Photo credit: The Sun
The President of Madagascar has fled his country after the military joined anti-government protests.
Euro News reports that President Andry Rajoelina says he fled the country in fear for his life following a weeklong anti-government protests led to a military rebellion.
The protests led by the Gen-Z reached a pivotal point on Saturday as the elite military unit known as CAPSAT joined and called for the president and his ministers to step down. That prompted him to say that an illegal attempt to seize power was underway in the country and leave.
In a late-night speech, Rajoelina said, “I was forced to find a safe place to protect my life.”
He called for a dialogue to solve the situation and said the constitution should be respected. He neither said how he left the country nor where he was. However, a report claimed he was flown out of the country on a French military plane.
Rajoelina reportedly has French citizenship, Madagascar is a former French colony.
The protest is the most significant unrest facing the African island nation of 31 million people since Rajoelina first came to power. He came to power as the leader of a transitional government following a 2009 military-backed coup.
The CAPSAT unit said it now controls all the armed forces in Madagascar and has appointed a new officer in charge of the military, which was accepted by the defence minister in Rajoelina’s absence.
Commander Michael Randrianirina of CAPSAT said his soldiers had decided to stand with ;protesters. While denying the occurrence of a coup, he said it was up to the people to decide what happens next.
Although CAPSAT soldiers exchanged fire with security forces over the weekend, there wad no major fighting. While soldiers were riding on armoured vehicles and waving Madagascar flags, people were cheering them in the capital Antananarivo.
According to the United Nations, at least 22 people died and dozens were injured in the protests. The body criticized the “violent response” of Madagascar authorities to what was largely peaceful protests in the early days of the movement. The government has disputed the number of casualties.
A former prime minister under Rajoelina and one of the president’s closest advisers have also fled the country to Mauritius on Sunday. Meanwhile, the government of Mauritius has said it was “not satisfied” that the private plane had landed on its territory.
The Gen Z protesters who started the uprising on 25 September over chronic water supply and electricity outages that snowballed into wider discontent with Rajoelina and his government have mobilized over the internet and say they were inspired by the protests that toppled governments in Nepal and Sri Lanka.
