Police fire tear gas, rubber bullets as Madagascar protesters rally

March comes aft ‘Gen Z’ anti-government protesters cull President Andry Rajoelina’s attempts to defuse tensions.

At slightest 1,000 anti-government protesters person marched successful Madagascar’s superior to request that the president resign, arsenic constabulary utilized teardrop gas, stun grenades and rubber bullets to disperse the crowds.

The objection connected Thursday comes successful the 3rd week of the astir important unrest to deed the Indian Ocean land federation successful years.

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Organised by “Gen Z Madagascar”, which describes itself arsenic a “peaceful, civic movement”, the protests were archetypal sparked by vexation implicit h2o and powerfulness cuts but soon expanded to see choler implicit allegations of corruption and nepotism.

The rally connected Thursday came aft protestation organisers called for a wide onslaught and rejected President Andry Rajoelina’s attempts to defuse the tensions rocking the country.

Police fired teardrop state and rubber bullets astatine immoderate of the demonstrators, who responded by throwing stones.

Tear state fired adjacent a maternity ward forced nursing unit to determination premature babies to the backmost of the building, the AFP quality bureau reported.

At slightest 4 radical were injured by rubber bullets and 2 by projectiles from stun grenades, according to AFP, citing 2 of its reporters connected the country and 2 section aesculapian organisations.

The protests, which began connected September 25, led to President Andry Rajoelina, 51, firing his full cabinet. Earlier this week, he appointed Ruphin Fortunat Zafisambo, a subject general, arsenic premier minister.

Rajoelina has ignored protesters’ calls for his resignation, accusing those calling for him to measurement down of wanting to “destroy our country”. Protesters rejected an invitation connected Wednesday to conscionable with Rajoelina.

Rajoelina came to powerfulness successful a 2009 subject coup, having himself campaigned for reform. He concisely stepped down successful 2014 but was elected successful 2018.

‘Problem is the system’

Only astir a third of Madagascar’s 30 cardinal people have entree to electricity, according to the International Monetary Fund. Daily powerfulness cuts often transcend 8 hours, and Jirama, the authorities vigor company, has been accused of corruption and mismanagement, fuelling nationalist anger.

Despite affluent earthy resources, astir three-quarters of Madagascar’s colonisation of 32 cardinal lived beneath the poorness enactment successful 2022, according to World Bank figures.

The Indian Ocean island’s per capita gross home merchandise (GDP) fell from $812 successful 1960 to $461 successful 2025, according to the World Bank.

“We’re inactive struggling,” Heritiana Rafanomezantsoa, 1 of the marchers successful Antananarivo, told AFP connected Thusday.

“The occupation is the system. Our lives haven’t improved since we gained independency from France.”

The state gained afloat independency from France successful 1960.

Though the protests started peacefully connected their archetypal time connected September 25, they turned chaotic arsenic unrest dispersed done Antananarivo aft constabulary utilized teardrop state and rubber bullets to disperse demonstrators. The United Nations has said that astatine slightest 22 radical person been killed since protests began, either by information forces oregon by unit successful the aftermath of demonstrations. Rajoelina disputed that fig connected Wednesday.

Twenty-eight protesters person been referred to the prosecutor’s bureau for ceremonial charges, their lawyers said connected Wednesday.