Froots Editor Ian Anderson has forwarded us another dispatch from the rapidly developing political drama in Madagascar, the giant Indian Ocean island off Africa's southeastern coast.

Crisis Brewing in Madagascar
Fiona O'Brien (REUTERS)

Antananarivo - African mediators flew to Madagascar on Wednesday to help solve a slow-burning political crisis as an alternative "government" warned of civil war if the army did not unite in opposition to President Didier Ratsiraka. The head of Ratsiraka's army also talked of the possibility of a civil war and called for the army to remain neutral.

The arrival of a four-man Organisation of African Unity (OAU) team signals renewed outside interest in a power struggle diplomats fear could, if mishandled, become another blot on Africa's record of violent political transitions. "We have not come to negotiate. We are a contact group. We are here to renew contact and start dialogue," team leader Antonio Mascarenhas, a former president of Cape Verde, said. He spoke to reporters before he and fellow delegates, including Senegalese parliament vice-president Abdoulaye Bathili, headed off for talks with Ratsiraka.

The OAU, the United Nations, the United States and former colonial power France have all condemned as unconstitutional the February 22 proclamation by opposition leader and Antananarivo mayor Marc Ravalomanana that he is president. OAU and UN mediators briefly visited early in the two-month-old deadlock but have stayed away for weeks, amid criticism from some residents that the international community has shown a lack of commitment to helping solve the crisis.

Ravalomanana's supporters accuse Ratsiraka, one of Africa's longest serving rulers, of cheating during December presidential elections to deny victory to Ravalomanana. Ratsiraka denies the charges and provincial governors allied to him said on Tuesday they had set up a rival capital to regroup against opposition protesters who have seized Antananarivo.

Ravalomanana commands massive support in the capital but it is unclear how popular he is in the countryside of the large Indian Ocean island of 15 million. Though the dairy tycoon has the support of some parts of the army - including his newly appointed defence minister, General Jules Mamizara - observers say the armed forces remain split between Ravalomanana and Ratsiraka.

In a sharp escalation of political rhetoric, Mamizara told a news conference the army had to unite on Ravalomanana's side. "The fatherland is in danger. Chaos threatens us. It is not the moment to hesitate. It is time to reunite the officers who defend democracy, the republican principle," he said. "We have to assume our historical responsibility, faced with the peril of division. We must stand firm faced with the spectre of civil war," he said.

But in a letter addressed to Mamizara, the head of Ratsiraka's army, General Ismael Munibou, warned that in splitting the army Ravalomanana risked pushing the country towards civil war. "We are facing problems that are apparently inextricable and dangerous for the unity of the armed forces," Munibou said. "As head of the Madagascan army I have decided the army should remain neutral ... are you ready to spill Madagascan blood?" he said in the letter obtained by Reuters on Wednesday.

General election results produced by the government showed no candidate won a majority, prompting officials to declare a March 24 run-off. Ravalomanana says he won and will not take part.

Western diplomats said Ratsiraka, a former admiral, has in effect lost control of the capital where he declared martial law last week in a last-ditch bid to retain control. General Leon Claude Raveloarison, appointed by Ratsiraka to impose martial law in the capital, sought to explain his softly, softly approach in which mass demonstrations have been allowed to continue and no curfew has been enforced.

Troops sent by Ratsiraka to protect the ministries stood and watched on Monday as members of an alternative 18-member cabinet appointed by Ravalomanana strode through the gates and took up their posts to rapturous cheers from the crowd.

Raveloarison said soldiers deployed at the ministry buildings had obeyed orders by letting Ravalomanana's people in. "The order was only to stay in place, not to leave. You have to understand my strategy," he said, adding only that he had three months to restore order in the capital and would reconsider his tactics day by day. He said he had only talked once briefly to Ravalomanana but was still hoping to arrange a meeting. "We need to see each other first to understand each other and to want to resolve the problem," he said.

Madagascar General Warns of Civil War Over Political Dispute
VOA News
6 Mar 2002 23:14 UTC

Madagascar's army chief says the military is neutral in the political dispute between the president and his rival, but he warns that the country may be heading to civil war unless the crisis is quickly resolved. Members of Madagascar's military have begun to take sides in the election result dispute between President Didier Ratsiraka and his challenger, Marc Ravalomanana.

In an open letter Wednesday, Defense Minister Ismael Munibou appealed for unity in the army and military neutrality to maintain peace in the country. He warned that "Madagascan blood will spill" if the army is divided over the political dispute.

Mr. Ravalomanana says he won the December 16 presidential election outright and has declared himself president. He has refused to take part in a second round of voting scheduled for later this month. After Mr. Ravalomanana named a rival government last week, his supporters began to take over government buildings in the capital this week and installed their ministers.

Meanwhile, a delegation from the Organization of African Unity, OAU, is in Madagascar in an effort to resolve the island nation's political crisis. The group, led by former Cape Verdian President Antonio Mascarenhas Monteiro, met Wednesday with President Ratsiraka in the coastal town of Toamasina. The president moved the seat of the government to Toamasina Tuesday after weeks of opposition protests paralyzed the capital.

Mr. Mascarenhas told reporters that the OAU delegation is in Madagascar not to negotiate but to renew contact and start dialogue between the two sides. The delegation was expected to meet with Mr. Ravalomanana later in the day. The international community has refused to recognize the opposition leader's attempted takeover and has appealed to Mr. Ravalomanana to take part in the second round vote, March 24.

Madagascar squeeze on fuel supply
March 7, 2002 Posted: 10:43 AM EST (1543 GMT)

ANTANANARIVO, Madagascar (Reuters) -- The screens on the petrol dispenser at a garage in Ankadimbahoaka district of the Madagascan capital are blank. A blackboard blocks the entrance to the forecourt, "No petrol today" written in white chalk. Political crisis has Antananarivo in its grip and residents are finding it tough to get on with their lives.

Mayor Marc Ravalomanana has declared himself president after disputed elections, in defiance of the constitution and incumbent President Didier Ratsiraka. But though the majority of the city firmly back Ravalomanana, Ratsiraka supporters have blocked roads leading to the capital, cutting off fuel supply routes and leaving petrol stations running on empty. "Because of the barricades, we can only find petrol on the black market, it is so expensive -- about three times the normal price," said Danny Hassan, pumping his accelerator to try and restart his white Renault on a near-empty tank.

Streets normally clogged by heavy traffic are virtually empty as residents are forced to leave their cars at home. In fuel depots, empty orange barrels sit redundant. Gates are padlocked in front of gas canisters the owners are saving in the hope of getting a better price once stocks run completely dry. For those with money in their pockets, it is still possible to get some fuel. In the Tsaralalana district -- meaning "good law" but known for its prostitutes and black marketeers -- people buy petrol at three to four times its usual price.

Just 500 metres yards from an empty petrol station forecourt, grimy notes change hands as residents funnel pink liquid from black market jerry cans into plastic coca cola bottles. "Most of the stations in town are empty," said Rivo Rasamison, who works as a driver and says he is only guaranteed fuel because of good contacts in the business.

"And we hear that the barricades will get worse. Ratsiraka's supporters have stopped everyone getting through."