The African Union announced on Wednesday that it was suspending Madagascar “with immediate effect” following a coup in which an elite army unit seized power after President Andry Rajoelina was impeached.
Meanwhile, Col. Michael Randrianirina, leader of a recent military rebellion, has declared himself president and said the armed forces would govern the country for up to two years before elections are held.
Randrianirina, who led soldiers in ousting President Andry Rajoelina, told The Associated Press on Wednesday that he expects to be sworn in as the Indian Ocean country’s new leader within days, CBC reports.
“There must be an oath-taking to make his position official,” he said at his unit’s barracks, flanked by fellow officers. “We are staying here for at least 18 months, at most two years.”
The takeover followed weeks of protests by youth groups calling themselves “Gen Z Madagascar,” who demanded better governance and more opportunities in a nation grappling with deep poverty.
Randrianirina said he assumed the role after the country’s High Constitutional Court invited him to do so in Rajoelina’s absence, as the president fled Madagascar during the uprising.
“We had to take responsibility yesterday because there is nothing left in the country, no president, no president in the senate, no government,” Randrianirina said.
He added that the military leadership was “accelerating” the appointment of a new prime minister “so that the crisis in the country does not last forever,” but did not provide a timeline.
The military has dissolved all institutions except the lower house of parliament. A committee led by the armed forces will govern alongside a transitional government for a period of up to two years before organising elections.
Rajoelina, president since 2018, said he fled to a safe location fearing for his life and condemned the military takeover as an illegal coup attempt.
Randrianirina, who became a vocal critic of Rajoelina in recent years, had been arrested in November 2023 for allegedly instigating an army mutiny and released in February 2024 with a suspended sentence.
Residents have taken to the streets in Antananarivo, waving flags and chanting slogans as the military moved towards the presidential palace.
Madagascar has a long history of coups and attempted coups since gaining independence from France in 1960, and continues to struggle with poverty and corruption. GDP per capita has nearly halved since independence, while the country’s ranking on Transparency International’s corruption index fell from 118th to 140th.
The African Union said Madagascar is suspended from its bodies “until constitutional order is restored in the country.”
Analysts criticised the military intervention, highlighting the youth-led protests as a civil uprising.
“Gen-Zers in Madagascar have been on the streets of the country protesting the lack of essential services, especially water and electricity, and the negative impact on their lives for almost a month,” said Olufemi Taiwo, professor of Africana studies at Cornell University. “This is a civil society uprising and its resolution should not involve the military.”
French President Emmanuel Macron, who was asked whether France assisted Rajoelina in fleeing, said: “What I want to express here is our deep concern, and to affirm France’s friendship with the Madagascar people.”