Madagascar prepared for military rule on Wednesday after an elite army unit seized control following President Andry Rajoelina’s impeachment, pledging to organize elections within two years as the international community expressed alarm over the unfolding crisis.
The impoverished Indian Ocean nation plunged into its deepest political turmoil in years when the CAPSAT military contingent took power shortly after parliament voted to impeach Rajoelina, who appeared to have fled amid escalating street protests.
This makes Madagascar the latest former French colony to come under military authority since 2020, joining Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Gabon, and Guinea.
CAPSAT commander Colonel Michael Randrianirina, who was confirmed as president by the top court, stated that the transition to civilian rule would last less than two years and include restructuring key institutions.
“It would be best to hold a swearing-in ceremony as soon as possible,” Randrianirina told local television Wednesday.
“It wasn’t a coup, it was a case of taking responsibility because the country was on the brink of collapse,” he said, after pledging elections in 18 to 24 months and informing local media that talks were in progress to appoint a prime minister and create a new government.
The transition is to be supervised by a committee of officers drawn from the army, gendarmerie, and police.
Randrianirina, a long-time critic of Rajoelina’s administration, had reportedly been jailed for several months in 2023 over an alleged coup plot.
The swift power shift has sparked widespread international concern.
The African Union told AFP on Wednesday it was suspending Madagascar “with immediate effect”, while the United Nations said they were “deeply concerned by the unconstitutional change of power”.
France emphasized in a statement that it was “now essential that democracy, fundamental freedoms, and the rule of law be scrupulously upheld.”
A spokesperson for Germany’s foreign ministry urged all sides to “act with caution in this currently somewhat confusing situation,” while Russia appealed for “exercising restraint and preventing bloodshed.”
The SADC regional security body — where Rajoelina had held the rotating presidency — also voiced concern.
– ‘Victory gave hope’ –
Antananarivo, the capital, remained calm on Wednesday, though uncertainty lingered about what would follow.
A concert took place on the symbolic Place du 13 Mai square, in front of city hall, where thousands of protesters and security forces had clashed days earlier.
The youth-led Gen Z movement, which began protests on September 25 over water and energy shortages before they grew into broader anger against the political elite, has welcomed Randrianirina’s intervention.
The colonel had declared he is “ready to talk to the youth and we are ready to answer the call,” Gen Z said on Facebook, repeating its demand for “systemic change”.
“We’re worried about what comes next, but we’re savouring this first victory that gave us hope,” 26-year-old Fenitra Razafindramanga, captain of Madagascar’s national rugby team, told AFP.
In Antsiranana, a northern city, an entrepreneur who identified herself only as Muriella expressed relief that Rajoelina was out of power.
“It feels like we’ve just been released from prison,” she told AFP, adding: “This is also a message to his successor: learn from this and don’t make the same mistakes.”
However, the presidency condemned the event as “a clear act of attempted coup” and insisted that Rajoelina — whose whereabouts remain unknown and who was last seen publicly a week ago — “remains fully in office.”
It said Wednesday that the constitutional court’s ruling was marred by procedural flaws and could destabilize the nation.
“This decision, tainted by multiple defects in both substance and form, is illegal, irregular, and unconstitutional,” it said.
Rajoelina, who was re-elected in disputed 2023 polls, first rose to power through a 2009 military-backed coup denounced by the international community, which froze foreign aid and investment for almost four years.
He defied growing calls to resign, declaring in a national broadcast from an undisclosed location on Monday that he was seeking ways to resolve Madagascar’s challenges.
Amid claims that France, the former colonial power, helped him flee, Rajoelina said he was in a “safe place to protect my life”.
