(English) Military unit takes power in Madagascar

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A unit of the Malagasy army has claimed it has ‘taken power’ in Madagascar.

The CAPSAT unit, which on Saturday (11 October 2025) announced it was joining protests against the Malagasy government and president Andry Rajoelina, saying it would not ‘follow illegal orders’ to ‘shoot our brothers and sisters’ (the demonstrators) made the announcement today.

CAPSAT (Corps d’administration des personnels et des services administratifs et techniques) leader, Colonel Michael Randrianirina, announced to reporters in Antananarivo that the Malagasy military will form a ‘council’ of officers from the army, military police (gendarmerie) and police, which would take on the roles up to now carried out by the Malagasy president.

It is a notable development not only because this would be a major constitutional change in Madagascar, handing the powers of the head of state to three military and security bodies instead of an elected representative of the people, but also because CAPSAT originally made its break with the government after a member of the gendarmerie, which along with the Malagasy police is believed to have killed 22 Malagasy civilian demonstrators and injured a further 100 in 18 days of protests, shot a CAPSAT soldier.

Colonel Randrianirina said the council would ‘quickly’ appoint a prime minister to form a civilian government.

He said: ‘Perhaps in time the council will include senior civilian advisers. It is this committee that will carry out the work of the presidency. After a few days, we will set up a civilian government.’

Despite these statements, CAPSAT has announced that it has suspended all Malagasy constitutional institutions, including the senate (whose head would, under the Malagasy constitution, ordinarily take over the roles of the president and organise an election for a new president to be elected), the constitutional court and the electoral commission.

Taking questions after the statement, he told an Agence-France Presse reporter: ‘We have taken power.’

And although Randrianirina – who appears now to be the de facto head of the Malagasy state – said that Gen Z Madagascar would be included in the new Malagasy government, he said that there will be no immediate elections, instead saying: ‘We will form a government, and reach consensus. Elections will happen in the next 18 months to two years.

‘We had no choice,’ he added. ‘There is no president, there is no government. Nothing here works.’

Randrianirina’s statements were made soon after the Malagasy parliament’s lower house – including Rajoelina’s own party IRMAR – had voted to impeach Rajoelina, though he denied its right to do so, saying he had dissolved parliament hours before.

The Malagasy presidential Facebook account issued a statement saying: ‘The parliamentary session is devoid of legal basis. There has been an attempted coup d’etat. The president of the republic remains fully in office and is ensuring the maintenance of constitutional order and national stability.’

It is not clear from where he made this statement.

As we noted in our detailed update yesterday, Rajoelina had been scheduled to address the nation in a broadcast which was postponed three times yesterday evening.

But shortly before midnight, he made a broadcast not on national Malagasy television, as had been announced, but on the president’s Facebook Live account, and VIVA.

In his address, he gave no indication of his whereabouts, but said he had been ‘forced into hiding’ because of ‘threats made against my life’.

It is almost certain that Rajoelina left Madagascar on Sunday (12^th October) following protests and demonstrations across the country which had begun on Thursday 25^th September in Antananarivo.

These demonstrations, led by young Malagasy people under the name ‘Gen Z Madagascar’ were first against continual long-lasting power and water cuts, but soon grew into protests against human rights violations, alleged corruption, poverty and low living standards in Madagascar.

Rajoelina’s government and security forces reacted strongly to the protests, attempting to ban all demonstrations, then using tear gas, rubber bullets and baton charges against protestors, and in the first few days – in which demonstrations took place across the country – the UN reported that 22 people had been killed.

The protests continued, and on Sunday, a day after CAPSAT announced it was backing the protestors, Madagascar Aviation reports that Rajoelina’s helicopter left the presidential palace and landed on Sainte Marie island, Eastern Madagascar. A few minutes later, Madagascar Aviation’s Facebook page reports, he boarded a French military aircraft to Reunion.

From there he is reported to have flown to Dubai, though it is not known whether this was his final destination, or another stopover.

French president Emmanuel Macron has still not confirmed this version of events, however.

Protestors, including Gen Z Madagascar on its social media pages, celebrated today’s CAPSAT announcement, though some expressed concern about the military’s longer-term intentions.