The Malagasy dwarf Hippo

" When Humans Don't Seem to Count" Dallaire on Rwanda and Darfur

2009-11-09T19:39:00.017-05:00

That is the provocative title of today's presentation by Retired Lieutenant General Roméo Dallaire who served as the Force Commander of UNAMIR, the United Nations peacekeeping force during in Rwanda between 1993 and 1994. Dallaire is also a senator for Quebec, the author of the book: " Shake Hands with the Devil" about his experience during the Rwanda Genocide and co-creator of the "Will To Intervene" project, an initiative to prevent genocide and other crimes against humanity.

Regardless of his past heroics, Dallaire is clearly an attaching character. I was in the auditorium early when he entered. I hope he will forgive this comparison from a child of the 80's but his face reminded immediately of a mix of Viper from Top Gun and Charles Bronson.

The director of the The Princeton Center for Human Value is clearly moved to introduce him and present his many accomplishments.
Dallaire comes to stage to a rousing ovation and recalls how the last time he was here, students seemed to be a bit loss about how to serve in the aftermath of 9/11. He says he is glad to sense a renewed energy for service in the past year. Dallaire jokes that he likes to remind his American audience that in his opinion, his sides won the two major battles between US and Canada. T battle of Baldensburg and the sack of York (Toronto). He says:" you think you hurt us by sacking York but I am from Montreal, I am more than happy that you sacked that place".

The mood turns rapidly somber as Dallaire states:" The Rwandan Genocide is often billed as a failure of the UN, that is correct but it is also the failure of each individual state who has a stake in the organization with the capabilities to act but decided to do nothing".
But Dallaire says he wants to focus on trying to prevent such horrors from happening again, which is the focus of his "Will to Intervene" report ( and the blog here)
Dallaire start by explaining how classic war and classic peace keeping used to be. He shows a map of the first Gulf War, what he calls a General's dream because "it has a lot of arrows and a fairly manageable territory".

"That is not the reality of conflicts anymore" he says. "The challenge now is to decide in a guerrilla warfare whether to shot at a young lady who might be carrying a bomb or let her go and potentially be responsible for the deaths of your comrades." He explains that a new paradigm must be set: Ambiguity and complexity are now the norms of conflict. If war and peace conflict seems ineffective, what else can we do then ? He offers that the emphasis must be put on prevention. We live in a world today where technology allow us to shrink distance that used to be too much to overcome. We have become a much closer globe and that should help a great deal in preventing conflict.

He proposes 3 phases of conflict resolution:
1) conflict prevention 2) Crisis response 3) Reconciliation and Nation Building.

A poignant moment of his speech came when he recalled his mission in Rwanda:
"I was sent to protect civilians in Rwanda and my mission order became later to protect the lives of UN personnel we sent there to rescue Rwandan in the first place. "How did some lives become more important than others, I have no idea. I was told by a country official: we have no strategic interest there, no major financial commitments, the only thing left there are human beings. This kind of statement is what still drives me today. Are all Humans Humans ?
There were reporters doing an incredible job of reporting the massacres in Rwanda. The stories were shipped to Nairobi but the Rwanda genocide happened at the same time as the OJ Simpson trial so most of the stories were put on the back burner. Not everyone wanted the Rwandan crisis to be documented and for the general public to know of the inaction of certain governments in the face of a tragedy"

"The civilian population being used as an instrument war has to be clearly defined and recognized by people involved in conflict resolution. Children and women are used more often than not as instruments of war, may it be as soldiers or through rape as it is the case in Darfur"

After posing the debate between sovereignty and intervention in crimes against humanity, Dallaire notes that Chapter 8 clearly stipulates that a Humanitarian intervention is granted when a state does not fulfill its obligation to its people. Although powerful, it is still unclear when such conditions are fulfilled: Does Darfur fit ? he asks:

When it comes to a solution for Darfur, Dallaire seems to favor an accrued role for NGOs to palliate the failure of the states. He says the reason why it is not working right now is because the humanitarian, politics and military are not working as one. They need not to collaborate but go further and integrate their effort in one place so that they have a single aim.

He also advocates that we should not be afraid of staying longer in places where we intervene (including Afghanistan). We should stay until strong institutions are in place. He states:" we have been in Cyprus for 40 years and I don't hear anyone complaining".
He argues that a Superpower like the US should not be the "police of the world". It should let the "Middle Powers" ( Germany, Japan, Italy, Canada, India etc..)get more involved in conflict resolution all around the world.

During the Q and A, Dallaire explains why he is so bullish on the role of NGOs. He says that the strongest indication that Bashir is guilty of war crimes is that he kept kicking out all the NGOs like MSF that have come to attend to its people. He ponctuates the statement by saying: " if that is not the best indication that he is an asshole, I don't know what is" I think that may mark the first time a speaker pronounced the A word in a public event at Princeton. Well, Dallaire certainly earned the right to say it like it is.

He also grew angry retelling the story of a Rwandan soldier who still remembers 20 years later shooting at drugged child who was used as shield by the militia, and even angrier at recalling how rape is used as a systematic tool to create a brand new ethnicity in Darfur.

He says that the best thing Princeton students can do to help with conflict resolution in Africa is to go in rural villages and bring along a cheap laptop, with a solar panel and a satellite dish. Then set up a skype connection for the villagers, keep in touch with them and listen to their concerns regularly. That is how you prevent conflict from happening, he says, by being more attune with the daily struggles of your fellow human beings. Poverty, he asserts, is in 80% of cases the main reason for conflict. (I cannot help but point out that this seems to be a perfect fit for the mission of Global/Rising Voices project)

Yet a colleague of mine is unimpressed with Dallaire's emphasis on the role of NGOs. She argues that the NGOs have always been there but without the political will of the states, the work of the NGOs are pretty much useless. She argues that the students should look to run for office and have the testicular fortitude (she used a different word) to explain to their constituents why it is unacceptable for their country to watch a genocide happen and not do a thing about it.

I do like Dallaire's arguments but I agree that he is probably letting governments off the hook too easily. Maybe Dallaire is just being pragmatic and know for a fact that politics rarely make the ethical choice.

#Madagascar hit hard by Drought, Toxic spill and Pillage of Rain Forest

2009-11-05T00:09:00.006-05:00

Cross-posted from Global Voices:

The political direction of Madagascar, marred in total uncertainty since the coup d'etat in March, is currently being decided in Madagascar as the international community is again trying to mediate an agreement between the various political movements. The president of the African Union and one of the mediators present in Addis Ababa Jean Ping opened the meeting by stating:

"The reality as you know it on the ground in Madagascar is characterized by fatigue that is felt by the people of Madagascar, people who are hoping the crisis will come to an end. A crisis to which, after all, they are the hostages. Whereas the socio-economic situation in your country is getting worse day by day. The people of Madagascar deserve better destiny and that depends completely on you"

This sentiment seems to be shared by a large portion of the blogosphere who focused their attention on the other challenges affecting Madagascar. Several provinces are currently plagued by the cumulative disastrous effects of a severe drought, the toxic spill of a ship wreck that poisoned the livelihood of thousands of fishermen and the ecological disaster of illegal logging of the rain forests.

The ecological scandal of the Gulser Ana toxic spill

The Gulser Ana was a Turkish freighter transporting Phosphate that sunk off the coast of Madagascar, spilling toxic waste in the process and killing migrating whales and causing illness among fishermen community. Although the disaster has been reported in a few media recently, the ship started to sink two months ago as Malagasy bloggers signaled on their blogs back in early September.
Tomavana wrote on his blog (fr):

En plus d’écarter le drame écologique du Sud de l’île des actualités nationales, la controverse politique autour de ces nouvelles nominations pose la question du suivi de ce dossier sensible

The political drama not only steers away the focus from this tragic event but it makes one wonder who will be accountable for following up and taking charge of the issue.

Joan asks simply: "Have you heard of the Gulser Ana ?". In the comment section, Capt Collin Smith explores the possible causes of the grounding:

The only explanation which can exculpate the Captain and Officer of the Watch of this vessel is mechanical breakdown. Anything else is human error, and therefore incompetence, if not recklessness. How can a ship go aground in perfect visibility if the OOW and Captain are paying attention and properly trained? [..] Another practice to save money. The Captain and OOW should have been arrested when they got ashore, and held.

Mialisoa reports on her blog that (fr):

les habitants « souffrent de problèmes respiratoires, et de maladies cutanées et diarrhéiques ». Car non seulement ces personnes ont été exposées aux déchets toxiques, mais le nettoyage des zones polluées s’est fait sans vêtements de protection et sans équipements adéquats

The locals suffer from respiratory problems, skin diseases and diarrhea. Not only were the people exposed to toxic waste but the clean up was also performed without adequate equipments and protective gears

The lack of report early on in the media prompted this reaction from Tomavana on twitter:

"@fanjakely j'ai l'impression que les habitants Sud #Madagascar sont des malgaches de 2nde zone. J'entends nos beaux discours mais nous sommes pas #Solidaire"

"@fanajkely I have the impression that the people from the South of Madagascar are considered 2nd class Malagasy citizens. I hear a lot of nice speeches but we are not showing solidarity"

Unfortunately that was not only the only source of worries in the region.

Severe drought

Rain has been very scarce in the Southern region. According to the Guardian, the unseasonal dry weather caused by climate change (10% increase in temperature) has prompted a severe drought and warning signs of famine for the past six months. Tovoheryzo Raobi Jaona explains how climate change has affected the south (fr):

"Avant, il y avait une sécheresse tous les dix ans. Or, depuis 2000, il y en a eu quatre"

"Before, a drought was observed every 10 years. Since 2000, there has been 4"

Féroce Remanongona, an elected official goes further as to say (fr):

Nous prions le Grand Dieu que le cyclone passe chez nous. Même s’il détruit nos maisons, c’est mieux que subir la sécheresse

We pray God that a cyclone comes our way. Even if it destroys our homes, it's better than facing the drought

This is a powerful statement when one recalls how the recent cyclone devastated the majority of the region.

The Panos Insitute recently published a series called "Pushed to the Edge" about the effect of climate change on the Malagasy population in the Southern region. Here is a testimony from the report by Bruno:

I noticed that the weather had changed from our usual predictions, and the rainy seasons were starting very late... Not only was rice production affected, but also sweet potatoes and cassava. It was getting hotter and hotter, which made planting cassava challenging... When I harvested it, I discovered that the roots had become smaller, compared to my previous harvest. In terms of rice, I used to collect three to four large baskets and now I can harvest only one small basket. The change is so obvious that it makes me ask the question, "What is happening to the climate?"

A recent academic paper for the American Political Science Association by Richard Marcus illustrates the challenges of water resource management in the Ambovombe-Androy region. The paper states that

"Rural communities are suddenly faced with having to pay exorbitant costs for water. They are ill-prepared to carry out their municipal functions and unable to raise the level of user-fees or community taxes necessary to fund infrastructure development"

Stephane, a blogger from Foko Madagascar attended the UN conference on climate change in September and blogged about the challenges facing developing countries like Madagascar.

Finally, a resolution to condemn the plundering of natural resources in Madagascar has been introduced by Earl Blumenauer (D-Oregon) at the House of Representatives. Illegal logging of precious woods from the rain forest has been increasing with the political turmoil.

Courier International and l'Express de Madagascar also reveals that the government allowed for exportation of precious rosewood in late September (fr).

Say it like you mean it: Halloween Edition

2009-10-31T10:47:00.011-04:00

It's the Halloween week-end and a musical post is in order ( been a while since I posted one of those).

Still I also feel like I have not fully explained why this "citizen media" thing is so critical in places like Madagascar where transparency is fuzzy and the Rule of Law can be interpreted by any politicians the way they see fit.

Apparently I am not the only one who thinks that opinions expressed online matters. Two dynamic Malagasy bloggers (reflexiums and Solofo) have reported being approached by friends of the current Malagasy government to write positive reviews of the Malagasy transition. The claims ring true to me because I also received a similar email as well asking me to review for a fee a few programs currently implemented.

As flattering as it is for those guys to think that bloggers can do some PR for them, I believe they will be better off spending their energy and money on making sure the next elections are reviewed by a neutral entity (not looking good right now).

But the point is made, I guess. Online media matters enough to bribe or intimidate citizen journalists. We are entering a new era of communication in Madagascar and I hope we will somehow move regulation in the right direction.

But the subject's been to grim and serious around here. I want to hear music and happy thoughts, so in the spirit of Halloween, let me explain the title of the post:

"Say it like you mean it" is a combination of "Say Anything" and "Smile like you mean it".
Say Anything is a movie famous for a scene where bad boy Lloyd Dobler finally get the courage to express how he feels towards his lady friend. He gets a boombox, stands in the rain under her window and plays P. Gabriel: "In your eyes" (following is a recreation, not the original scene)

The scene is such a classic that when when my neighbor went to a Halloween party dressed with a coat and a a boombox above his head, girls smiled and boys started to sing.
That is what blogging is to me: say anything you want, about whatever you want but say it with conviction and take ownership of your message, even if sometimes, you have to use someone else words.
And of you decide to accept an offer to blog for a fee, go right ahead; there is nothing wrong with that, but please be open and transparent about it.

Secondly, Have fun with blogging. It should be an enjoyable experience shared with a community at large, just like a Halloween. In other words, when it comes to blogging you should "Smile like you mean it"

That's it for my 2 cents on blogging.
If you want to read a frequently updated blog (with conviction and data to back up) about the Madagascar mess, you can't go wrong with reading the latest from here (in mg)

More worthy bloggers can be found here.

So Happy Halloween to all, I am going to go as either Melman or my cat.

#Madagascar: Le (Presque) Discours de la Discorde aux Nations Unies

2009-10-26T23:01:00.005-04:00

Le feuilleton "Parlera, parlera pas aux Nations Unies?" a donc fini en un embroglio prévisible.
N’ayant finalement pas eu accès à la tribune et à la reconnaissance internationale tant convoitée, voici néanmoins le discours que Rajoelina pensait prononcer au Concert des Nations.
Je vais éviter de trop analyser un discours qui, de fait, n’existe pas, mais il y a cependant des thèmes intéressants sur ce qui motive Rajoelina et comment il pense convaincre le reste du monde.

Extraits :

"C'est avec un immense plaisir que je m'exprime devant cette
tribune des Nations Unies aujourd'hui en représentant
Madagascar, qui est particulièrement honoré de pouvoir
contribuer aux réflexions et concertations dans cette enceinte
éminemment significative [..] En effet, ce qui nous différencie entre nous c'est la manière dont chacun d'entre nous se situe par rapport aux réalités, aux
êtres et aux événements. Les points de vues qui en découlent
sont partiels, donc forcément complémentaires les uns des
autres.[..]
Nous sommes ici pour tracer la route de nos générations
futures et concrétiser notre volonté de promouvoir le dialogue des
cultures et des civilisations. Restons attachés aux principes que
nous avons unanimement adoptés dans la Déclaration
Universelle des Droits de l'Homme selon lesquels « Tous les
êtres humains naissent libres et égaux en dignité et en droit. Ils
sont doués de raison et de conscience et doivent agir les uns
envers les autres dans un esprit de fraternité" [..]
Madagascar, pour lequel la situation me
paraît incarner un modèle de société dont « Nous » les
jeunes, devons occuper un rôle de plus en plus
prépondérant dans tous les processus de prise de décision.
Etant parmi les jeunes Chefs d'Etat présents à cette
Assemblée, sinon le plus jeune, je lance un appel solennel à
tous les jeunes du monde d'agir face aux nouveaux défis de
l'humanité (nota bene: en gras dans le texte) [..]
Aux souffrances, à l'angoisse, au désespoir, nous devons
avoir une réponse :
Nous voulons changer,
Nous devrions changer,
Nous allons changer.
Le mouvement populaire pacifique malgache a conduit à la
mise en place d'une Autorité de transition validée par la Haute
Cour Constitutionnelle de la République de Madagascar [..]
C'est pourquoi du haut de cette tribune, nous lançons un
appel solennel à la communauté internationale, à tous les
bailleurs de fonds, de revoir leur lecture de la situation et de
continuer leur assistance à la population malgache pour ne pas
dégrader encore plus leur condition de vie [..] Nous voulons affirmer ici notre engagement à organiser des élections libres, fiables, transparentes et régulières dans les meilleurs délais possibles, sur la base d'un nouveau code
électoral, par les soins de la Commission électorale indépendante
et sous le contrôle d'observateurs internationaux[..] Les promesses annoncées dans le cadre des conférences internationales sur les crises aussi bien économique, financière,alimentaire que climatique, devraient être tenues. Parmi ces
promesses, je me permets de citer celle d'allouer 0,7% des plans
de relance économique adoptés dans les pays riches pour
répondre aux besoins immédiats des populations souffrant de la
faim et de la malnutrition et garantir la sécurité alimentaire pour
tous."

J’ai sauvegardé le texte en entier si vous désirez lire l’intégralité du speech et je vous laisse dresser vos propres conclusions.

Unsilencing the Silent Majority

2009-10-24T21:00:00.001-04:00

[in French]
Silent Majority: "unspecified large majority of people in a country or group who do not express their opinions publicly" .
I got to think of this phrase quite a bit during the crisis in Madagascar (reminded by a fellow blogger's post) and again as I ponder the main reason why you should support and nominate bloggers for the "best Malagasy blogs contest".

Please forgive the oncoming tangent about promoting citizen journalism and the riff on the democratic process. The complete immersion into the academic debate of how to establish democratic institutions and whether it is the best avenue to help development in LDCs is probably clouding my thinking right now.

That the question of democracy being the best for developing countries is even on the table is saddening me. I understand where it comes from, the word democracy and "vahoaka" has been overused and abused during the Malagasy crisis, by politicians who surely never bother to look up its true meaning in the constitution.

So let me give it my own interpretation, a democracy, in very simplistic terms, is a system in which all constituents select representatives to grant them the authority to govern a state. It also means in theory that elections are the only avenue you can truly participate on how things will go. (This might be a flaw in the system when democracy fails but that is another story). That is why elections are sacred, why they have to be done right and why people get rightfully angry when the process is murky(Gabon for instance). This is also why it is probably a good idea to go overboard about having a transparent voting process (unless of course, you'd rather not. By the way, A few elections are up soon in 2010 for Africa : guys, we are looking at you).

However a ballot will never truly represent an individual's total preferences. We are more complex than the check marks that is proposed in front of us. That range of complexity is worth knowing and sharing. That is why a blog is relevant in understanding a sum of individuals better. The Malagasy blogging community including those at Foko, showed a wide range of opinions and points of view during the crisis. Kudos to all of them for showing such diversity of ideas and still coming together as a community. The majority had an understanding that politics in the country, like anywhere else, is a dirty game. Anyone who observes the maneuvering feels somehow tainted but the..well, "politicking". Still bloggers understood that the gravity of the situation demanded that they contribute in their own way in reporting the events.
See, they know politics are messed up but this is their country getting dragged into a crisis. Ultimately a democratic state can only work if the constituents participate actively in its making and feel committed to its future.

Make no mistake about it, the vast majority of Malagasy bloggers (incl. foko) do not write about politics nor do they want to. But they care about Madagascar, that is why they take the time out of their heavy school/day work to write, post photos and videos for us to view. When coming up with categories for the contest, we debated how to best avoid useless political controversy and still acknowledge the incredible work of citizen journalists during the political crisis.

So let them know their hard work was appreciated, whether they decide to go the extra-mile in reporting the crisis or voluntarily display a side of Madagascar totally unrelated to politics.
Nominate your favorite secret photoblog, Vote for them and tell them that you value the fact that even when the crisis gave them all the excuses to shut down, they chose to give a voice to the "silent majority".

Nominate blogs at bestofmalagasyblogs

Majorité Silencieuse Malgache #BOMBS09

2009-10-24T16:09:00.000-04:00

Beaucoup ont déjà écrit sur cette “Majorité Silencieuse” à Madagascar.

Il se trouve que malgré les difficultés évidentes à écrire durant la crise Malgache (insécurité, travail incertain, accès internet etc..), certaines voix ont continué à briser le silence, à leurs manières, en parlant de culture, du quotidien, de sport et parfois de politique. Ces voix sont celles des blogueurs qui ont mis un point d’honneur à persévérer; à contribuer à la conversation numérique sur le vaste thème qu’est Madagascar. Des blogs écrits avec conviction et avec transparence, où la diversité d’opinions et de perspective a permis une meilleure compréhension de la vie à Madagascar en 2009.
Prenez donc le temps de nominer vos blogs ou photoblogs favoris aux concours des meilleurs blogs Malgaches. Cela fait plaisir et ca donnera aussi une chance à nous autres de découvrir ces trésors cachés.
Parce que quand la majorité silencieuse Malgache prend la parole, elle mérite d’être ecoutée.

Nominez vos blogs sur bestofmalagasyblogs

En Quête de Developpement à Madagascar ? / Want Development in #Madagascar ?

2009-10-07T19:33:00.012-04:00

Nouveaux membres du gouvernement, montrez nous que vous voulez vraiment le développement de Madagascar.

Il semblerait qu’ un gouvernement d’union national en accord avec Maputo est sur le point d'entrer en jouissance à Madagascar. La plupart des médias traditionels étrangers (AFP, BBC, Le Monde, AP) semble que c'est un fait accompli mais tous les participants n'ont pas encore accepté les conditions. (Le fait que le communiqué de presse a été divulgué avant la signature de tous les participants pourrait faire l'objet d'un article entier).
Achille52 a réagi à cette nouvelle donne sur son blog et se demande pourquoi il semble que tout la démocratie et le développement semblent toujours voués à l'échec à Madagascar.
Achille adresse plusieurs thèmes et je me dis je vais ajouter quelques réflexions à la sienne. Une crise comme celle-ci est toujours êxtrement néfaste pour toute jeune nation en construction mais le bon côté des choses est qu'il donne une sconde chance pour un nouveau départ, identifier les erreurs passées et les corriger.
La théorie selon laquelle une véritable démocratie est préjudiciable à un développement durable fort dans les États fragiles a été mentionée depuis longtemps. Il est souvent dit qu’ un régime autoritaire est plus à même d’imposer des décisions difficiles qui favorisent une industrialisation rapide. Le danger souvent observé dans plusieurs pays du 1 / 3 monde est que ces liens étroits entre le régime et le secteur industriel conduit parfois à plus d’efficacité mais aussi hélas à plus de corruption et ceci engendre une perte d'efficacité notoire sur le marché mondial.

Voici donc l'équation à résoudre: un Etat fort et centralisé qui peut mettre en œuvre des programmes de développement rapide et efficace mais qui favoriseraient aussi l'indépendance du secteur privé pour permettre une concurrence saine, génératrice d'efficacité.

C'est pour cela que la question de la corruption est si critique au processus de développement.

Considérez ceci: le fait que Rajoelina dîne dans les restaurants le plus chics de Paris et affirme en public qu' un pays étranger lui a offert des millions pour renverser un régime est un problème, mais c'est relativement un petit problème si l’on considère uniquement le développement du pays. Son style de vie importe peu au dynamisme économique du pays. De même, le jet privé de Ravalomanana est aussi un détail sans importance dans l’optique de la richesse du pays. Bien sur que je suis frustré par ce manque de décence et d’éthique de nos dirigeants. Mais le problème principal généré par la corruption est surtout que lorsque nos dirigeants forniquent avec Total, Daewoo et autres, ils ne peuvent plus garantir une concurrence efficace sur le marché. Pourquoi ces entreprises essayeraient de faire un deal raisonable pourl’interêt des Malgaches quand ils savent déjà qu'ils ont déja le deal en poche ?

Alors, comment empêcher cela? Une solution: Transparence.
La communauté internationale devrait exiger de ce nouveau gouvernement une clause stipulan que tous les revenus et salaires des membres du nouveau gouvernement soient désormais rendus publics. La valeur ajoutée de cette mesure? Une Confiance renouvellée:

1) Des malgaches, si ils connaissent vos revenus, ils ne douteront plus si vos décisions sont prises pour vos propres intérêts ou ceux de la nation.

2) Les entreprises: Si les entreprises savent que les règles du jeu sont claires, ils feront confiance au processus et d'investiront plus aisément dans le marché local.
3) La transparence des revenus permettra aussi au gouvernement de réclamer des élections transparentes, des médias indépendants etresponsables et une confiance accrue dans le processus démocratique. De plus, rendre le processus électoral (comptage des bulletins de vote etc.) ouvert au public donnerait une légitimité politique incontestable.
Cette légitimité servirait de levier indéniable pour le gouvernement élu pour prendre les mesures nécessaires pour permettre un développement vrai.

Mais ce processus commence avec une transparence véritable des comptes au niveau exécutif.
Soyez des leaders et prenez l’initiative de rendre toutes les informations touchant le public ouvert au...pulbic. Laissez les médias ( traditionels et citoyens) au parfum de vos actions et vos intentions. Vous nous devez au moins cela.
Les malgaches se fichent pas mal de savoir si vous êtes riches ou pas avant la prise de pouvoir, mais une fois en place, votre position privilégiée à la tête du pays ne doit pas vous donner latitude à un enrichissement personnel. C'est pour cela que ces emplois font parti du service public. Je sais que tout cela est bien naif mais c’est maintenant ou jamais. Plus tard, les crocodiles seront déja bien en place, sans garde-fous.

PS: Les revenus des employes du service public sont accesibles au public ici et dans bien d'autres pays.

===========================ENG========================

Show us you truly mean it...

So it seems that a consensus government in accord with the Maputo agreement is about to come to fruition in Madagascar. Most foreign mainstream media (AFP, BBC, Le Monde, AP) said it's a done deal although all participants have yet to agree to the conditions. (The fact that the press release was leaked to the news wire before the full agreement could be the subject of a whole new discussion).
Achille52 reacted to the news and wondered why it seems that any kind of democracy and development seems doomed to failure in Madagascar.
Achille touches on a few themes there and I figure I will add some thoughts to his. A crisis like this one is always a major drawback for any nation but the silver lining is that it gives another chance for a do-over of what we did wrong and hopefully fix some of those mistakes.
The theory that a real democracy is detrimental to strong development in weak states has been proposed for a while and is never fully debunked. The reason is that authoritative regime are more capable to force tough decisions that may favor rapid industrialization. The danger as we could observe in many 1/3 world nations is that the regime close ties to the industrial sector leads to corruption and loss of the efficiency that was gained by having a cohesive executive power.
So there goes the conundrum: a strong centralized state that can implement efficient program fast that still promote independence of the private sector to foster healthy competition for the sake of efficiency.

That's why corruption is such a critical issue. Stay with me here: the fact that Rajoelina dined at pricy restaurants in Paris and claims that he was offered millions from a foreign country is a problem, but it is a small detail from a development perspective. His lifestyle is not relevant. Similarly, Ravalomanana's private jet is inconsequential to the Nation's wealth. Do I think it sucks and that they should know better ? Of course I do. But the main problem with corruption is that when leaders are in beds with the Total, Daewoo Inc or whatever corporation of the world, they cannot foster efficient competition. Why would those companies try their best to provide a good outcome for Madagascar if they already know they have nailed the deal?

So how do you prevent that ? Transparency. If there is one clause that the international community should require from this new government, it's that all incomes,paychecks from the new government members are now a matter of public records. The added value ? TRUST.
1) If Malagasy knew where your wealth is from, they won't be wondering whether you make decision for your own interest or the interest of the nation.
2) If corporations know the rules of the game are clear, they will trust the market and invest more readily in the country.
3) Transparency of income will allow the government to demand transparent elections, independent media and more trust in the democratic process. In fact, making the whole electoral process ( counting of ballot) open to the public would give them some much needed legitimacy.
This legitimacy would be leveraged as a weapon for taking strong measures to promote development.

But this process starts with a truly open access and acountability at the top. Let all the relevant information be out in public. Let the public (old and new media) know what you do and why you do it. You owe us that much.

We don't care whether you are rich or not before taking charge, but while in office you should not be making more money from your new position. That's why it's called public service. I am cautiously optimistic about this new government. It's far from being ideal but it's a small step in the right direction. I know my proposal is mostly wishful thinking (and a bit naive) but now is our only chance. It will be too late when the crocodiles are already in the place.

Madagascar: Donnez vos suggestions / Give your input

2009-09-27T23:55:00.000-04:00

It's been 7 months since the change of regime in Madagascar. A lot of hurdles and criticism came their way, among others, the latest vote of non confidence from the international community. I am really not interested in what went wrong. What I think most of us yearn for is what are the positives if any and what should be done. Below are two polls asking just that. I would also love to read what you think should be the absolute first economic or social policy of the government of transition. Please, no political measures because there are many other websites dedicated to just that elsewhere. Also please restrict to a one-sentence answer . This feedback should be made available on websites close to the government but unfortunately comments (even moderated) are not allowed.

Le changement de régime à Madagascar est maintenant effectif depuis 7 mois. Le gouvernement de transition a connu son lot d'obstacles et de critiques, le dernier en date étant le vote de non reconnaissance de la communauté internationale. Ne revenons pas sur ce qui s'est passé. Je pense que la plupart d'entre nous aspirent à connaitre les points positifs (ou potentiellement positifs) si il y en a ou le cas échéant, ce qui devrait être fait. Ci-dessous deux sondages sur ce sujet. J'aimerai aussi savoir ce que vous pensez devoir être la toute première mesure de politique économique ou sociale du gouvernement de transition. Ne parlons pas de mesures politiques car il y a plusieurs sites consacrés à ce sujet ailleurs. Si possible, limitez votre reponse à une phrase.
Ce feedback aurait du être disponible sur les sites proches du gouvernement, mais malheureusement les commentaires n'y sont pas autorisés.

Françafrique as violence erupts in Gabon, Madagascar

2009-09-12T01:00:00.003-04:00

This article is cross posted from Global Voices

[L'article en francais et en italien]

Recent violence in Gabon and Madagascar, and a contested election in Mauritania, have added fuel to the idea that France 's influence looms large in the political arenas of her former African colonies, where it still has wide-ranging political and economic interests. This notion is often referred to as Françafrique.

Presidential elections in Gabon were mired with accusations of fraud as Ali Bongo, son of recently-deceased president, Omar Bongo, was declared the victor. Post-electoral violence lead to the torching of French consulate in Port-Gentil, a city that also hosts the offices of French oil company Total.

In Madagascar, promising peace talks initiated in Maputo by an international mediation group eventually fizzled and today, protests were violently repressed by the transitional government. In the capital, Antananarivo, a few protesters were seen harassing vazaha ( foreigners) near hotel Glacier as military forces repressed protests against the formation of a government that did not include all the political groups as was agreed during the Maputo peace talks.

And in Mauritania, General Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, who took over after a coup d' etat a year ago, saw his power legitimized in an election that his opponents consider as potentially fraudulent. Yet Mauritanians wonder why France was one of the first nations to recognize (fr) the outcome of the elections.

The notion of Francafrique is such a widely accepted concept that in January 2008, former French Secretary of State for Overseas Development, Jean-Marie Bockel, stated that he was willing to "sign the death certificate of Françafrique"

The cozy living conditions that African leaders enjoy in France has been well-documented. The map of real estate properties in Paris of family of African dictators published by Rue89 is a telling evidence that France's effort to distance themselves from dictators is more words than action. The NGO cellule Francafrique lists details of evidences supporting the Francafrique concept with reports and photos on flickr.

For instance, Malagasy and French blogs were quick to point out that French Ambassador Chataignier was the first foreign officer to meet with Rajoelina the day after the coup d'etat in Madagascar. Malagasy blogger NJ links to the following video that aims to explain how Francafrique works in Madagascar:

A reason bloggers often cite for France's involvement in Madagascar is the potential for oil farming in the region of Bemolanga. Total has acquired 60% ownership of the Basin and is expected to produce 180,000 barrels of oil per day for more than 30 years. Reuters reports that the reserve of Tsimiroro could produce 1.7 billions barrels.

The enduring resentment towards France's actions for what is perceived, rightfully or not, as deleterious mingling into Africa's own development has sometimes taken violent proportions.

However, one Malagasy blogger Vony offers an alternative to anger towards French citizen in reaction to Francafrique. Vony writes in an open letter to French citizens in Madagascar (fr):

On dit que vous, Français, venez du pays des droits de l’Homme

Mais on sait aussi que vous vivez désormais dans un pays où la terreur règne,
Parce que Madagascar est aussi une partie de votre histoire, nous vous demandons
solennellement de nous soutenir et nous aider à retrouver notre dignité de
Malgaches et notre fierté de vivre sur cette île [..] Nous Malgaches au pays, en France et à l’étranger faisons appel à votre solidarité envers votre peuple ami et à votre foi en la démocratie et le respect des droits de l’Homme.
Parce que vous êtes aussi menacés par l’avenir sombre et désastreux qui nous guettent tous, , ne détournez pas les yeux mais tendez nous la main pour mieux dénoncer ce que vous ne toléreriez pas dans votre propre pays!

It is said that you, Frenchmen, come from the nation of Human Rights
But we also now know that you live in a country (Madagascar) where terror reigns,
Because Madagascar is also part of your history now, we ask for your help in order to retrieve a sense of dignity and pride for the island [...] we Malagasy call for your solidarity towards a friendly nation and your faith in democracy and the respect for human rights. Because you too are threatened by the dark future ahead, don't turn your eyes away but reach out to us to denounce what you would not tolerate in your own country

Tahina writes about yesterday's violence and how it brought back traumatic memories:

My bus line passes through the 13 Mai Square, a hot spot if not the hottest after the Ambohijatovo Park. And this logical question asked to the conducteur before getting on the bus “Do you go till Analakely?”, “Yes, Sir.” Along the street you pay attention to any abnormal things, people gathering at one place, suspicious traffic, you to stretch your ears to over hear others’ conversations. You take out your mobile and try to call someone who’s supposed to be downtown to know if he’s safe and ask him what he’s witnessed. All of that recalls me bad things. Things that I’m likely to live again in the days to come.

In Gabon, Malagasy blogger Harinjaka, who is currently based in Libreville, writes about potential evidence of fraud that led to Ali Bongo's victory:

of the cards featured in the image above, the one on the left is authentic, while the one on the right has been forged. The difference is quite clear - the one on the left has been stamped after the photo was attached, whereas the photo on the right was not stamped with the card, meaning that the photo can be changed - so that several people can vote with the same electoral card.

Here is a video of a Gabonese woman accuses France of being directly responsible for Bongo's fraudulent election (fr):

Such statements have often been dismissed in the West as nothing more than conspiracy theories. Unfortunately, the recent turmoils in Gabon, Mauritania and Madagascar have made Francafrique feel very real to African bloggers and citizens.

Lesson learned: a case study in aid

2009-08-21T18:42:00.020-04:00

I will always remember April 2009.

No, not because it was the first month after the power takeover in Madagascar. Not because I learned that I may have actually made the right career decision after many sleepless nights. Not because our pet donkey just died unexpectedly, not even for the remarkable act of bravery by Razily.
April was memorable because as Diana put it so masterfully, the youngest member of the Foko community passed on.

( Kamba and Mavo via rising voices)

If you are not familiar with the story of baby Kamba, it is the story that combines the generous heart of a young woman, the spontaneous support she garnered for her acts from friends and strangers from all over the world, the pitfalls of a humanitarian effort driven by the web and the lesson one can learn from it.

It is not with ease that I write about Kamba's story again today but perhaps now, with more perspective, a few lessons can be drawn from the tragic loss.

Kamba was born in Majunga with a facial malformation that prevented him from eating properly. His twin sister Viviane was more fortunate. One day as she passed by Kamba and his mum, Diana Chamia, a foko blogger, was moved by his plight and vowed to try to help them. The internet community rally around Kamba and try \to get his congenital disease corrected. After jumping many hurdles, Kamba was brought to Antananarivo to remove the extra cellular mass from his head.

Although the surgery was overall a success, his conditions required continuous treatment as Kamba was subject to frequent seizures. The treatment was costly and management of the follow up on the treatment was getting harder. In the meantime, Diana moved to Tana to pursue her studies in journalism.

Then the political crisis in Madagascar broke out. It is unclear how much the crisis affected the care for Kamba, but procurement for his medication became increasingly difficult as well getting the medical staff to keep seeing him. In the end, Kamba was among the hundreds in Madagascar to succumb during our most uncertain time.

( Kamba's family home)

The loss hit everyone hard and prompted the question of what could have been done differently. In a more general setting, it poses the question of how to manage aid from and through the web effectively.
William Easterly wrote about the "five simple principles for scaling up aid". His first two advices are : scale up success not failure and scale up what you do best.

Foko have shown that it does two things well. It reaches out to people not familiar with the web or with difficulties accessing the web and ease their first steps. Foko also promotes worthy initiatives and help group with similar goals connect. Foko is run mostly on the drive and time availability of its members, therefore it is just not as well-suited for handling intensive projects that require 24h attention.
Kamba highlighted a tremendous show of heart by many people, Diana of course, but also Mavo, Avylavitra family and friends , who were at Kamba's side as much as humanely possible and who also travelled the 600 km to attend Kamba' funeral.

Such actions of good will should be encouraged, supported but in a feasible setting. The geographical distance in this case was too much to overcome for all parties involved in addition to the peculiar need of the baby.

So what does one suppose to do after such a loss ?

Unexpectedly, talking to Kamba's mum in July helped mend the wounds. She said that she was appreciative of everyone's effort and that although the loss of Kamba still stings deeply, she knows he is in a better place now thanks to all the love that was send to him worldwide. She believes Kamba's twin sister Viviane still carries a part of Kamba with her.

( Viviane and her mum)

Furthermore, Majunga Foko blogger Zouboon has picked the ball and, through her volunteer work with an association that helps family in need, she successfully placed Viviane's family in a local support structure group so that the nutritional needs of Viviane can be monitored effectively.

(Zouboon at work)

This will not bring Kamba back by any means. But it will hopefully lessen the sting of the loss by showing his family that the support has not left with Kamba.

It is important to note that Zouboon took the initiative on her own, going through all the paperwork and contacts necessary to make things happen. Similarly, we just learned that Jaona of Foko Fianaratsoa was chosen as one of the few youth web activist ( via TakingITglobal) who will travel to Monterrey, Mexico for the UN-GAID annual meeting on "ICT and Innovation for Education" in September.

Diana, Zouboon and Jaona are three of the many Malagasy youngsters driven to make things happen. If Foko’s sole achievement is to help them in their quest and empower them, it would have already been a worthwhile endeavor. You can also follow Zouboon and Jaona on twitter.

Literacy rate and Internet usage in Africa

2009-08-14T17:46:00.007-04:00

As part of an assignment for my quant stat course, we were told to propose an hypothesis showing a potential correlation between two quantifiable variables. I pondered for a moment to research average altitude of major cities vs number of Olympic medals in track and fields but decided to look up internet usage vs literacy rate on the African Continent.

The correlation is weak but a trend is still visible. There are clearly other factors to look into (GDP, cost of living, censorship, access to high speed internet etc...) but it is intriguing that the slope of the regression line is close to 1.

The data were taken from here for the literacy rate and here for the internet usage.

The data will probably be revisited once I learn more tools and will integrate more variables in the analysis ( in addition to the one mentioned earlier, I'd probably look into the democracy index, freedom of press..).

In the meantime, I figure I'd post the graphs in case anyone is interested.

Random thoughts

2009-08-08T09:30:00.002-04:00

Why I love the randomness of browsing the web. (Or in twitter language, the things I wish I tweeted or RT'ed)

- Read somewhere (paraphrased): " A woman will enlarge anything you give her. You give her a smile, she will give you her heart. You give her sperm, she will give you a baby. You give her groceries, she will give you a meal. You give her a house, she will give you a home. So, please, please don't give her crap..."

- The negotiation talk in Maputo about the Madagascar crisis are going...hum, well, they are ongoing. It could be the critical point towards a resolution, finally. It could also be the beginning of even more political jostling at the expenses of the citizen lambda. Here is a surreal photo of the two main antagonists of the crisis, awkward ! Either way, they both lost a lot of credibility in the past 6 months as most people are just tired of the constant infighting. Read Ndimby, Jentilisa and Topmada for the latest from Maputo.

- Welcome back TopMada. After being idle for almost two months for suspicious reason (threats..), the news website is updated again.

Much more interesting are what people are achieving in spite of all:

- ICE club and Foko dynamic contributors Arinaina and Andry are getting married today. Congratulations and much love to both of them.
A photo workshop was held thanks to Tibora, Christi and co.
-Stephane who coordinates all of the foko activities, was robbed and attacked at his home last night. Show him love for all he is doing for Foko blog club.

- Madafan is highlighting the parts of Madagascar that you should consider visiting, even if the circumstances are not ideal. Here is my small contribution to the Madafan concept about Ampefy.

- Similarly, expecting great stuff soon from the tandem of Tahina and Pinguin-Mada. I had a great video of Pinguin explaining why he tweets and does not blog. Unfortunately, it got lost in my many shuffles.

- A rich brainstorming also took place among Foko members while I was there where the idea was to express all that could be improved with respect to foko activities. I promise I will tell more about it but a great line from pinguin went: " How about stating more clearly the purpose of foko ?" We promise we will get to that soon, Pinguin ;).

- A final word on the posts on the blog (or lack there of lately). I have been starting a Master of Public Policy here. It's been on for the two weeks and I am literally overwhelmed with concept to integrate asap. So please excuse the lack of updates as I am trying to survive my 1st month :). We had a workshop on Leadership and Ethics and as you may have figured, Malagasy former and current leaders would have failed miserably the requirements for standards of good leadership...oh well...it's not too late for them to come around, in Maputo for instance.

You all have a great week-end and keep your fingers crossed for a good conclusion for Madagascar at the Maputo talk.

Of #Journalism and #Transparency in #Madagascar.

2009-07-23T11:52:00.005-04:00

It started as just a gathering of people passionate about information during the Madagascar crisis, wanting to meet in real life and share personal experience and tips. It organically became something a little more, a forum on what transpired during the crisis and what can each of us do to get involved in the future direction of information in Madagascar. It was an unexpected mix of experts and people of good will; and it apparently tickled enough the attention of the current administration, as well as the former one to send uninvited "representatives".
For full disclosure and at the risk of repeating myself, I am not a journalist, but I certainly admire people who dedicate their lives trying to share information and analysis the right way.

For those who don’t know, I just got back from almost a month in Madagascar and it clearly was not nearly enough time spent there. My overall impression is that I fell in love all over again with Madagascar and I did so despite the current political miasma. For that I took a clue from Malagasies over there, who are making things happen mostly in spite of enormous “pot holes in their daily commute”, as a blogger friend nicely put it.

I fell in love again because at the gathering I just mentioned, I saw the youth of Madagascar getting involved without fear and being encouraged and advised by elders who knew all about the importance of communication and independent journalism for a country aspiring to democracy. There was no bitterness or accusation, just statements of events lived personally and stories of everyday courage because that was and is the right thing to do. Mada Matin and Midi Madagasikara wrote lengthy articles about the un-conference and foko's contribution to it so the seeds for more collaboration are in definitely in play.
Bloggers had hoped for an increased collaboration with journalists for a while now because we were aware of the extreme pressure they are subject to ( RSF, CPJ, Advox).

To that matter, we had a lively conversation at "Friday Talk" between journalists and bloggers, managed by the outstanding Oelisoa, , and we talked about how digital media could be used by journalists as a complement to their work ( additional source of info, anonymity if desired, real time publications etc..) . Claire Ulrich was kind enough to share her extensive knowledge of all things media and risk of censorship with the reporters in attendance.

[ OT/ Digression: Claire was a blast to be with in Madagascar, always so cheerful despite the multiple trips, change of addresses and the undeniable crazy behavior of my folks :). I highly recommend to any GVers to invite Claire along while traveling home]

After my write up based upon testimonies by journalists of the hardship they are facing , I have received threatening mails and message of encouragement. Its par with the course and nothing unexpected. I would just like to make one point very clear:
There is outstanding journalism going on in Madagascar, for instance Madagascar Tribune and Midi-Madagasikara often highlighted improper actions by people in power, it’s just that it takes an incredible amount of effort and special circumstances to produce that type of reports. Coincidence or not, those publications and those journalists are already quite savvy with web 2.0 technology. As a matter of fact, Tribune seems to be limiting if not removing its print edition ( I could not find any while I was there).

In other words, the majority of journalists are still not provided the proper conditions to inform the public to the full extent of their capabilities in the traditonal medium that still reaches most of the compatriots. Threats on their person, their relatives and means of living are real. That was the whole point of my report. Nothing more and nothing less. Additionally, I am fully aware that the independence of journalists has been undermined or attacked for a long while in Madagascar, by former regimes. That is still no excuse for perpetrating and aggravating the situation by sending the army into media news room or after journalists for arbitrary arrests. It is time we demand better judgment from our leaders, if they cannot perform to the proper standards of leadership, they need to say so and step away.

At the very least, they need to let media do their job of reporting and monitoring the development of the nation. As I was walking the streets of Antananarivo and Mahajanga, I saw the results of the Black Monday upheaval of January 26th. It was puzzling to me that a movement that was qualified as a spontaneous reaction to an authoritarian regime was so precise in burning down and pillaging only a specific set of stores and not the others. One store would be ransacked and burn but the one next door, belonging to someone else, was left untouched. If you were angry at a regime and the current unbearable social class divide, would you be so precise as to make sure some stores were left untouched?
Those questions should have been answered or investigated a long time ago. They were not and that is what we are trying to point out here. Too many stones are left unturned still in Madagascar.
Why is it that no one asks why the new constitution would stipulate that only candidate between the age of 30 to 60 years old would be allowed to run ? ( Ratsiraka and Ravalomanana would be ineligible by year’s end then). Why is it that new 4X4 vehicles are seized from a car dealership by the army and no one bats an eyelash ? When were most precious rosewood plantations from the SAVA region become the property of private interests close to the former president ?

I hope that clarifies where I stand once and for all on the reason why I am bullish about information and bloggers in Madagascar. The setting of standards for fact finding needs contribution from us all. It will take a while but as friend said: “this is about the legacy we will provide to our kids and grand kids, what will we tell them when they ask what on earth happened here ?”

The transitional government offers anticipated elections by the end of 2009. I am all for it but they need to allow all parties to participate and they need to restore the parliament beforehand. Otherwise, we are heading once again for more violence and turmoils and no one wants to see that.
Believe me, I would have much rather talked about the resiliency of Malagasy students and the tireless smiles on Malagasies faces. I’d have rather talked about all the ideas that they come up with to share info faster and improve the way things are: they proposed citizen monitoring of the upcoming elections but they also wondered about an SMS based report of traffic jams in the city. If you have been in Tana lately, you know that would be the single most drastic improvement in the lives of urban commuters.
That is why I fell in love again over there. Madagascar is choke-full of potential, too bad our leaders only see potentials in minerals, oil wells and unexploited lands. They might have just missed the single most important one, its youth’s quest for getting involved.
Many thanks to those guys in the photos below, you made my trip but more importantly my dad’s and Claire’s trips one to remember for a long, long time.

Bloggers in Madagascar just blow my mind

2009-06-30T17:34:00.002-04:00

I have been in Antananarivo for a little more than a week now. It's been mostly about running around town, catching up with families, seeing old friends, meeting familiar online friends in real life... the head is spinning quite a bit from all the stories and the resilience of the people here.

Oddly enough, I have not been able to keep track of news as well as when I was abroad but I definitely have a better understanding of what happended and how people experienced the past months. Things as expected were much more complicated than they appeared, granted it was already confusing enough.

I have many photos, clips and stories I'd like to share but time and internet access is failing me. So I decided to just enjoy the company of families and friends as much as possible, blogging be damned :).

Last but not least, I'd like to give a shout out to all bloggers who took time to chat with me. It's been an education and a true treat. And you know what is really missing from blogging? You rarely get to share a good laugh together.

We will try to all get together and share our experiences, tips and lesson learned as new media users during crisis on
Saturday , July 4th at Ivotel Ambohidahy from 13:00 until who knows when....

It will be a continuation of BarCamp Madagascar 9 months ago ( an enriching meet-up from all accounts) and a workshop on new media tools for beginners will close the session.

A few influential bloggers and twitterers have already agreed to present on various themes such as: why they felt that blogging was a civil act a the times, the complenetarity of blogging with journalism, importance of timely, authentic tweets, staying out of harm's way and how digital media can participate in the recovery process.

I have been preaching the importance of linking to other blogs in blog posts and here I am, without a link to show for.

The lesson as always, I am an idiot.

Still, please do come on saturday, the exchange of ideas and the manner in which it will happen will be intriguing.

Plus there will be food, drinks and free wifi.

For a better global flow of ideas: Clips of E. Zuckerman and O. Wasow panel discussion

2009-05-31T22:29:00.008-04:00

Solana and I were lucky enough to catch a panel discussion on technology and Access at the New Museum as part of the "Younger than Jesus" exhibition on. Ethan Zuckerman and Omar Wasow discussed the implication of internet access, its benefits and limitations for groups who are not as connected yet. Even though I am quite familiar with Global Voices, I am still fascinated by how much I learn when I get to hear the exchange of ideas between these scholars. So instead of boring you with what I learn from the two talks, here is a clip I took of the discussion after the panel presentation on how we can improve the flow of ideas on global scale and why we should work hard at it:

The analogy "Distributed Information /balanced nutrition" total works for me.

Here are the first 10 minutes of Ethan's talk on how we can help improve the flow of ideas. Don't miss the flow map of flights around the world on any given day (at 6:20 mark), it is striking.

In defense of Rajoelina and Ravalomanana in #Madagascar

2009-05-27T11:36:00.006-04:00

I have been receiving a few emails ( some nastier than others ) about my take on the events in Madagascar. This is an attempt at clearing things up because my name and avatar were used in many forums, unbeknown to me, writing words that I never thought of.

Disclosure

So for the sake of clarity and full disclosure, here is my personal view on what transpired in Madagascar, in chronological order:

There was a laundry list of bad governance in the past few years in Madagascar. There was also an evident recognition of Madagascar as a good place to invest with a strong ROI. It is also a fact that those investments did not benefit the majority of the population who still suffered from endemic poverty.

The Malagasy power shift was a military-backed takeover. No legal lingo can refute the fact that without the support of the CAPSAT ( one faction of the army) and (most probably) foreign financial lobbies, no power shift would have been possible. The fact that there might be a document from fallen president handing the power over to a military directory is irrelevant to the cause of the power shift.

. Given those two observations, I personally think that:

1) the transitional government only legitimacy or purpose would reside in preparing elections as soon as possible. Any attempt at changing the constitution without a clear mandate from the majority of the population is illegal and should be considered as such.

2) In the event that elections were to happen soon, I support that all candidates willing to do so be allowed to run for presidency, including former presidents and Rajoelina himself. I know that Rajoelina has been lobbying for former presidents to be banned from running ( and what basis I am not sure) and that he is too young according to the constitution but denying him would be denying the voices of a relevant part of the population.

3) I think that instead of criticizing Malagasy citizens' active involvement and discourse in the fate of their country, the so-called "silent majority" should help frame the future and ensure that transparent elections are held. That is the only way we can recover and move forward towards reconciliation. There is a humanitarian crisis and environmental crisis brewing at home and the faster we resolve the political conundrum, the faster we can attend to the problem at end. If we put the foundation of social harmony on the back burner because we have a few upcoming crises or are tired of the crisis, we will prove that we cannot learn from our mistakes in 91 and 02 and will go through all this again in 2012. No more of this shameful nonsense, please.

What of our leaders ?

Yes I am in favor of early elections and I 'd wish that all of them are allowed to run. Why ?

Let's see the argument for each of our protagonist, first Rajoelina:

I have been critical of Rajoelina's actions and here is why:

1) his reasons for starting the power struggle and the way he went about fixing an injustice were all wrong: Firstly, he went full force in the crisis because his TV station was shut down. There are a myriad of reason to start a struggle (poverty, monopoly and staple products, poor terms of land deal etc...), the closing of his TV station is not one of them.
2) the crisis has now caused 200 deaths and the loss of investors confidence in Madagascar that has plunged into the abyss of a recession. Was it all worth it ? Wasn't it an option to start campaigning for the election planned in 2012 and build a case for a change of regime ? What was all the rush about ?
Yet I support an exception for his candidacy. His approval rate may be at all time low now, but he was willing to be the voice of dissonance when things looked fishy in Madagascar and no one said anything. And that alone gives him the right to carry those voices further. Rajoelina's delusion of grandeur has been well documented and he might be flawed but he represented the hope of many when things were going astray. Had he not commandeer the coup, maybe his popularity would be higher.

A lot has been said about Ravalomanana's mistakes but a shortcoming that has been not enough emphasized is his inability to listen to his critics and dismiss them without hesitation. His contempt for academicians, former foes and contrary point of view is indisputable. He now accuses France of supporting the "coup, and a band of bandits and wanting Madagascar to return as a colony". I am aware of where he comes from on this statement but more than anything, this statement shows me that he is still not admitting his own wrongdoing and suggests that he is not willing to find a consensus with all the parties involved.

Still, he is the current elected president and it is clear that he has a legitimate mandate as the legal leader of Madagascar and the support of a substantial part of the population. No elections would make sense without him in Madagascar and that's a fact.

Both politicians have failed their people in many ways. Yet, one cannot forget that they both shoulder enormous pressure and that their (similar) flaws as leaders might be a byproduct of the strain of the job. One wish that they both would be more open to discussion but how many presidents in other places can say that they have the true pulse of their nations ? That is why elections would go a long way towards helping them listen to their constituents, explain what they want for their country and how they plan to do it. Elections are far from the perfect solution but they would show that both sides are willing to listen to the other side's point of view and more importantly to the silent majority.

They lost a lot of credential in the eyes of many. It is time they both earn them back. I hope they both still can, for everyone's sake.

Blogging for a cause: Support #freespeech and Global Voices Advocacy @advox

2009-05-15T15:04:00.008-04:00

A lot has been said about the strengths and weaknesses of the participatory web. In the end, the whole point of activity on the web ought to be about whether one has contributed even in the tiniest fashion to a better understanding of the things around us.

Many initiatives are promoting the positive actions of blogging. One of them, Zemanta organizes a "blogging for a cause" month at the end of which they will honor the causes that bloggers care the most about.

Here is my vote for Global Voices Advocacy. GV advocacy is a project for journalists, bloggers and activists worldwide to protect freedom of expression and free access to information online.
Why ? There are many reasons why GV Advocacy rocks but on a more personal level, GV advocacy featured two articles that detailed the current threat against free speech and bloggers in Madagascar. But it was equally as instrumental for bloggers and activists from every other parts of the world.

So yep, to all the bloggers out there, GV advocacy is worthy of your support.

This blog post is part of Zemanta’s “Blogging For a Cause” campaign to raise awareness and funds for worthy causes that bloggers care about.

Thoughts on #newmachine conference and #humanrights reporting in #Madagascar

2009-05-11T16:57:00.006-04:00

Cross-posted on Foko Blog Club:

On May 4-5 2009, the Human Rights Center at University of California Berkeley organized the Soul of the New Machine Conference on Human Rights, technology and new media to share best practices and develop new strategies for incorporating technology to address human rights abuses. A few partners and friends were part of the panel of presenters, among them Ken Banks of FrontlineSMS, Erik Hersman of Ushahidi and David Sasaki, director of Global Voices Outreach program, Rising Voices.

I will go into further details later on how these three organisations have been of tremedous help in documenting the multiple acts of violence during the Madagascar crisis but for more info now, here is an interview by Solana Larsen of Tahina, one of the manager of the foko-ushahidi platform in Antananarivo, Mg.

A New York Hub for the conference was also organized by Cristina Moon and she graciously invited Foko to present their work at the brooklyn location.

As you know, Foko primary mission is to document the everyday lives of Malagasy citizens and local agents of environmental change, not record potential human rights violations by their government. Yet, the ongoing crisis decided otherwise for the time being. The hub was a great opportunity to meet and learn first hand from Human Rights activists present at the event.

The presentation went over the background of the crisis, the known human rights violations that were documented since January 09, the use of new media by tools by the dynamic new media users' community in Madagascar (both related and non-related to Foko) and the obstacles for more extensive reporting of current events. We also posit that among all the past and current human rights violations in Madagascar ( military repression, limited freedom of speech, arrest etc..) the most glaring offense in our opinion is the 400,000 people (mostly children) currently at risk of hunger in the South because the political deadlock prevents an effective response.

The fact that Foko is present in 5 different regions of Madagascar is important but still insufficient to provide comprehensive reports from all the regions of a nation twice the size of Great-Britain.

The Conference had a specific emphasis on data accuracy, fact-checking and the use of mobile reporting. Michael Ferola present at the NY hub, has been very kind to offer an analysis of the entire database collected on the foko ushahidi platform. We are evaluating a way to measure the quality of the data and present them in an effective manner.

The videos of the panel discussions at the conference will soon be available on fora.tv

However, here a few important reviews made at the conference:

1)On the panel "PDAs and Phones for Data Collections", speakers discuss the potential of mobile reporting for providing additional information during humanitarian crises in developing countries. For more info, here is the notes from Erik's talk at the conference and a post on Kiwanja website on how FrontlineSMS was used in the film "The Reckoning".
No groundbreaking news here so I will take this opportunity to describe the collaboration with mobile technology experts and thank the people at FrontlineSMS and Ushahidi who worked with us overnight to get the platform ready for sms reports as soon as possible.

As Tahina explained, there were a few obstacles to overcome but FrontlineSMS developpers ( Alex Anderson, Carlos Genz and Ken Banks) provided timely technical support and sped up the release of a new version they were working on to take into account the urgent need for an SMS/computer interface for the Madagascar crisis. We cannot thank them enough for helping us establish the first project to collect SMS reports directly onto a computer via the intelliSMS software.
The Ushahidi team was also tremendous in setting up the platform quickly and showing us how to modify the interface to allow for the translation of key words, categories and timeline.

2) on the panel "Blogging Human Rights", David Sasaki spoke about the internet tools used to shine a light on issues that media often ignored. He also explained the importance of giving people on site during the opportunity to tell their stories in their own words and stop using proxy as voices for the oppressed. He also emphasized the importance of translation in breaking the "echo chamber" and reaching new audiences about issues that most people are not familiar with. A case in point for this statement that is related to Madagascar is the online petition for Razily, a protester who was arrested on March 28th for flag theft and who has not been heard of since then. The petition has now reached moe than 500 signatures in a week thanks to media attention in different languages (ny marina momba ny Razily news2dago, Madagascar-Tribune, Ethan Zuckerman, Jillian York on Huffington Post and Madagaskar-Vision.de) For the ultimate comprehensive resource on translation and new media, read Chris Salzberg's thesis on the lingua GV project. (PDF)

Finally, David also emphasized the importance of addressing the safety of citizen journalists

In short, the conference was a reminder that supporting the development of new media users and communities in developing countries is a worthwhile endeveaor, especially considering their added value when a crisis situation breaks out.

On World Press Freedom Day: Support Razily and free speech in #Madagascar

2009-05-02T11:42:00.010-04:00

This is Razily:

Razily marched on towards soldiers during a rally protesting military actions in Madagascar. He marched alone, knowing that marching on would put him in harm's way.
It's been more than a month since his arrest and although mentioned, no trial date nad been set yet. It is unclear whether Razily is still alive today.

Razily is not a member of the press, nor is he an online media user.
He was a street vendor, but he stood for his right to express himself, amidst increasing censorship in his country.

Please support the release of a trial date for Razily by signing this petition.

The support so far looks very promising but the petition needs more signatures to demand accountability from the leaders of the armed forces.

There are more people not accounted for in Madagascar right now.

For more details, please read Ethan Zuckerman's article on Razily.

As an early birthday gift for me ;) , please send Razily your thoughts and consider letting your friends and relatives know about his courageous stand by adding the banner below:

Frontline Event: Roots of the Turmoil with Stephen Ellis

2009-04-27T14:12:00.003-04:00

World Book Day Review: "The Book of Sand" By J.L. Borges (& a bit about the Book of Imaginary Beings) #GVbook09

2009-04-23T16:07:00.007-04:00

On UNESCO World Book Day and as part of the Global Voices Book challenge, I thought I would tackle a book from an Argentine author. Why? Well, Argentina is one of the places where my sister once lived that I did not have the chance to visit & the place that Celeste, Jorge & Romina, friends who gravitate around the Global Voices/Rising Voices sphere, call home. I don't know much about Argentina and although the epic battles at La Bombonera between Boca Juniors and River Plate are famous all the way to Antananarivo, I desperately needed to know more a bit more.
I asked Celeste where I should start with if I were to read an Argentine author (except for Che Guevara who would be in a category of his own) and she immediately suggested Jorge (corrected) Luis Borges.

I was delighted to learn more about Borges and his work.
However, for the purpose of the book challenge and learning more about the culture, Borges is a complex fellow because he spent a lot of his time in many different parts of the world. Then again, it might just be the right fit since a Global Voices initiative will always redefine and challenge the established boundaries between cultures and aim to bridge them together.
In his writing, Borges would often nonchalantly drop phrases from Hugo, Balke or Schopenhauer in the middle of a stories without bothering with translation, probably assuming that we all should know at least this much from each foreign languages.

The Book of Sand is a collection of short stories that bends time, space and personalities. For the untrained reader like myself, it takes some adjusting to stay with Borges train of thought. Truth be told, many of the subtleties of his writing are still lost on me but I still thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

In my naive opinion, the Book of Sand felt like a challenge to the reader to look beyond the finality of events and understand that the beginning and end, fact and imagination are all truly relative. Such assessments are sometimes difficult to accept for someone who has spent most of his life trying to prove hypothesis as facts.
There are 13 short stories in the book but I will focus on one called The Congress because it speaks to the difficulty for a heterogeneous group to come together in trying to achieve a common goal.
In The Congress, the narrator is Alexander Ferri, an Argentine who recalls his days as a member of a society called the "Congress of the World". One of the goal of this group composed of many nationalities was to preserve classic books from every regions of the world. The dynamic of the group is described in details by Ferri, from the charismatic leader Glencoe to the internal rivalries of Eguren and Ferri. They all met in a ranch and are sent on missions to collect classics fro all over the world. The fascination for Europe is touched upon when members are manoeuvring to be sent to the libraries of Paris or London. Ferri falls in love with Beatrice in paris and fails in his mission to collect the books.
The Congress comes to an end abruptly when Glencoe gathers all the books collected and orders them to be burn. The reason he says, is that the idea of a Congress itself was wrong in assuming that they were an accurate representation of the rest of the world. Does the only engineer there represent all engineers ? Does Nora, the Norwegian truly represent all Norwegians ?

The Congress points that we like to shrink and summarize the world in a way that can be comprehensible to us but, in the end, these attempts are always futile. It is just impossible to have a true replicate of all the regions of the world and any similar initiatives are pointless.

As Madagascar tries to find an exit to its political dead end, such assessment of the true representation of a group is hitting very close to home for me at this time. No entity can ever claim that it represents perfectly a population. However, a group has to agree on a set of rules to live by and tolerate each other. When those agreements are rendered meaningless for whatever reasons, the opus of the members (like the collection of classic books initiative) usually ends in ashes.

Even though, this particular story brought me back to the crisis back home, I welcomed the rest of the short stories as an escape to the accrued violence there for the past few days.

A final link between Borges and Madagascar can be found in his other book: the Book of Imaginary Beings where Borges devotes a whole chapter to the origins of mythological creatures called lemuri:

"The Lemuri were the souls of the evil dead, created by Romulus to subdue the restless spirit of his brother Remus".

That is indeed consistent with Malagasy traditional folk stories in which lemurs are sometimes thought to carry the spirit of passed relatives.
I am sure Georgia (GAP) and David will be thrilled to know that the monkey on their back might just be the embodied spirit of someone's ancestors :). And Leonard, don't be surprised if those guys start to engage you in a conversation.

( Via Flickr @Carribeanfreephoto)

eyewitness account of pillage of National Park in the Sava region of Madagascar ( translated from Sobika)

2009-04-22T09:46:00.004-04:00

Because of the current vacuum in security forces in some regions of Madagascar, there is an ongoing looting of Malagasy National Park by organized mobs looking for rosewood and other rare kinds of woods.
These crimes have been documented by many already: The New York Times , The Globe and Mail, NGO and Foko blogger Koloina (twitter) yet nothing is being done to prevent further pillage of the forest and the protection of endangered species:

Below is an eyewitness account of this ongoing disaster,originally posted in French on the Sobika webiste a few weeks back and translated by environmental activist and famed Malagasy singer Razia Said (also on twitter)

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MADAGASCAR: EMERGENCY IN THE SAVA REGION

We are again publishing a new eyewitness account of events in the Sava region. Madagascar’s patrimony – the natural environment - is being utterly destroyed by the chaotic and unregulated exploitation of resources. Thus far, no government authority has even reacted to this crisis. If current conditions persist, the region’s forest and the many indigenous species of plants and animals which comprise the wealth of Madagascar will have completely disappeared in less than five years – because of one simple reason: the thirst for money. LET’S SOUND THE ALARM. THE SAVA REGION IS DYING. THIS REGION MUST BE SAVED!

SUSTAINABLE TOURISM=ENVIRONMENT=PROTECTION OF PATRIMONY

PRECIOUS HARDWOOD AND LEMURS

(source remains anonymous for security reasons)

Herewith you will find the results of my research into the world of timber trafficking.

“A SHIPPING CONTAINER FULL OF ROSEWOOD IS WORTH 900 MILLION FMG”

(images via Koloina)
1) The fact that too much timber is allowed to be exported is a serious matter. In light of the large quantity of logs now being stockpiled by exporters in Antalaha, the situation seems deeply disturbing. And that’s not even counting the tree-trunks which have already been shipped overseas, nor those which are still hidden in the forests, awaiting shipment.
2) The current sales price FOB at Vohemar ranges from 5 to 6 USD per kilo of top-ranked (or “first-choice”) timber. During the best season, that rate equals about 45,000 Fmg per kilo or 45 Million Fmg per ton. Rates have even reached as high as 10 or 11 USD per kilo. The price of second-choice timber is around 3 or 4 USD per kilo, or 27 to 36 Million Fmg per ton.
3) Demi-madere (?half-finished?) planks sell for 2.50 USD per kilo, or 22,500,000.00 Fmg per ton.
4) Medium-sized shipping containers can hold 20 tons of rosewood, averaging between 110 and 140 pieces of timber each (this ratio applies if the timber is rounded – ie: not yet squared off into planks). A container of first-choice timber is worth 900 Million Fmg.
5) The weight of the logs varies enormously because the loggers do not follow rules regarding authorized cuts. Some short, slender logs weigh a mere 75 kilos. The largest log I saw, however, weighed a record-breaking 1,405 kilos, with a length of 3.30 meters and a diameter of 90 cm. Incredible ! How did they manage to get it out of the forest? Average logs weigh about 200 kilos, measuring 2.50 meters with a 40 cm diameter.
6) Among the 13 logging permits approved during this period, some are for loggers new to this region. There is no quality control, few machines and little space to work. Some loggers, however, are experienced and have mastered the concept of quality both in woodcutting and in purchasing. They work with good machinery and proper space.

1) The older and better exporters are voicing complaints about the newer exporters, whom they accuse of ignoring the rules about log size and surface area to be logged as well as the spacing between cuts. The new exporters encourage indiscriminate logging and are careless about grading wood suitable for export. This leads to frequent complaints by foreign purchasers who demand refunds, damaging the image of the logging business, and indeed of the whole country.
2) As for the villagers, the local collectors sell timber at 15,000 Fmg per kilo to big collectors and exporters. The collectors recruit young people from the village, paying them between 25,000 to 35,000 Fmg per day to transport the cut timber out of the forest where it is stockpiled.
3) I made another discovery: many statements filed with the Ministry as part of requests for logging and timber storage permits are simply false. Once the Ministry approves a request, the loggers rush to fill the authorized timber amount, then push delivery of the timber to port as quickly as possible. The collectors panic and struggle to fill their quotas. Some collectors use deception, and fill hollow tree trunks with sand or gravel to increase their weight at delivery. Under cover of darkness, some collectors steal timber from others. Every night, timber collectors and wood haulers crowd the village bars until dawn, drinking away their profits – especially on weekends. People’s behavior has changed. They have become aggressive and cruel, vaunting their prowess with boasts and fakery. They give no thought to consequences, risks or even rules…
4) Policemen on duty in Manantenina are paid 25,000 Fmg. According to people I’ve heard chatting in the bush-taxis, there have even been clients of Belaoko lokoho who have stopped the vehicle asking to transport Bolabolas. The taxi driver refused.
5) Passengers in bush-taxis talk a lot about the issue of logging inside the Park. They have mentioned that the timber collectors are leaving the Park to await the reaction of the new President (TGV), since they fear he will pass a new law aimed at protecting the Park. But after the President passed through Sambava, not a word was spoken about the problem of that particular Park. Suddenly, the wood collectors went back to work in the Park with much more confidence and assurance that the government would not get involved. Can this be confirmed?

And another source:

IT’S A MASSACRE – HE KILLS EVERYTHING HIS DOGS HUNT DOWN, MORE THAN 3,000 TO 5,000, AS AN ESTIMATE.

I’ve just returned from two weeks in the forest, where I discovered that every stream leading down to the sea along countless branches and confluences is awash with timber. This is inevitable, and a cause of great dismay.
Out in the bush, I’ve discussed this issue with the loggers, with the timber collectors, with traffickers we know, with everyone involved. Their conclusions are unambiguous, direct and raw.
Yves recently posted this on his blog: “If we refuse to proceed down the pathway of the court and of reason, rocky and difficult as it may be, but worthy of our most beautiful discoveries, then we may well design our own funeral monument, built in a trash heap, on which the last one of us will perhaps have the strength to carve these words: “Here lies humanity, its vanity flown. No flowers, no crowns. Nothing but a great burst of laughter!”

I don’t know if you’ve heard of the “the Butcher” of XXX, former mayor of XXX. His wife is the current mayor. For the past thirty years, he has been hunting in the very same woods where I spent two weeks getting lost. The Butcher has built his business there, with ten trained dogs, hunting rifles with 5-shot magazines (the cartridge casings have been found). He kills everything his dogs hunt down. It’s a massacre. An estimated 3,000 to 5,000 animals killed.
He sells the meat to the Chinese community of the SAVA region, of Tamatave and even of Tana…and even in the Makira district…Down there, in a single territory we find varecia rubra, varecia variegata, the offspring of crossbreeding between both species, as well as simpona, babakoto, komba albifrons, coronatus, avahi, lepilemur, the aye-aye, hapalemur griseus and another species of hapalemur which could be prolemur simus. Unfortunately, due to the depredations of “The Butcher”, the animals are terrorized, and flee from human beings, and even from human odor. What a nightmare…”

SIGNED: An internet user who wants the world to take notice of what is happening now in the SAVA region.

Revue de Presse /Press Review #Madagascar (April, 03-09)

2009-04-14T11:36:00.002-04:00

REVUE DE PRESSE DU 03 AU 09 AVRIL 2009

(03 avril 2009)

Politique intérieure

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Devant les dirigeants de l’Afrique australe réunis au Sommet de la SADC, le 30 mars au Swaziland, l’ancien président de la République Marc Ravalomanana s'est plaint d’avoir été forcé de transmettre les pleins pouvoirs sous la menace d’une arme et encerclé par des soldats. Niant sa démission, Marc Ravalomanana a accusé son rival, Andry Rajoelina d’avoir envoyé des soldats au palais d’Etat d’Iavoloha, le 17 mars dernier. Selon ses termes, les troupes ont dispersé ses milliers de partisans installés à l’extérieur du palais avant de l’attaquer. (Les Nouvelles, La Gazette de la Grande Ile, L’Express de Madagascar)

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Andry Rajoelina a procédé à l’ouverture des assises nationales organisées par la Haute Aurotité de Transition. Le nombre des participants, surtout issus des régions, a largement dépassé l’effectif prévu. Plusieurs personnalités politiques, entre autres, quelques membres du bureau politique du Tim, y ont participé. Elles ont affirmé que leur participation est personnelle et n’engage pas leur parti. Des représentants de la communauté internationale dont ceux de l’Union Africaine et des ambassadeurs du Maroc et d’Algérie étaient aussi présents. (Les Nouvelles, La Gazette de la Grande Ile, L’Express de Madagascar, Midi Madagasikara)

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Suite à la réunion organisée à Paris, le 2 avril, par l’organisation internationale de la francophonie (OIF), il a été décidé que Madagascar sera suspendu de la communauté. La condamnation entraîne, entre autres, la suspension de la coopération multilatérale francophone, à l’exception des programmes qui bénéficient directement aux populations civiles et de ceux qui peuvent concourir au rétablissement de la démocratie. L’OIF réclame la tenue d’élections libres, fiables et transparentes dans les délais les plus brefs. L’OIF se dit prête à accompagner le processus de retour à un ordre constitutionnel démocratique. (Les Nouvelles, La Gazette de la Grande Ile)

(04 avril 2009)

Politique intérieure

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Les assises nationales qui se sont tenues les 2 et 3 avril et rassemblant de l’ordre d'un millier de participants issus de diverses entités ont abouti à la résolution d'écourter le régime transitoire à 19 mois. Un calendrier électoral a été élaboré. Le programme fixé commence par un référendum pour une nouvelle Constitution en septembre prochain pour se terminer par l'élection présidentielle en octobre de l'année prochaine. Les législatives et les sénatoriales se tiendront au mois de mars 2010 et mars 2011 (terme de 24 mois de transition). En outre, une conférence nationale sera organisée en juin 2009 après la mise en place d'un comité pour la réconciliation nationale. (La Gazette de la Grande Ile, L'Express de Madagascar, Midi Madagasikara)

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Les assises organisées par les partisans de Marc Ravalomanana, en parallèle avec les assises nationales de la HAT, ont drainé plusieurs centaines personnes issues de diverses organisations. Axées essentiellement sur la recherche de solutions à la crise, les recommandations mettent l'accent sur six points allant du retour rapide à l'ordre constitutionnel à l'organisation de la réconciliation nationale par le biais des assises nationales, une fois la paix rétablie. Les autres points interpellent les militaires et surtout la communauté internationale. Il est demandé aux militaires de respecter la neutralité politique et de ne plus faire preuve de violence envers les manifestants pacifiques. Le cas échéant, les assises proposent le recours à l'interposition des forces internationales pour rétablir l'ordre. Ils n'excluent pas non plus le dialogue entre les deux camps mais demandent la protection des forces d'interposition internationales. (Les Nouvelles, La Gazette de la Grande Ile, L'Express de Madagascar, Midi Madagasikara)

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En visite de courtoisie auprès du premier ministre Monja Roindefo, l'ambassadeur de France Jean-Marc Châtaigner, en tant que président local, a proposé une séance de travail entre le gouvernement malgache et des techniciens de l'Union européenne. Pour que le changement soit accepté par les Nations unies, la France, à travers son ambassadeur, s'est également dite prête à collaborer avec les dirigeants de la transition pour asseoir la démocratie à Madagascar. (La Gazette de la Grande Ile, L'Express de Madagascar, Midi Madagasikara)

(06 avril 2009)

Politique intérieure

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Après sa descente à Fianarantsoa et à Toliary, la délégation de la haute autorité de la transition, dirigée par son président Andry Rajoelina, a effectué une visite dans le Nord du pays, notamment à Antsiranana, Sambava, Nosy Be et Mahajanga, le week-end dernier. A chaque étape de son déplacement, Andry Rajoelina a été accueilli par une foule importante. A Nosy Be, le président de la haute autorité de la transition, Andry Rajoelina, s'est adressé aux manifestants légalistes. Il a déclaré que le retour au pouvoir de Marc Ravalomanana est exclu. Andry Rajoelina a fait savoir que la gestion d'un Etat n'est pas un jeu d'enfants. Il faisait allusion à la démarche de Marc Ravalomanana qui souhaite revenir à la tête du pouvoir après avoir démissionné. (Les Nouvelles, La Gazette de la Grande Ile, L'Express de Madagascar, Midi Madagasikara)

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Les militants du mouvement pro-Ravalomanana ont fait un sit-in devant le siège de la représentation des Nations unies samedi dernier. A défaut d'avoir pu pénétrer dans l'enceinte, ils se sont contentés d'un meeting sur le trottoir. D'après le porte-parole du parti Tim, ce sit-in est un message destiné à faire réagir les Nations unies. (Les Nouvelles, La Gazette de la Grande Ile, L'Express de Madagascar, Midi Madagasikara)

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Le conseil de la Commission de l'Océan Indien, en affirmant sa solidarité à l'égard du peuple malgache, appelle au rétablissement dans un délai rapproché, du fonctionnement démocratique des institutions de la Républiques. La COI souhaite également que Madagascar retrouve sa place au sein de la communauté internationale et décide d'envoyer une mission d'appui et de soutien à Madagascar, en concertation avec cette dernière à l'issue de la 25ème session de la COI, le 4 avril. (Les Nouvelles, La Gazette de la Grande Ile, L'Express de Madagascar)

Economie

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La centrale thermique de la compagnie nationale de l'eau et de l'électricité (Jirama) a été, samedi, la proie des flammes. Trois générateurs d'une production totale de 18 Mégawatts sont partis en fumée. Les flammes ont également endommagé tous les équipements et les machines, notamment le groupe électrogène. La fuite des carburants utilisés pour la mise en marche de ce groupe ainsi que la vétusté des générateurs qui ont été installés en 1975, sont à l'origine de cet incendie. L'incident n'affectera pas l'approvisionnement en électricité. (Les Nouvelles, L'Express de Madagascar, Midi Madagasikara)

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La société agroalimentaire Tiko de l'ancien président Marc Ravalomanana annonce l'arrêt d'activité de l'entreprise suite au conflit politique depuis le mois de janvier. L'absence de réseau de distribution après les pillages, l'incendie des centrales de vente Magro ainsi que l'atmosphère d'insécurité ont conduit à cette décision. Fleuron de l'industrie malgache avec 3500 emplois directs et près de 100 000 emplois indirects, les conséquences de la fermeture du groupe s'avèrent être un coup dur pour l'économie. Outre les producteurs agricoles qui assurent l'approvisionnement en matières premières, les sous-traitants et les commerçants souffrent de l'arrêt des activités de la plus grande industrie agro-alimentaire malgache. (Les Nouvelles, La Gazette de la Grande Ile, L'Express de Madagascar)

(07 avril 2009)

Politique intérieure

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L'épouse de l'ancien vice-premier ministre Pierrot Rajaonarivelo exilé en France a annoncé le retour imminent au pays de son mari sans avancer de date. Entourée des proches collaborateurs politiques de Pierrot Rajaonarivelo, elle a fait appel à une amnistie pour les détenus et les exilés politiques. Elle a porté ses critiques sur la lenteur de la mise en œuvre de la promesse du président de la haute autorité de la transition, Andry Rajoelina, en vue de la libération des prisonniers politiques ainsi que le retour au pays des exilés. Renée Rajaonarivelo a évoqué des manœuvres politiques faits par l'entourage d'Andry Rajoelina dans la concrétisation de cette mesure. (Les Nouvelles, La Gazette de la Grande Ile, L'Express de Madagascar, Midi Madagasikara)

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Suite à l'annonce faite par le professeur Zafy Albert de sa décision de prendre en charge la gestion des provinces autonomes et des régions, une délégation du comité pour la réconciliation nationale (CRN) assurera la descente dans les six ex-chefs lieux de provinces pour avancer dans le projet. (Les Nouvelles, Midi Madagasikara)

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Attendue le 1er avril, la nomination des autres membres du gouvernement de la haute autorité de la transition (HAT) n'a pas encore eu lieu. Les consultations continuent. (Les Nouvelles, Midi Madagasikara)

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Moins nombreux que d'habitude, les partisans de Marc Ravalomanana se sont de nouveau rassemblés sur la place de la Démocratie. Les différentes interventions des dirigeants du mouvement ont annoncé la mise en place prochaine d'un gouvernement soutenant la légalité. (Les Nouvelles, L'Express de Madagascar, Midi Madagasikara)

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Des officiers supérieurs et des politiciens pro-Ravalomanana font l'objet d'un mandat d'arrêt. Ils sont soupçonnés d'avoir semé des troubles, portant ainsi atteinte à l'ordre public. Dix neuf personnes seraient concernées par cette mesure judiciaire. Parmi elles figurent des meneurs du mouvement légaliste. (L'Express de Madagascar)

Informations générales

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La tempête tropicale "Jade" secoue la partie nord de l'île. Les fortes précipitations qu'elle provoque ont causé une inondation dans trois districts de la Grande île, Mananara Nord, Maroantsetra et Antalaha. (La Gazette de la Grande Ile, Les Nouvelles, L'Express de Madagascar)

(08 avril 2009)

Politique intérieure

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Après l'annonce de la nomination à venir d'un premier ministre ainsi que des membres de gouvernement de redressement national, les proches de l'ancien président Marc Ravalomanana multiplient les actions de reconquête du pouvoir. Les députés destitués par le régime transitoire se préparent à faire la campagne de la mise en place prochaine de ce gouvernement dans leurs districts respectifs. Parallèlement, ils ont annoncé qu'ils maintiennent la tenue de leur session ordinaire de l’assemblée nationale prévue en mai. Les pro-Ravalomanana ont incité les contribuables à entamer un mouvement de désobéissance fiscale. (Les Nouvelles, L'Express de Madagascar, Midi Madagasikara)

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Après avoir quitté le Swaziland, l'ancien président Marc Ravalomanana est arrivé dans la capitale éthiopienne lundi soir. Selon des sources diplomatiques, il a eu des consultations avec le Premier ministre éthiopien, Meles Zenawi, et le président de la Commission de l'Union africaine, Jean Ping. (Les Nouvelles, L'Express de Madagascar)

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Les employés de la banque centrale ont entamé une grève illimité à cause des menaces et autres actes d'intimidations à leur encontre émanant des autorités, dont l'interdiction de sortie du territoire qui frappe le gouverneur et le directeur général de la banque centrale de Madagascar, ainsi que les contrôles acharnés des véhicules convoyeurs de fonds. Ils réclament le respect du statut et de l'indépendance de cet établissement. (Les Nouvelles, L'Express de Madagascar, Midi Madagasikara, La Vérité)

Economie

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Pour éviter la fermeture de la société Tiko, le ministre des Finances et du budget Benja Razafimahaleo propose une solution à court terme après une rencontre avec les responsables de la société. La société Tiko peut reprendre ses activités à condition qu'elle fonctionne comme une société privée normale sans les avantages fiscaux et douaniers dont elle bénéficiait auparavant. Le paiement des arriérés vis-à-vis de l'Etat est laissé en suspens mais Tiko devra dorénavant s'acquitter des taxes en vigueur. (Les Nouvelles, La Gazette de la Grande Ile, L'Express de Madagascar, Midi Madagasikara, La Vérité)

(09 avril 2009)

Politique intérieure

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Les Nations unies et l'Union africaine (UA) réclament, en vue d'une transition ouverte et équilibrée, la tenue d'un dialogue impliquant toutes les entités politiques malgaches. Dramé Tiébilé, envoyé spécial du secrétaire général adjoint des Nations unies, et Ablassé Ouedraogo, envoyé spécial de l'UA Jean Ping, ont indiqué lors d'une conférence de presse, qu'un retour rapide à l'ordre constitutionnel à travers un processus consensuel associant toutes les parties concernées s'impose pour établir un régime transitoire démocratique. Concernant l'éventuelle intervention des casques bleus à Madagascar, l'émissaire des Nations unies a précisé qu'aucune décision allant dans ce sens n'a été prise lors de la réunion du conseil de sécurité de l'ONU à New York. (Les Nouvelles, La Gazette de la Grande Ile, L'Express de Madagascar)

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Les partisans de l'ancien président Marc Ravalomanana prévoient de faire une grande marche en direction des ambassades étrangères ce jour pour une remise d'une lettre de revendication de retour à l'ordre constitutionnel. En outre, les dirigeants du mouvement ont promis pour ce jour la venue d'un invité surprise. Accusé de vouloir légitimer le coup d'Etat à Madagascar, Jean-Marc Chataîgnier, Ambassadeur de France s'est fait particulièrement huer par les défenseurs de la légalité. (Les Nouvelles, L'Express de Madagascar, Midi Madagasikara)

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La ministre de la Justice Christine Razanamahasoa a nié l'existence d'une interdiction de sortie du territoire du directeur général de la banque centrale et du gouverneur. Selon elle, ces personnalités sont citées au Parquet à titre de témoins dans l'achat du second avion présidentiel Force Two sous le régime Ravalomanana. (La Gazette de la Grande Ile, L'Express de Madagascar)

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Le Premier ministre Monja Roindefo réagit à l'annonce de la tenue de la première session ordinaire de l'Assemblée nationale, faite par les anciens députés de l'ancienne mouvance présidentielle. Le chef du gouvernement du régime transitoire rappelle que la suspension de cette institution signifie interdiction de réinvestir le bâtiment abritant l’assemblée nationale. Cependant, il a exclu le recours à la force et prône le dialogue tout en parlant d'usurpation de fonction. (Les Nouvelles, L'Express de Madagascar)

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Des employés du Ministère des Finances et du Budget ont effectué un sit-in dans la cour du ministère. D'après les initiateurs du mouvement, les raisons sont multiples : le retour à l'ordre constitutionnel, la suppression de tous les avantages accordés aux agents de l'Etat et surtout les difficultés financières pour faire fonctionner la machine administrative. L'un des employés a évoqué le ralentissement des activités et la détérioration des résultats. Il a souligné que la recette fiscale a diminué de plus de 60% depuis cette crise et la prise en main par le pouvoir en place des affaires de l'Etat. (Les Nouvelles, L'Express de Madagascar, Midi Madagasikara)

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Fermée suite à une mesure administrative en octobre 2005, l'église FPVM a de nouveau été autorisée suite à un arrêté du Ministère de l'Intérieur publié mardi. (La Gazette de la Grande Ile, Midi Madagasikara)

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Le bilan provisoire du passage de la tempête tropicale "Jade" fait état de 8 morts, 2 blessés et plus de 3.320 sans-abri. La partie Nord-Ouest et le Sud-Est de l'ile ont été les plus secoués. (Les Nouvelles, L'Express de Madagascar, Midi Madagasikara)

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Malgré les négociations entamées par le Ministre des Finances de la Haute Autorité de la Transition (HAT), Benja Razafimahaleo, le groupe Tiko reste sur ses positions d'arrêter sa production. La convention proposée par le ministre a été rejetée par le groupe. Face à cette situation, la HAT entend suivre la voie judiciaire. De son côté, le groupe Tiko porte plainte au niveau international pour la série de pillages et de menaces dont les employés ont été victimes. (L'Express de Madagascar)

#Opinion: New Rules on Madagascar and Trade vs Aid

2009-04-06T18:03:00.012-04:00

Let's borrow Bill Maher's routine to sort through the confusion in Madagascar:

New Rules:

Rule 1: If your whole political shtick is to restore democracy and give the land back to the people, you cannot take 18 months to organize elections, state that the land deal with Daewoo was really quite acceptable and change the constitution so you are eligible to run. It should take less time to organize elections than to build the Empire State Building (13 months). In fact, your sole purpose should be to get elections done as soon as possible.
Rule 2: If you are so desperate on getting aid again from "friendly nations" , you cannot demand their respect after threatening to kill them, it's just not appropriate.
Rule 3: If you have money to throw an extravagant inauguration party for your debut as a non-elected president, you must have money for rescue and relief in case a cyclone arrive. Well, it just did , 8 died, 3300 are homeless but hey it was a heck of a party
Rule 4: There is an ongoing effort right now by international agencies to collect $30 millions USD for rescue effort after cyclone Jade because we were unable to care for our own people. This is unfortunately not the only case of aid being critical for Malagasy. Thousands have lost their jobs since international funds have been frozen. So Madagascar is real life example of what 'd happen if aid were to be stopped abruptly. It is not pretty.
Rule 5: An passionate debate is going on the merit of aid versus trade. I personally lean towards the thinking of Ayittey and Co. Yet, this is not an option in the short term for a few countries. Aid might be flawed but it keeps so many people going in Madagascar that I am having a hard time picturing it being stopped cold turkey. Moreover, there are many cases of limited aid going to the civil organisations that proved to be very effective agent of progress. So "smart aid" directly targeted to the civil societies should be encouraged and large funding to the government should be restrained.
Rule 6: As for trade, this telling post from a person in Madagascar with insights in the word of privileged traders shows that until corruption is effectively rooted out of businesses in Africa, trades truly benefiting lower classes will always be merely wishful thinking.
Rule 7: Finally, if you incite your supporters to march for freedom and democracy, your place is at the front of the march, not at the back, a few miles away from harm. That's how Dr. Martin Luther King Jr did it, that's how Mahatma Gandhi did it. You don't send your people into harm's way when you were not willing to do so yourself. But that's not a new rule, that's a universal "great leader" rule.

Just a reminder for those who don't know him, Bill Maher is a comedian and "New Rules" are a satire :).

All That Tweets...

2009-03-18T18:29:00.010-04:00

Thanks to the dynamic new digital media user community in Madagascar ( in trying conditions nonetheless), there is a tiny silver lining in the ongoing puzzling crisis at home.
It seems that I have gotten the opportunity to explain it quite a bit recently. The fact that I get the call to do it is very unfair because as I said repeatedly, without the content produced by users In Madagascar, there would be nothing for me to talk about, translate or amplify like below:

(CNN's Errol Barnett is truly an amazing guy, I now understand the confessed crushes that many lady friends have expressed, granted probably not for the same reasons).

Let me clarify a few other things that I wanted to get off my chest for a while:

1) What I do on twitter is exactly what I do for Global Voices Online but for all digital media (blogs. videos etc..) Malagasy bloggers produce informative content that we get to translate and contextualize.
All other 220 authors/translators at Global Voices Online are doing the exact same thing. The goal is to explain and shine a light on regions and issues that may be underexposed. That philosophy is what drives most of us to twitter and to other platforms.

2) Ethan Zuckerman is the primary reason why the twitter Malagasy community got on the radar during the crisis. Evidence ? I had about 130 followers on twitter before his post on following the crisis on twitter on February 19th. I have a few more now. Of course, most people are still asking where Madagascar is or whether Angelina Jolie took over the island.( I am looking at you Vinvin :) ). The key is that Ethan cared about a "pothole" (h/t to Erik) that is not really in his neighborhood and wrote about it ( aka the caring issue as Joi Ito coined it). And after reading that post, many journalists agreed: there might be a story there worth telling and the new way how some information is conveyed from there ( on twitter or on sms-based crisis mapping) is also important.

3) As you may have noticed, I was willing to talk to anyone who would write/video about the crisis. Attention seeker much ? Well, that's for you to judge but the goal once again is to get people to look beyond the animated movie and the striking biodiversity. Not that we at Foko don't care about biodiversity, because we do. But it needs to be contextualized. That's what the bloggers at Foko in Madagascar do so at every opportunity we get, we direct people towards their work. This is not to get rewards from Google adsense because after all, we are all volunteers there, but because the only reason to explain something is so for people to listen. If no one listens, it's a moot point, right? So I get to talk because it's more convenient for everyone involved ( media, local bloggers are obvously quite preoccupied) right now but whenever possible, I'd much rather have the guys on site do the talking, without the diaspora as a proxy.

4) Let me repeat as well the other reason why citizen media added an important value to the information pool during the crisis. Journalists cannot possibly be everywhere, yet troubles were happening in several blocks of the city and in many different cities. Witnesses who can transmit information rapidly are crucial components. it is also no secret that airwaves were filled with biased news generated by both parties. Twitterers correcting info or warning people of potential hoaxes happened more than once.
The memory that will probably always stay with me once this crisis is over is this inocuous tweet on March 17th:

Dipnote is the twitter handle for the official Blog of the U.S. Department of State. I should be mad that I was wrong but3 independent sources also posted it and even the very knowledgeable French cable news France 24 reported it before amending it. I immediately Re-tweeted the note to notify people of my mistake and that the president is not at the US embassy( where he is even now is still anyone's guess). I think it is awesome that the administration is savvy enough to know that this is the beauty of twitter. Instant amendment of false information by sources who know better. When there is a gap in information, one wants to collect all potential info and get all the twitter users to verify and help sort out truth from rumors. Another reason why twitter worked in this situation.

addendum: Andrew Meldrum's piece on twitter & Madagascar summarize the idea well: "twitterers are not real journalists [..] we are complementary to journalism"

So there, I hope I clarified the sudden blitz about new media and the Madagascar crisis. The attention as oso said before, will come and go anyway and that's fine. Hopefully, the crisis will also be behind at that time and one can start elaborating more constructive projects.
But at least now if one ever wanted to visit Madagascar, even virtually, one would know where to find a few real people online.

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