The Tjibaou cultural centre, named after the Kanak political leader Jean-Marie Tjibaou, was provided for in France's Matignon Accords of 1988 and aims to promote Kanak cultural heritage. "It also contributes to the necessary understanding of the issues at stake here around the identity reference specific to New Caledonia," says its director Emmanuel Tjibaou, the son of the Kanak leader. IMAGES AND SOUNDBITES