Madagascar votes amid violence, calls for boycott

After weeks of political violence, voters on the island of Madagascar went to the polls on Thursday to elect a president, even as ten of the thirteen candidates called for a boycott and accused the man they want to replace of unfairly making the process let it tilt. his favor.

Most of the 30 million inhabitants of this country on the southeastern coast of Africa live in poverty. A series of weather-related catastrophes recent years have damaged the country’s agricultural production, its economic mainstay, deepening the humanitarian crisis.

Madagascar is heavily dependent on foreign aid, and there are fears that a disputed election could lead some well-wishers to withdraw support, “leading the country to a chaotic situation,” said Andoniaina Ratsimamanga, a spokeswoman for the Red Crotch. assisting the humanitarian response in Madagascar.

Political instability has been a defining feature of Madagascar’s elections over the years The 2018 race saw efforts by Russia to influence the outcome through the paramilitary organization the Wagner Group. It is unclear whether Russia has any involvement in this year’s elections, or how much.

Since the start of the campaign in early October, demonstrators and security forces have clashed at political rallies and protests, with supporters of opposition candidates beaten, arrested and shot with rubber bullets and tear gas as they protested an electoral system they believe has been forged.

The leader of Madagascar’s National Assembly, as well as dozens of civil society organizations in the country, have called on the country’s electoral commission to postpone the vote due to the instability. The UN, several European countries and the United States have all expressed concern about the government’s violent crackdown on election rallies.

Nearly all candidates are asking voters to stay away from the polls, saying the most recent president, Andry Rajoelina, has unfairly benefited from state institutions run by his loyalists.

Mr Rajoelina resigned by law in September to run for re-election, but largely enjoys the powers of the incumbent. The ten candidates say state security forces disrupted their campaigns; that Mr Rajoelina agrees with the statements made in his favour; and that the National Election Commission is full of his allies. They also say that Mr Rajoelina is ineligible for a position because he has obtained French citizenship, arguing that the law requires him to renounce his Malagasy nationality as a result.

“It’s not fair and transparent,” Marc Ravalomanana, one of the candidates and himself a former president of the country, said in a telephone interview. Mr. Ravalomanana is an old enemy of Mr. Rajoelina, who has displaced him in a coup in 2009.

“It has been rigged,” Mr Ravalomanana said of this race.

A spokeswoman for Mr. Rajoelina pushed back, saying the same rules and institutions that oversaw previous elections in which Mr. Rajoelina did not prevail applied in this election.

“There are no tensions or political crises in Madagascar, only politicians who are candidates but do not want to go to the polls, and who do everything they can to create unrest,” spokeswoman Lalatiana Rakotondrazafy wrote in a text message. .

“The constitutional order must be respected and voters must be allowed to perform their civic duty peacefully,” she added.

Mr Rajoelina, a former disc jockey, ruled a transitional government after the 2009 coup but did not retain power in the 2013 elections. He regained power in the most recent elections in 2018.

Since the country’s independence from France in 1960, only the past two elections – in 2013 and 2018 – are believed to have seen a peaceful transfer of power. And even during those competitions, there were disputes and challenges over who could compete and the results.

The violence this year pales in comparison to what happened during the 2009 coup, when protesters set fire to buildings and many people were killed, said Ms. Ratsimamanga, a spokeswoman for the Red Cross. This year, Mr. Rajoelina’s political opponents have organized rallies attended by thousands of people that were largely peaceful, she said, but were often met by a hostile military response.

“Honestly, I think it’s kind of overblown,” she said of the military’s response, “because on the other side they don’t really have weapons.”

In a statement released last monthThe UN said it was “concerned about the deteriorating human rights situation in Madagascar,” adding that “security forces used unnecessary and disproportionate force to disperse four peaceful protests in two weeks.”

A few days later, a coalition of embassies including the European Union, the United States and Japan issued a joint statement supporting the UN position, urging “all to exercise the utmost restraint.” The United States gave $400,000 to the Madagascar Electoral Commission this year to promote education and awareness surrounding the elections.

At least one opposition candidate who believes Mr Rajoelina is trying to unfairly tilt the elections in his favor continued his campaign to defeat him.

Siteny Randrianasoloniaiko, a former judo champion who is now running for president, said boycotting the election was risky because it would leave Rajoelina unopposed for re-election. He encourages his supporters to vote and says that if they discover any discrepancies in the election process, he and his team will challenge the outcome.

“Let’s see,” he said in an interview. “Let’s wait and see.”