Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Antananarivo (Agenzia Fides) – "We saw a number of truckloads of armed soldiers head toward the base where the coup leaders are holed up," Fides was told by an editor of Radio Don Bosco, whose head office is located 150 meters from the barracks on the outskirts of Antananarivo, the capital of Madagascar, where a group of officers who attempted a coup against the Transition Authority have taken refuge. "They are probably soldiers that remained loyal to the regime who are now surrounding the barracks. There are supposedly negotiations underway to find a peaceful solution to the crisis."
"Yesterday, September 17, around 1 pm local time, a group of officers from the RFI barracks, which are adjacent to another military installation, a naval base, launched a proclamation to the nation, claiming to overthrow the Transition Government and assume full powers," says the source of Fides." Among the rebelling officers, there are those who support the former President Marc Ravalomanana and others who have accepted the Transition President Andry Rajoelina, who assumed power in March 2009. Among the latter is General Noël Rakotonandrasana, former Minister of the Armed Forces, who played an important role in Rajoelina's rise to power.
It is unclear whether or not the military rebels, who supposedly number around twenty, are in contact with the "mouvances" of the three former heads of state, Ravalomanana, Albert Zafy, and Didier Ratsiraka, who oppose Rajoelina, but the source of Fides said that "last week, Ravalomanana and Zafy appealed to the armed forces to assume their responsibility in resolving the country's political crisis."
"Yesterday, around 5 pm, about 2,000 young people, mostly supporters of Ravalomanana, had blocked roads near the barracks of the rebels, but at 6:30 pm, a mixed force of army, security guards, and police intervened, dispersing the demonstrators with tear gas. Apart from this, the situation is calm," the source told Fides.
Yesterday, the country voted in the constitutional referendum which was held by Rajoelina but boycotted by the movements of the three former presidents. "The voter turnout was 40-50% and according to initial predictions the new Constitution will likely be approved with 70-80% of the votes cast. However, the final results will only be known within a couple weeks, as they have to send in data from the remote areas of the island," the source said. "The vote was held amidst calm, although there were some organizational problems. For example, several voters were not registered on the electoral roll. For this reason, the voting was extended until 6 pm (the polls were supposed to close at 4 pm) and the voters not included on the lists were allowed to vote, after presenting a document of identification. This decision was strongly criticized by the opposition," concludes our source. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides 18/11/2010)
