By GERALD IMRAY
Madagascar’s navy seized energy from the civilian authorities on Tuesday, a high-ranking commander introduced after President Andry Rajoelina fled the sprawling Indian Ocean island nation for his security.
The ouster of Rajoelina, who himself got here to energy as a transitional chief in a military-backed coup in 2009, capped weeks of protests led by younger individuals fed up with energy and water outages, persistent poverty and a scarcity of alternatives, amongst different points.
Rajoelina’s workplace issued a press release calling the coup “a critical breach of the rule of regulation” and insisting that the state “stays standing.” However Col. Michael Randrianirina, whose elite CAPSAT navy unit tipped the scales of energy within the nation final weekend by siding with the protesters, mentioned “We’re taking energy,” as demonstrators celebrated with troopers within the capital, Antananarivo.
Right here’s what to know in regards to the occasions that led to Rajoelina’s ousting.
A youth-led rebellion
The rebellion began weeks in the past when protests erupted over persistent water and electrical energy outages. It snowballed into bigger dissatisfaction with Rajoelina, alleged authorities corruption and poverty, which impacts about 75% of the nation of roughly 30 million individuals, in response to the World Financial institution.
The protests introduced 1000’s onto the streets in a number of cities and initially sparked a harsh crackdown by safety forces that left 22 individuals useless and greater than 100 injured, in response to the United Nations. The federal government disputed these figures.
Though civic teams and labor unions additionally joined in, the protests had been led by a gaggle calling itself “Gen Z Madagascar,” although contributors have insisted there isn’t a frontrunner and that they had been impressed by latest youth uprisings in Nepal and Sri Lanka.
Troopers be a part of the protests
A key second got here Saturday when Randrianirina and his troopers accompanied protesters to a most important sq. within the capital and demanded that Rajoelina step down. The CAPSAT troops exchanged gunfire with gendarmerie safety forces nonetheless loyal to Rajoelina, and one CAPSAT soldier was killed, in response to Randrianirina.
On Tuesday, protesters cheered on the CAPSAT troops as they stood on armored automobiles in Antananarivo’s streets. Though Rajoelina’s workplace mentioned just some CAPSAT troops had been backing the protesters, the unit mentioned different navy models, together with the gendarmerie, stand with them.
CAPSAT is the unit that additionally rebelled towards the Madagascar authorities in 2009, resulting in the military-backed coup that introduced Rajoelina to energy as a transitional chief. There are sturdy parallels between the 2 coups, in that CAPSAT troops additionally joined a wave of anti-government protests towards then-President Marc Ravalomanana 16 years in the past, forcing him into exile.
24 hours of turmoil
After weeks of stress on Rajoelina, a chaotic 24-hour interval started Monday when the president’s workplace introduced he would ship a speech to the nation on state tv and radio. The speech was delayed for hours and was lastly solely broadcast on social media after troopers arrived on the state broadcaster’s buildings.
In his speech from a secret location, Rajoelina mentioned he had been pressured to flee to a secure place due to a plot to assassinate him at his palace. He known as for the structure to be revered and pushed again towards calls for for him to resign.
He then tried to reassert his authority by issuing a decree dissolving parliament on Tuesday, however lawmakers ignored it and overwhelmingly voted to question him. Proper after the vote, Randrianirina introduced the navy takeover whereas standing with different troopers in entrance of a historic presidential palace within the capital. He mentioned the armed forces would kind a council made up of officers from the overall navy and the gendarmerie, a navy unit that polices civilians, and would appoint a major minister to “rapidly” kind a civilian authorities.
France reportedly helped Rajoelina escape
Malagasy and French are each official languages in Madagascar, which is the world’s largest vanilla producer and, due to its geographic isolation, is understood for its biodiversity. Since gaining its independence from French colonial rule in 1960, it has struggled to beat poverty and political instability, together with a sequence of coups.
A report mentioned that Rajoelina was flown out of Madagascar on a French navy airplane, throwing scrutiny on any position the previous colonial energy performed in serving to him escape.
Requested about any French involvement in extracting Rajoelina, French President Emmanuel Macron mentioned in Egypt on Monday: “I’m not confirming something at the moment. What I wish to categorical right here is our deep concern, and to affirm France’s friendship with the Madagascar individuals.”
Rajoelina reportedly additionally has French citizenship, which has been a supply of discontent for some Madagascans.
AP Africa information: https://apnews.com/hub/africa
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