Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2009-05-07-Speech-4-272"
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"en.20090507.34.4-272"2
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"Madam President, in the first weeks of March we were witnesses of a dramatic coup d’état in Madagascar. The rivalry, which has existed for several years, between the deposed president and the leader of the opposition led the island to the brink of civil war. On 17 March 2009, the day following capture of the Presidential Palace by the army, Andry Rajoelina declared himself head of state. The Malagasy Supreme Court stated that the former Mayor of Antananarivo holds this office in accordance with the Constitution. Doubts have been raised about this, if only because there is a clause in the organic statute which says that to be president a person must be at least 40 years of age, and the new president is only 34.
The assumption of power and the decision of the Supreme Court have aroused universal controversy. The swearing-in ceremony was boycotted by most foreign diplomats, and the African Union has suspended Madagascar from membership. The political crisis has led to general chaos and destabilisation in the country, where most people have lived for years in terrible poverty on USD 1 a day, and have limited access to food and water, basic medical services and education. I lived in Madagascar for six years, and I became thoroughly acquainted with these problems, and therefore I very strongly support the UN appeal for urgent humanitarian aid for the people of Madagascar.
The European Parliament should strongly condemn the coup d’état and all attempts at taking power which break democratic principles. The European Union should call for a renewal of the work of both houses of parliament, which have been suspended by the new regime. We should also support the efforts of the special envoy of the African Union and representatives of the UN in their talks with representatives of local political parties and all interested groups in order to bring about an immediate restoration of constitutional order in the country, and the international community should decidedly increase its efforts at bringing humanitarian aid to the people of the island, who are living on the brink of poverty."@en1
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