Journalism of Courage
Madagascar President Andry Rajoelina has said that he is sheltering in a “safe place” after allegedly an attempt was made on his life amid weeks of protests and uprising in the country calling for him to resign. During a live broadcast to the nation via Facebook, President Rajoelina, 51, alleged “a group of military personnel and politicians planned to assassinate me.”
Though the Madagascar president didn’t reveal his exact whereabouts, earlier unconfirmed reports stated that he had fled the country on a French military aircraft. A Reuters report, quoting the head of the opposition, a military source and a foreign diplomat, stated that Rajoelina fled the African nation as young protesters toppled the government amid a Gen Z unrest.
Madagascar has been witnessing a nationwide protest, which has been mainly led by young demonstrators, with a goal to oust the incumbent government. The protests has been dubbed as “Gen Z Mada” and it led to President Rajoelina dismiss his entire government and make concessions for the protesters but it received no avail to placate the young protesters.
Rajoelina hasn’t been seen since Wednesday, and over the weekend the president’s office said that attempts were being made to oust him from power. Due to chaos, his address to the country was delayed several times on Monday as soldiers threatened to seize the state TV headquarters in Madagascar, BBC reported.
But during his Facebook broadcast, the president said, “Since 25 September, there have been attempts on my life and coup attempts. A group of military personnel and politicians planned to assassinate me. I was forced to find a safe place to protect my life. There is only one way to resolve these issues; that is to respect the constitution in force in the country.”
A military source told Reuters that Rajoelina fled Madagascar, a former French colony, on a French military aircraft on Sunday. Though the reports remained unverified.
(with inputs from Reuters)
