annual Meeting, Association for Social Anthropology in Oceania, Feb 2025, Nadi, Fiji. ⟨hal-05287354⟩
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