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It
was stated on CNN International yesterday afternoon that the US
Government did not recognize Marc Ravalomanana as the new President.
This is to let you know that it seems that our government officially
accepted the results of the first election organized by one man
and the High Court Commission whom Ratsiraka appointed to oversee
the election. The US Government publicly pushed for a second election,
even though they recognize that there was corruption in the first
election. (See press release below.) In numerous voting stations
observers indicated fraud. When the HCC made their decision at
the end of January, they threw out all the votes of certain locations
that heavily supported Ravalomanana. It is too bad that our government
did not push for justice in the first election and took the easy
way out by supporting a second election. In a very complicated
situation, the US Government seems only to want to recognize that
the constitution and the law of the land is more important than
the desire or voice of the people who are asking that truth and
justice be revealed in the first elections. If the gathering of
masses and protests (estimated at time of over one million people)
are any indication of seeking truth, than it seems apparent that
the Malagasy government and some of our international community
are not interested in discovering the truth.
What
does this mean for our daily lifestyles? We don't really know
yet. Last night Air France and Air Madagascar said they are canceling
all fights indefinitely. However, I did hear a plane going off
this morning. At this point in time, there is not a curfew, but
it is suggested not to go out at night. People are suggested to
stay at home.
We
have received encouraging emails from many of you, stating your
concern. Some of you asked if there is anything you can do. Our
answer today is YES.
The
suggestions that we would make are similar to the suggestions
down below. The following letter is from the President of the
Reformed Church here in Madagascar.
Thank
you. Todd and Patsy
February
2, 2002
To:
US Official Press Release
The
United States calls on the Government of Madagascar and the opposition
to resolve the election dispute peaceably in accordance with democratic
principles, the rule of law, and the Malagasy constitution. The
United States urges all parties to respect the High Constitutional
Court’s January 25, 2002 decision that no candidate received sufficient
votes to be declared the winner under the Malagasy Constitution.
The
United States appeals to President Ratsiraka, Mayor Ravalomanana,
and their supporters to refrain from inflammatory rhetoric and
to continue to participate constructively in the election process
according to the Constitution and laws of Madagascar.
In
order to ensure a free, fair and credible election outcome, the
United States calls upon the Government of Madagascar and the
opposition to ensure that the February 24, 2002 runoff takes place
in an open, fully, transparent manner free from any form of coercion
and reflects the will of the Malagasy people. The United States
urges that both national and international observers be given
free and unhindered access to observe the voting process in order
to certify the fairness of the election.
LETTER
FROM THE FJKM PRESIDENT TO THE PC(USA)
February
5, 2002
Dear
Brothers and Sisters in Christ in the Presbyterian Church (USA),
Greetings
in the name of our Lord! We trust all is well with you. We rejoice
in our work together to witness to the Lord and bring His kingdom
here to Madagascar.
We
your brothers and sisters in Christ from the Church of Jesus Christ
in
Madagascar
(FJKM) have a request to make of you on behalf of our nation.
We
ask you this as the largest protestant church in Madagascar with
over 4000 congregations and 2 million members. We are also a member
of the FFKM, the Malagasy ecumenical church council made up of
the 4 largest churches in Madagascar: Catholic, FJKM, Lutheran,
and Anglican. These churches have a combined membership of 6 million
people, over 1/3 of the country's population.
As
you may know, Madagascar had a presidential election on 16 December
2001. The FJKM and the FFKM have long been working to ensure free
and fair elections in Madagascar. At this time, many events have
transpired that concern us and threaten the democratic outcome
of this election. And so now we humbly seek your help and prayer.
Below
we share some of the events surrounding the election so that you
might better understand what has happened and why we are concerned.
There
were 6 candidates in this election, the leading two being Didier
Ratsiraka (current President) and Marc Ravalomanana. (Mayor of
the capital city Antananarivo and lay vice-president of FJKM).
While the government refused to have any international observers,
it did permit a national non-partisan consortium to monitor the
elections at each voting station. The FJKM was a member of this
consortium. The consortium received financial backing from several
European donors, Japan, and the USA. While
the
consortium attempted to place election monitors at every voting
station, the government thwarted this attempt by not making available
the number and location of voting stations until after the election
was over. At this time, there is a discrepancy of over 1000 voting
stations between Madagascar's High Constitutional Court's count
and the government's count.
Immediately
following voting at each voting station, the votes were counted
in front of the state representative, a representative of the
consortium, and a representative of each candidate. By law each
candidate could have a representative present. Each representative
observing the count received a signed voting record from that
station. Hence there could be as many as 8 identical copies from
each station (one per candidate, consortium, and state).
There
were many irregularities during the campaign period, on election
day, and in the days following the election. The consortium documented
numerous cases in which President Ratsiraka broke electoral laws
and in which the state committed fraud and intimidated the people.
Soon after the election, different results were reported. With
the voting records available to them, the consortium reported
that Ravalomanana received 50.5% of the vote, the FFKM reported
Ravalomanana received 51.1%, and Ravalomanana's own party reported
that he received 52.5% of the vote. The government, however, reported
46.4% of the vote going to Ravalomanana. By Malagasy law, any
candidate receiving more than 50% of the vote wins on the first
round. If no candidate receives 50%, then a second round between
the top two candidates is required.
Because
of the discrepancies, the consortium brought a request to compare
the different voting records before the High Constitutional Court
(HCC), Madagascar's Supreme Court. It also presented a case to
disqualify Ratsiraka for numerous violations of the electoral
laws, including the illegal use of state funds to finance his
campaign. The Malagasy people began demonstrating peacefully in
early January 2002 to ask the HCC to compare the voting records
so that the truth could be found. On 7 January, soldiers assaulted
a peaceful crowd of eighty thousand demonstrators with tear gas
and grenades for two hours. While many were injured, the crowd
did not disperse. Since that time, there have been no further
acts of violence against demonstrators in the capital city.
On
25 January, the HCC ruled that Ravalomanana received 46.2% of
the vote and that a second election would be held February 24th
with the campaign period beginning February 9th. The HCC threw
out the accusations of electoral fraud brought against Ratsiraka.
It also refused to compare any of the voting records held by the
consortium, FFKM and Ravalomanana with those of the state. In
addition, many of the voting records presented by the HCC indicate
that the HCC itself committed electoral fraud. Given these actions
of the HCC (the highest legal body in the land), the opposition
movement decided that it would not participate in the second round
of elections unless the voting records from the first round are
compared to ensure fraud-free results.
When
the HCC refused to compare the results, Ravalomanana called for
nationwide demonstrations and strikes. The airport, banks and
many businesses have closed to honor the opposition's request.
Last week over 500,000 people marched peacefully in the capital
city every day to show their support for Ravalomanana and the
democratic process. People all over Madagascar have been praying
and peacefully demonstrating. Over the last month, millions of
people all over the island have sacrificed and quit work to demonstrate
their desire to have their votes fairly counted and to have
a
president who is elected by the majority of the people and not
by voter fraud. Many of these people are poor, but they believe
in their right to elect their leader regardless of economic or
educational status.
Last
week several international governments including France and the
United States called for a second election based on the HCC's
results. There was no mention of the need to compare the voting
records from the first election. The United States called for
the second round election to be conducted in such a manner as
to ensure a "free, fair and credible election outcome" and that
the election dispute be resolved in accordance with "democratic
principles, the rule of law, and the Malagasy constitution." As
the highest legal body in Madagascar is implicated in electoral
fraud, the terms "free, fair and credible election" and "democratic
principles" on one hand and "the rule of law and the Malagasy
constitution" on the other, are contradictory in the eyes of the
Malagasy people. By asking all parties concerned to respect the
decision of the High Constitutional Court, it appears to the Malagasy
people that the United States is siding with fraud over fairness
and repression over democracy and the will of the people. This
confuses people as the United States is seen as a champion for
justice and democracy.
On
Monday February 4th, nearly 1,500,000 people marched peacefully
in protest in the capital city alone. With or without the support
of the international community, the Malagasy people will stand
firm for free and fair elections, democracy, and the government's
acceptance of the will of the people. What is going on in Madagascar
is truly a fight to have the democratic process honored. Support
from the international community can help reduce the potential
for violent repression of the peaceful demonstrations and hasten
the advent of a fairly elected government.
We
would like to ask you to:
Pray
with the Malagasy people: that demonstrations remain peaceful
and bear fruit quickly. That Ratsiraka's government acknowledges
the legitimate will of the people and does not send the military
against the people. That the international communities show wisdom
in their attempts to support the democratic process in adagascar.
That justice prevails.
Contact
your elected representatives and government officials. Please
help your government understand that the best way to support the
democratic process in Madagascar is to call for a comparison of
the voting records from the December 16 election to ensure that
the will of the Malagasy people be honored. Ask the United States
to issue a statement calling for a comparison of the first round's
voting records and that a second round be held only if the comparison
shows that no candidate received 50% or more of the vote.
Thank
you for joining with us in this time of need. May God's words
in Amos 5:24 be fulfilled in our nation. " But let justice roll
down like waters and righteousness like an everflowing stream."
President
of the Reformed Church
Update
from Madagascar, 2-20-02 
Full
Text of Fr. McGregor's Letter
Click
here for more information on People Reaching People in Madagascar
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