Madagascar Nears Brink of Civil War

Daily News Article — Posted on April 2, 2009

(by Gus Constantine, WashingtonTimes.com) – Six weeks of violent protests in which Madagascar’s elected president, Marc Ravalomanana, was forced to resign have pushed the huge island nation to the brink of civil war.

Daily protests to support or oppose the coup in what was a functioning democracy have grown and the number of people killed is nearing 100.

Alarmed by the deteriorating situation, leaders of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) this week suspended Madagascar’s membership in the regional bloc and threatened military action against the new leader, Andry Rajoelina, unless Mr. Ravalomanana is reinstated.

The broader African Union had taken similar action.

In Washington, the Millennium Challenge Corp. (MCC) announced Tuesday that it is placing a hold on a $110 million poverty reduction grant to Madagascar.

“This decision is made with deep regret,” said Rodney G. Bent, MCC’s acting chief executive.

Madagascar is the first country with which the MCC signed a compact after it was created by Congress in 2004. MCC is an agency designed to work with countries that are committed to good governance, the rule of law and democratic principles.

The SADC summit was held in Mbabane, the capital of nearby Swaziland, where the deposed president fled.

Mr. Ravalomanana’s presence in Swaziland drew crowds of protesters condemning the sanctuary provided to him. The United States and the European Union called the transfer of power a coup.

Stephen Hayes, president of the Corporate Council on Africa, a Washington-based trade group, likened the unraveling of the rule of Mr. Ravalomanana to a Greek tragedy, beginning as a hopeful era of democratic elections and descending to autocracy.

“There was the president-king who became blind to the hopes of his people and deaf to those who tried to tell him that the people were restive and he was in trouble,” Mr. Hayes wrote recently.

Mr. Hayes tried to warn the president during a visit to Antananarivo, the capital, but “he would not listen.”

Mr. Hayes, more in lamentation than in condemnation, noted that the president consolidated his monopoly over the dairy industry, the lifeblood of the rural nation, and was building “an empire of tourism.”

“The tipping point, however, was likely his plans to virtually give a massive amount of land to a foreign company” to grow food for export, he said.

Most of the Madagascar people depend on agriculture for their existence, Mr. Hayes said.

Mr. Rajoelina, 34, was sworn in as president last month, even though the nation’s constitution says he is too young to hold the office.

He was a media mogul, disc jockey, talk show host and elected mayor of the capital city, a post from which he was dismissed – before the coup – for advocating the overthrow of Mr. Ravalomanana.

Now Mr. Rajoelina appears to have alienated much of Africa, Europe and the United States. …

Copyright 2009 News World Communications, Inc. Reprinted with permission of the Washington Times. For educational purposes only. This reprint does not constitute or imply any endorsement or sponsorship of any product, service, company or organization. Visit the website at www.washingtontimes.com.

Background

(from a 3/18/09 DailyTelegraph article):

Madagascar, which has a population of 20 million and is the world's biggest vanilla producer, has been the scene of increasing violence in recent weeks.
More than 100 people have died in clashes with the security forces. Weeks of turmoil and street protests have crippled the £275 million-a-year tourism industry and worried foreign investors in the important mining and oil exploration sectors.
[President] Ravalomanana, 59, has been accused of running the country as a private business for his own benefit and that of his cronies - claims he denies. But the allegations were given added weight when reports emerged of a deal to lease most of the country's arable land to a South Korean company. Earlier, [President] Ravalomanana had promised to fight on after receiving phone calls of support from other African leaders.
The opposition insisted that the [34 year old Andry] Rajoelina, a telecommunications businessman who is constitutionally too young to become president himself, would head a "transitional authority" ahead of elections within two years.

(from the CIA World FactBook):

Formerly an independent kingdom, Madagascar became a French colony in 1896 but regained independence in 1960.
During 1992-93, free presidential and National Assembly elections were held ending 17 years of single-party rule.
In 1997, in the second presidential race, Didier Ratsiraka, the leader during the 1970s and 1980s, was returned to the presidency.
The 2001 presidential election was contested between the followers of Didier Ratsiraka and Marc Ravalomanana, nearly causing secession of half of the country.
In April 2002, the High Constitutional Court announced Ravalomanana the winner. Ravalomanana is now in his second term following a landslide victory in the generally free and fair presidential elections of 2006.