Madagascar president steps down
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Reuters
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Mart 18, 2009 00:00
ANTANANARIVO - Madagascar's President Marc Ravalomanana handed power to the armed forces yesterday, paving the way for an opposition takeover after a months-long power struggle on the Indian Ocean Island.
"He came to the conclusion this is best for the country. He behaved as a statesman," spokesman Andry Ralijaona said of the end of Ravalomanana's seven-year rule.
Madagascar's opposition movement said its leader Andry Rajoelina, whose protests precipitated the president's fall, would lead a transitional authority. Military chiefs told Reuters they would allow that despite disquiet abroad. "We can say that we are free. There is a lot of work that awaits us. It is the path that Madagascar must take," Rajoelina said, taking over Ravalomanana's city-center offices. Aides of the president said he had handed over to navy admiral Hyppolite Ramaroson, Madagascar's highest-ranking officer. But the army chief of staff said he favored Rajoelina, 34, a former disc jockey and sacked mayor of Antananarivo. The head of the paramilitary gendarmerie echoed his view.
The African Union, which opposes any unconstitutional transfer of power on a continent only too familiar with bloody uprisings, said the military should not hand over to the opposition. Some foreign powers, including the European Union, had warned they would cut aid to anyone coming to power by force.
Madagascar's opposition movement said its leader Andry Rajoelina, whose protests precipitated the president's fall, would lead a transitional authority. Military chiefs told Reuters they would allow that despite disquiet abroad. "We can say that we are free. There is a lot of work that awaits us. It is the path that Madagascar must take," Rajoelina said, taking over Ravalomanana's city-center offices. Aides of the president said he had handed over to navy admiral Hyppolite Ramaroson, Madagascar's highest-ranking officer. But the army chief of staff said he favored Rajoelina, 34, a former disc jockey and sacked mayor of Antananarivo. The head of the paramilitary gendarmerie echoed his view.
The African Union, which opposes any unconstitutional transfer of power on a continent only too familiar with bloody uprisings, said the military should not hand over to the opposition. Some foreign powers, including the European Union, had warned they would cut aid to anyone coming to power by force.