Exiled Malagasy president tells of his strife hope
Times LIVE
Mar 5, 2011 11:42 PM | By ROWAN PHILP
Mar 5, 2011 11:42 PM | By ROWAN PHILP
Madagascar's exiled president has told of how he hid in the bush shortly after being ousted in a bloody coup two years ago.
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FAMILY TIES: Madagascar's exiled president Marc Ravalomanana, his wife Lalao and their daughter Sarah at their apartment in Sandton. Twelve members of the Ravalomanana family have been living as 'guests' of South Africa for the past two years, since the president was ousted in a coup Picture: RAYMOND PRESTON
In an exclusive interview with the Sunday Times Marc Ravalomanana, 61, also revealed he reluctantly abandoned plans to return home after a deal was struck with mediators in Sandton this week.
The business tycoon fled Madagascar in March 2009 during a coup in which 170 people died.
Ravalomanana said he and his family of 11 would remain as "guests" of South Africa "for the time being" after talks with the Southern African Development Community (SADC) mediator Joacquim Chissano in Sandton, where Ravalomanana and his family are living.
Ravalomanana, one of the richest men on the island, said a mob had burned the family business empire to the ground - including 12 factories and buildings, as well as his daughter's printing business, and about 200 vehicles.
"There was no insurance - they said it was caused by riots," he said.
"Four thousand employees lost jobs directly; maybe 200000 others on farms lost income."
Two weeks ago Ravalomanana was barred from boarding a flight from Johannesburg to Madagascar, where hundreds of thousands of supporters hoped to greet him as the nation's leader - but where he also faced arrest on arrival and life imprisonment.
He vowed to find "any way" home, including an urgent chartering a private flight, despite a plea from the South African Department of International Relations that he stay put, amid concerns that it could cause chaos on the island.
The mob was apparently mobilised by former deejay and mayor Andry Rajoelina who declared himself head of state on the grounds that the president was "a scoundrel".
Later 30 demonstrators were shot dead in a protest outside the presidential palace.
Last year, a Malagasy court convicted Ravalomanana in his absence for being responsible for the massacre and sentenced him to life in prison. An international court, however, has declared the judgement invalid.
Ravalomanana fled his post on March 17 and flew to Johannesburg. He alleged the coup had been orchestrated by his former friend Norbert Ratsirahonana whom, he claimed, had been pulling the strings of power ever since.
Describing his day of terror after fleeing the palace, Ravalomanana said he hid "in the bush" and phoned Ratsirahonana to ask why he had been betrayed.
"It was a shock - we did not expect it," he said. "The bodyguards said it was no longer safe; that we must go. I ceded my powers to the military."
Responding to his court sentence, the ousted leader said: "It was not us (responsible). Investigations show the bullets were shot from the back, and the bullets were not the same as the (Presidential Guard weapons)."
Ravalomanana revealed that he was prepared to negotiate and even share power with Rajoelina ahead of new elections. However he said that "everyone knows there is no future for this crazy young man".
Ravalomanana initially vowed to find "any way" back to his country, after being barred from a flight there two weeks ago.
Chissano accepted Ravalomanana's new envoy - local human rights lawyer Brian Currin - as his representative in Madagascar.
At his daughter Sarah's Sandton apartment, the father of four described a South African life, meanwhile, featuring church, tennis, safaris and spending time with his three grandchildren .
He said the "very good hospitality" of the South African government included a car and security officers. He said his son and daughter paid for the family's two plush apartments in the five-star hotel in Sandton.
"I'd like to thank the people and the government here - they are friendly," he said.
The son of a subsistence farmer, Ravalomanana, the youngest of eight children, said he grew up feeding and milking the two family cows in the village of Imerikasina, on the country's high plateau.
He said he recruited his wife, Lalao, as his first delivery driver, as he built a dairy firm, and studied business in Sweden.
His company, Tiko, would become Madagascar's largest locally owned business empire by 1999, employing more than 4000 staff, and dominating the local food and oil industries.
Lalao became head of the family business after her husband became mayor of the capital in 2000 - "a decision that took me 15 minutes to make".
While saying "I never mix politics with business", he said he had considered "helping South African dairy farmers; sharing knowledge on how to grow their business, or to open a cheese factory or anything".
"When I saw the excellent farming area in the KwaZulu-Natal (Midlands), I thought, it would be nice to do dairy farming here But my profit now is improving the lives of Malagasy people; to lift up - this is the only thing," he said.