The Sunday News
Johannesburg – Former Madagascar president Marc Ravalomanana’s family has been prevented from returning to the capital city, Antananarivo following their visit to see him, the family said on Friday.
“We are stuck in Antsiranana. We are not detained but we are being watched by the military – some of whom are now in plain clothes,” his son Tojo said.
“We are not able to fly back to Tana because the regime do not want us to have or host a media conference which we were scheduled to address at lunch time.”
Ravalomanana was seized by police shortly after his surprise return from exile. Ravalomanana, who was ousted in a coup in 2009, was picked up by armed police at his home in the capital Antananarivo after addressing supporters on his return from South Africa on Monday, French news agency Agence France-Presse reported.
Tojo said his mother had called the Prime Minister, who assured them that they would be allowed to return to the capital, but it appears that he has now been overruled.
Ravolomanana’s former Special Envoy, human rights lawyer Brian Currin, said: “This just goes to show that the government of Madagascar has no respect for democracy or the rule of law.
“The president addresses the UN and pretends that Madagascar is a democracy seeking reconciliation – but the opposite is true. It feels like the coup regime is back in control. We will once again be protesting to SADC, the African Union and international community”. – Sapa
