Madagascar: Minister Resigns Over Killings

9 February 2009
allAfrica.com

Madagascar's defence minister, Cecile Manorohanta, resigned on Monday after police reportedly killed at least 25 people when they fired upon a demonstration in the capital, Antananarivo, at the weekend.

The BBC reported that Manorohanta said she could not accept that the blood of her compatriots be spilled, and that her resignation was likely to be interpreted as an indication that the army was losing confidence in President Marc Ravalomanana.

Agence France-Presse quoted the minister as saying that "As a mother, I do not tolerate this violence. It was agreed at government level that the security forces were meant to protect the population and its property."

For an account of the weekend's violence, see AllAfrica's French site.

Tagged:
Copyright © 2009 allAfrica.com. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.

AllAfrica publishes around 500 reports a day from more than 110 news organizations and over 500 other institutions and individuals, representing a diversity of positions on every topic. We publish news and views ranging from vigorous opponents of governments to government publications and spokespersons. Publishers named above each report are responsible for their own content, which AllAfrica does not have the legal right to edit or correct.

Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica. To address comments or complaints, please Contact us.