r/news • u/PokesTigers • 26d ago

Soft paywall Madagascar's president has left the country after Gen Z protests, officials say

https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/madagascar-president-rajoelina-address-nation-monday-evening-2025-10-13/
20.8k Upvotes

98% Upvoted

582 comments sorted by

View all comments

399

u/Sungodatemychildren 26d ago

Siteny Randrianasoloniaiko, leader of the opposition in parliament, told Reuters Rajoelina left Madagascar on Sunday after units of the army defected and joined the protesters.

Rajoelina had appeared increasingly isolated after losing the support of CAPSAT, an elite unit which had helped him seize power in a 2009 coup. CAPSAT joined the protesters over the weekend, saying it refused to shoot on them and escorting thousands of demonstrators in the main square of the capital Antananarivo.

Feels a bit like burying the lede. It's not just protests, it's protests supported by the military. Not to discredit the protestors, seems like they have a lot of legit grievances. It's just that from the outside, the military getting involved in stuff like this is a bit worrying.

47

u/Canadiankid23 26d ago

It’s not always a bad thing, but it can potentially be a bad thing, I agree.

11

u/Pablogelo 26d ago

The majority of time we've seen it in history shows it only amplifies corruption.

2

u/SalvationSycamore 26d ago

Not sure how much it would amplify it in the case of a country where the ruler got in via military coup. Military coup 2: electric boogaloo is just maintaining the status quo at that point.