Protests escalate in Madagascar over President Rajoelina

Protests were ongoing in Madagascar on Tuesday, a day after the dissolution of the country's government.

President Andry Rajoelina appeared on state television on Monday night to announce the exceptional decision.

He expressed his sympathy to the families of the people killed in the protests and acknowledged the failings of his administration.

“Your demands have been heard, and I apologise if there are members of the government who have not done the work that the people expected,” Rajoelina said.

But the government's dismissal was not enough to calm the anger of the protesters and their main demand remains the same: the resignation of the head of state.

"Even if he fired the members of the government, the government did nothing to us. He is the one at the head of the country, not the government — he should go, and everything will be fine in the country," one Gen Z protester told Africanews.

"We’re not afraid, even if he puts us in prison, even if he kills us — we are protesting for our country," they added.

On the side of the dismissed ministers, only one has spoken so far: Paubert Mahatante, Minister of Fisheries, who declared on his Facebook page that minister or not, he will always remain a servant of the Malagasy people.

Water and power shortages

Demonstrators took to the streets of Madagascar starting Thursday, to protest against recurrent water and power shortages.

These Gen-Z led protests are some of the largest that Madagascar has seen in years, and the most serious challenge Rajoelina has faced since his re-election in 2023. 

In response, the government has imposed a nighttime curfew in Antananarivo since Thursday and in other major cities since Friday.  

On the ground, police also repeatedly used teargas and fired rubber bullets at demonstrators.  

The United Nations said at least 22 people have been killed and more than 100 injured during the demonstrations. The Malagasy ministry of foreign affairs has disputed these figures.