Breaking: Military seizes power in Madagascar as president impeached

An elite Madagascar subject portion said Tuesday it had taken powerfulness successful the Indian Ocean federation aft parliamentarians voted to impeach President Andry Rajoelina pursuing weeks of anti-government protests.

There were celebrations successful the streets of the superior aft the commandant of the CAPSAT subject unit, which joined the demonstrators astatine the weekend, announced that it was successful charge.

The presidency denounced “a wide enactment of attempted coup” and insisted that Rajoelina, successful hiding reportedly retired of the country, “remains afloat successful office”.

Rajoelina, 51, had precocious Monday refused increasing demands to measurement down from the protestation question that started connected September 25 implicit powerfulness and h2o shortages, and developed into a run against the president and ruling elite.

Outside the statesmanlike palace, CAPSAT commandant Colonel Michael Randrianirina work retired a connection announcing the suspension of the constitution.

A governing committee composed of officers from the army, gendarmerie and nationalist constabulary would beryllium established, helium said. “Perhaps successful clip it volition see elder civilian advisers.”

“It is this committee that volition transportation retired the enactment of the presidency,” Randrianirina said. “At the aforesaid time, aft a fewer days, we volition acceptable up a civilian government.”

“We person taken power,” helium confirmed to AFP.

Afterwards, officers from the portion rolled done the superior successful armoured Humvees and pick-up trucks en way to their base, wherever hundreds of soldiers stood successful enactment to person them.

Crowds lined the pavements, cheering and waving arsenic they passed, portion immoderate followed the convoy successful their ain cars, honking their horns successful a triumph thigh done a city still on edge.

“It’s a immense joy,” said businesswoman Baovola Zanarison Rakotomanga, 41, among the crowds celebrating astatine metropolis hall.

“We person suffered for truthful long… we anticipation to present beryllium capable to determination forward, united,” she told AFP.

– ‘Safe place’ –

Parliamentarians pushed up with the ballot to impeach Rajoelina for desertion of work contempt a bid by the presidency to artifact the question by ordering the dissolution of the nationalist assembly.

The ballot passed with 130 votes successful favour — good supra the two-thirds law threshold required.

The presidency said the league was “devoid of immoderate ineligible basis”.

But the law tribunal aboriginal validated the impeachment and confirmed Randrianirina’s authority.

After reports that helium had near the state with the assistance of France, Rajoelina — who has French nationality — said successful a nationalist code precocious Monday that helium was successful a “safe spot to support my life”.

He did not uncover his determination but immoderate reports said helium whitethorn person gone to Dubai.

Making wide helium would not measurement down, Rajoelina said helium was “on a ngo to find solutions” to the governmental situation and would not fto the impoverished federation “destroy itself”.

The comparatively low-key youth-led protestation question took a crook astatine the play erstwhile CAPSAT — which played a large relation successful the 2009 coup that archetypal brought Rajoelina to powerfulness — joined the protesters.

They were followed by the gendarmerie which admitted to “faults and excesses” against the demonstrations successful which astatine slightest 22 radical were killed, according to the UN, an aboriginal toll dismissed by the government.

At a caller rally extracurricular metropolis hallway Tuesday, demonstrators expressed choler astatine France, the assemblage ruler until independency successful 1960, accusing it of meddling successful the island’s affairs.

“It’s similar they’re colonising america again,” said civilian technologist Koloina Rakotomavonirina, 26. “We privation them to permission our land for good.”

Adding to statements of interest from the African Union and SADC determination bloc, a United Nations spokesperson said Tuesday “if determination is simply a coup underway, we would basal against that.”

“We’re trying to spot precisely what happens, erstwhile the particulate is settled,” said Farhan Haq, a spokesperson for the UN chief, Antonio Guterres.

The station Breaking: Military seizes powerfulness i...