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This article examines how in the former settlement colony of New Caledonia, in the process of decolonization, the social issue of violence against women within couples and families, which affects Kanak women more than other Caledonian women, has been framed as a public concern. After recalling the scale of this violence and examining the patterns of feminicide, which reveal strong gender inequalities, the article shows how the forms of public action differ depending on whether it is initiated from a feminist or a familialist perspective. An analysis of the range of policy responses highlights the weight of reactionary familialism in relation to the heritage of missionaries and a long history of hostility to divorce.