Madagascar Officers Claim Coup

South Africa  |  11.17.10   By PoliticsAfrica Staff

A colonel with the Madagascan military has said he and 20 other top-ranking officers have taken over the Indian Ocean island nation of Madagascar.

Colonel Charles Andrianasoavina, one of the main backers of a power-grab last March by Andry Rajoelina, the president, made the coup declaration on Wednesday at a military base.

He was joined by the president’s head of security.

The two gave no word on the whereabouts of Rajoelina, who is believed to be in Antananarivo, the capital.

Andrianasoavina told reporters that his group planned to seize the presidential palace and main airport.

The supposed coup comes in the midst of a referendum to accept or reject a new constitution that allows for Rajoelina to stay in power indefinitely, but the country’s military leadership vowed to crush any rebellion.

“If there is a mutiny, we have to intervene. We cannot negotiate with someone who mutinies,” Andrianazary, a military police general, was reported by the Reuters news agency as saying.

Members of the security forces have been on the streets during the referendum voting, which continued, as few on the island were apparently aware of the officers’ declaration.

Observers say the environment outside the presidential palace in the city centre remains calm.

Repeated Coups

Observers fear an increase in instability in a country that has experienced frequent political upheaval.

The country’s military has suffered from rifts since Rajoelina’s 2009 coup, when he toppled Marc Ravalomanana, the then leader, and scrapped the old constitution.

That coup, which had backing from large parts of the military, created turmoil on the island, prized by foreign investors for its oil, nickel, cobalt, and uranium deposits.

International mediators brokered a series of power-sharing agreements between Rajoelina, Ravalomanana, and two other former presidents, but they all collapsed in bickering over the allocation of ministerial posts.

A small group of dissident military police briefly seized control of a military camp in May, before being quashed by the security forces.

Tensions have risen in the capital in the run up to the vote, with sporadic skirmishes between police and opposition supporters after the government banned public meetings.

Constitutional Referendum

Voting on the new constitution has taken place, but the ballot has been controversial, with the three main opposition parties, each headed by a former president, boycotting the vote.

The new constitution lowers the minimum age for a president by five years to 35, which would legitimize 36-year-old Rajoelina’s rule and allow him to renege on a previous pledge that he will not contest the next vote–slated for May 4, 2011.

Africa’s youngest leader, Rajoelina rose to power on wave of popular support, galvanizing widespread anger over Ravalomanana’s increasingly autocratic style of leadership.

But some analysts say Rajoelina’s failure to end the leadership squabbles and deliver on populist pledges have eroded his popularity.

The proposed law also sets no deadline for presidential elections, which could allow Rajoelina to remain in power indefinitely

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