MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
In Madagascar, the military seized power Tuesday after weeks of protest against corruption and shortages of electricity and water. The island country of 30 million people is the world's biggest producer of vanilla and it's also one of the world's poorest countries. NPR's Emmanuel Akinwotu reports.
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UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTORS: (Chanting in French).
EMMANUEL AKINWOTU, BYLINE: What began as protests from a young generation angry at chronic power cuts and water shortages morphed into Madagascar's largest demonstrations in over 15 years. Then a turning point came on the weekend.
(CHEERING)
AKINWOTU: Soldiers from an elite unit joined the protesters, sparking cheers from demonstrators who had faced brutal force from the gendarmerie police force, leading to at least 22 deaths, according to the U.N. It was an ominous sign that President Andry Rajoelina's position was in peril. Then on Tuesday, a colonel from the unit announced they had taken over.
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UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: (Speaking French).
AKINWOTU: He said security officials would govern until a civilian government takes over, but he gave no timeline. On Monday, President Rajoelina said in a video statement he had fled the country out of fear for his life, escaping on a French military jet, according to local media.
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ANDRY RAJOELINA: (Speaking French).
AKINWOTU: Now he has been deposed in the same way he came to power, when large protests against his predecessor in 2009 led to a military takeover. Madagascar is a former French colony with a turbulent history.
LUKE FREEMAN: In many ways, you could say this has been coming for a long time.
AKINWOTU: Luke Freeman is an honorary fellow at University College London and based in the capital Antananarivo. He said anger at the lack of water and power was hard to overstate.
FREEMAN: Sometimes lasting 10 hours a day, 12 hours a day without power, and people having to queue up at night in the street at a standpipe just to have water at home. Eighty percent of the population live on less than $2 a day. Two U.S. dollars a day.
AKINWOTU: He said the protests were an inspiring effort from young people who make up the majority of the population and who are now a political force. But that's a key question is how things evolve from here. Emmanuel Akinwotu, NPR News, Lagos.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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