Eliane Tevahitua
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Eliane Tevahitua | |
|---|---|
| Vice-President of French Polynesia | |
| In office 15 May 2023 – 3 June 2024 | |
| President | Moetai Brotherson |
| Preceded by | Jean-Christophe Bouissou |
| Minister of Culture and the Environment | |
| Assumed office 15 May 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Heremoana Maamaatuaiahutapu |
| Member of the French Polynesian Assembly for Windward Isles 3 | |
| In office 5 May 2013 – 30 April 2023 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 23 July 1958[1] |
| Party | Union For Democracy Tavini Huiraatira |
Eliane Tevahitua (born 23 July 1958) is a French Polynesian politician and Cabinet Minister who was Vice-President of French Polynesia from 2023 to 2024.[2] She is a member of Tavini Huiraatira.
Tevahitua was born in Papeete and worked as a midwife. From 1994 to 2013 she was director of the School of Midwives.[1] In 2008 she graduated from the University of French Polynesia with a doctorate in Polynesian civilisation.[1] Her thesis was on the toponymy of the lands of Fa 'a'ä and Tahitian land representations.[1] She then worked as secretary of the Union of French-speaking women of Oceania (UFFO).[3]
She was elected to the Assembly of French Polynesia on the Union For Democracy (UPLD) list at the 2013 French Polynesian legislative election.[4] In the Assembly she served on the Permanent Commission, and the Budget and Finance Committee.[5] She was an advocate for nuclear-test victims, forcing the government to disclose more information on the health toll of French fallout.[6][7] She was re-elected at the 2018 election as a Tavini candidate.[8][9] In 2020 she opposed French immigration to Polynesia, calling it colonialist.[10] During the COVID-19 pandemic she denounced the government response as inadequate, and called for the introduction of mass-testing to protect the population.[11][12] She later urged the use of Chinese or Russian vaccines rather than waiting for France to supply them.[13]
She was not included in Tavini's final list for the 2023 election.[14] Following the Tāvini's election win she was appointed Vice-President and Minister of Culture and the Environment in Moetai Brotherson's new cabinet.[15][16]