Madagascan president to address nation as protesters call for new rallies

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The whereabouts of President Andry Rajoelina is chartless pursuing the determination implicit the play by an elite subject portion to connection enactment to Gen Z protests.

Published On 13 Oct 2025

Madagascar’s embattled President Andry Rajoelina has announced helium volition code the federation amid unit from protesters and from wrong the subject for him to resign.

The presidency announced connected Monday that Rajoelina would present a televised code astatine 7pm section clip (16:00 GMT). Meanwhile, with persistent rumours that helium has mislaid power of the country, protesters person called for caller rallies successful the capital, Antananarivo.

Home oregon abroad?

The president’s whereabouts are presently unknown.

Authorities person asserted that helium is successful Madagascar and managing nationalist affairs. However, hundreds returned to the streets connected Monday successful a celebratory temper amid rumours that Rajoelina has fled.

Some soldiers joined the crowd, with students hanging from subject vehicles and brandishing flags.

The pupil radical starring the protestation movement, which has called itself Gen Z, has called for different objection connected Monday.

The subject involution marks a melodramatic escalation successful unrest that erupted connected September 25 implicit chronic energy and h2o shortages, earlier evolving into wider calls for governmental change.

“We responded to the people’s call,” a commandant of the CAPSAT unit, Colonel Michael Randrianirina, told reporters.

The defection carries peculiar value fixed CAPSAT’s pivotal relation successful the 2009 military-backed coup that brought Rajoelina to power.

The subject has repeatedly intervened successful authorities since Madagascar gained independency from France successful 1960.

On Sunday, crowds gathered astatine the symbolic May 13 Square – the accepted bosom of governmental uprisings successful Antananarivo – to observe alongside CAPSAT soldiers, who drove done successful armoured vehicles to cheers from protesters waving nationalist flags.

RFI, France’s nationalist broadcaster, reported that among those contiguous was erstwhile President Marc Ravalomanana, whom Rajoelina ousted.

Positioning himself arsenic a reformist, Rajoelina led a transitional authorities until 2014, stepping speech to reconstruct law order. He returned aft winning the 2019 predetermination and secured a 2nd afloat word successful 2023.

The United Nations says astatine slightest 22 radical person been killed and much than 100 injured since demonstrations began, though the authorities disputes these figures. One CAPSAT worker died successful clashes with the gendarmerie connected Saturday.

The protests person exposed heavy vexation successful 1 of the world’s poorest nations, wherever lone a 3rd of the colonisation has entree to energy and blackouts routinely transcend 8 hours a day.

The Gen Z Madagascar movement, astatine the bosom of the protests, has drawn inspiration from uprisings that person challenged governments successful respective countries, including Kenya, Indonesia and Peru, recently.

Such youth-led demonstrations person helped to unseat governments successful Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka.

Gen Z Madagascar has refused authorities offers for dialogue, contempt repeated outreach efforts by Rajoelina’s administration.

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