The visit to the Régiment du Service Militaire Adapté (RSMA), a genuine vocational integration tool for young people in difficulty, was very much appreciated and gave everyone an idea of the diversity of the educational activities of this very special unit. Other visits, such as those to the gendarmerie, the Joint Staff Operations Centre and the French Polynesia Air-Sea Rescue Coordination Centre (JRCC), enriched the session's programme by providing hands-on experience in the field. Static and dynamic presentations, as well as discussions with the speakers, enabled each theme to be explored in greater depth and fuelled debate.
The wreath-laying ceremony at the monument to Free France was a highlight of this final week. It was an opportunity for the Director of the IHEDN to recall that the announcement of the armistice in June 1940, signed by Marshal Pétain, had plunged the Établissements Français de l'Océanie (EFO) into shock and dismay. On 2 September 1940, Tahiti rallied to the Free French and the Pacific Battalion took part in the glorious moments of the Cross of Lorraine. At Bir Hakeim, this battalion, with its eleven companions of the Liberation, had saved the honour of France. In fact, the overseas patrol boat, which left Brest harbour on Saturday 16 March 2024, bears the name of one of those involved in the rallying of French Oceania to the Free French Forces, Teriieroo a Teriierooiterai.
To close the session, the five committees presented their reports and operational proposals. Prefect Eric Spitz, the French Republic's High Commissioner to French Polynesia, concluded the session with a message on the challenges still facing the territory. Finally, the certificates conferring auditor status were presented by Lieutenant General Benoît Durieux, Director of IHEDN, in the presence of Rear Admiral Geoffroy d'Andigné, Commander of the French Polynesian Armed Forces.
This highly successful session would not have been possible without the support of the Directorate General for Overseas France (DGOM).
