"This is the [first] May Day since 1982 that we haven't held a march. It feels a bit sad, but that's the way it is," says 78-year-old Paulette Hmuzo during a gathering near a beach in Noumea, as France's though ban on demonstrations remains in force. Almost a year after an uprising on the island plunged New Caledonia into crisis, a pro-independence association stages worship songs and speeches amid. This comes as France's overseas territories minister, Manuel Valls, visits the territory. IMAGES AND SOUNDBITES