On a mission to Madagascar until tomorrow, UN and AU envoys are intensifying consultations. At the Prime Minister's office yesterday, they emphasized the inclusivity of the national dialogue. The two special envoys of the UN and AU stressed this approach during their meeting with the Prime Minister yesterday.
Inclusivity. This approach was once again highlighted regarding the process of refounding the Republic yesterday, during a meeting between Mamitiana Rajaonarison, Prime Minister, and the joint mission of envoys from the United Nations (UN) and the African Union (AU), at the State Palace of Mahazoarivo.
On mission in the Big Island until tomorrow, the joint mission led by Mohamed Idriss Farah, special envoy of the AU Commission President for Madagascar, and Parfait Onanga-Anyanga, special representative of the UN Secretary-General to the AU, has been conducting consultations with Malagasy stakeholders since Monday. Yesterday, the delegation met with the occupant of Mahazoarivo.
According to a statement published by the Prime Minister's office, the special envoys of the UN Secretary-General and the AU Commission President requested that the Republic's refounding process be inclusive, "emphasizing" the participation of all in the national dialogue. Clearly, international bodies involved in facilitating Madagascar's return to constitutional order are aligned on this demand for an inclusive process.
The statement from the extraordinary Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) on June 29 also emphasizes this question of inclusivity. "(...) the Summit recalled the need to conduct inclusive dialogue, promote reconciliation and organize national consultations during the transition period (...)," the document reports.
State Position
In his opening address to the 28th meeting of the SADC ministerial committee responsible for cooperation in policy, defense and security matters, in Salima, Malawi, Thursday, Elias Magosi, executive secretary of the regional organization, also called for an inclusive approach.
Reading the SADC extraordinary Summit statement, some observers drew a connection to the fact that this hammered inclusivity could have political significance. Namely, the participation of Andry Rajoelina, former President of the Republic, in the process of returning to constitutional order, particularly in the national dialogue. "The Summit requested the release of political prisoners, the end of arbitrary arrests (...), as well as the return to the country of political exiles," the statement also indicates.
Beyond the question of political prisoners, the possibility of a request for Andry Rajoelina's return to the country and his participation in the national dialogue prompted a strong response from those in power. Without ambiguity, Colonel Michaël Randrianirina, Head of State, sidestepped this scenario.
"The national dialogue is reserved for Malagasy people and not for foreigners, not for non-Malagasy. I think what I want to say is clear. It is Malagasy who will take part in the national dialogue and not people we consider no longer to be Malagasy," emphasized the occupant of Iavoloha. Hearing the Head of State, the inclusivity of the dialogue process, for those in power, consists of casting a wide net among "national stakeholders," including the opposition.
The state position was defended by Alice N'Diaye, Minister of Foreign Affairs, during the SADC ministerial committee meeting in Malawi. Facing UN and African Union envoys yesterday, the Prime Minister also put forward this government interpretation of the meaning of inclusivity in the national dialogue.
Garry Fabrice Ranaivoson