Background
Located off the coast of East Africa in the Indian Ocean, Madagascar has long been one of the poorest countries in the world. The World Bank estimated that in 2022, 75% of the country lived under the poverty line, out of a country of 30 million. [19] Incumbent President Andry Rajoelina — who has dominated the country's politics since its 2009 political crisis, and was recently re-elected in 2023 [20] in a vote that faced significant boycotts from the opposition — has been blamed for much of the country's recent economic woes. [21] [22]
The capital of Antananarivo regularly sees widespread power outages and water cuts that last for up to 12 hours at a time [23] while the government simultaneously invests in high-profile projects, such as the $152 million cable car in Antananarivo spanning 13 kilometers, widely criticized as irrelevant to citizens' basic needs but defended by Andry Rajoelina while referring to the same criticism the Eiffel Tower received at the beginning of the project. [24]
President Andry Rajoelina, who also holds French nationality, has become a focal point of public resentment due to his family's visible wealth and privileges. His daughter Ilona Rajoelina is often seen wearing designer brands, while his son Arena Rajoelina reportedly attends the elite EHL Lausanne hospitality school, opportunities unavailable to the majority of Malagasy citizens due to its high cost of enrollment. [25] Viral TikTok videos by pages such as GasyBaddhie and BasedMerina denounce their luxurious lifestyle, drawing parallels to international examples such as Shrinkhala Khatiwada, former Miss Nepal and daughter of an ex-health minister, whose travels and elite status sparked public backlash. [26]
Origin
The protests are rooted in a combination of historical grievances and recent triggers. On 15 September 2025, Transparency International helped organize a small rally known as Democrasia Mainty in Ambohijatovo, Antananarivo. [27]
On 18 September 2025, politicians Clémence Raharinirina and Baba Faniry Rakotoarisoa publicly called for mass protests in front of the Senate in Anosy to denounce chronic power outages, water cuts, and systemic corruption in public utilities. [28] Their movement was named Tsy Manaiky Lembenana ("We Refuse to Be Trampled") and Leo Delestage ("Fed up with load shedding"), [29]
Following this, a Facebook page named Gen Z Madagascar emerged as the primary organizing hub for the movement, rapidly gaining over 100,000 followers in five days. [30] Its logo draws inspiration from the manga One Piece , replacing the traditional straw hat with a Malagasy-style hat. [19] [23]
Timeline
The previous day, September 24, 2025, was marked by the absence of President Andry Rajoelina and his delegation, who were in New York City for the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly, where he delivered a speech. [31] On the same day, the local government of the capital had banned protests on the grounds that they could lead to unrest. Nevertheless, demonstrations took place in the capital, Antananarivo, as well as in provincial towns such as Toamasina, Antsirabe, Toliara, and Antsiranana on September 25, 2025. Since 5:30 a.m. (EAT) on September 25, a large gendarmerie unit was present in the capital, cordoning off certain areas. Protesters were therefore unable to reach their meeting place. [29] [32] Protestors were thus unable to go to their dedicated meeting ground. [33]
25 September
Thousands of young people attempted to gather at Ambohijatovo, historically designated as the "Place of Democracy" by Andry Rajoelina himself in 2009. Police blocked all access points, preventing assembly. Protesters then tried to reach the square from multiple neighborhoods, including Antsahabe, Faravohitra, Anosy, and Ambatonakanga, but each route was met with heavy police presence with tear gas bombs and rubber bullets. Despite these obstacles, the city saw widespread marches of students chanting slogans such as "Mitsangana ry Tanora" (a nationalist rally song) and "Andry Rajoelina Masosopory", a parody of Andry Rajoelina's election campaign song in 2018. Starting from the second week, it was the "Miala pory Rajoelina (Step down, Rajoelina)" that became more popular, referred by some as "the official hymn of the protest". [34] Protestors flew Malagasy flags as well as flags featuring the Straw Hat Jolly Roger from the One Piece franchise. [33]
At 10:45 (EAT), the first shots of tear gas were used by police, led by Colonel Tojo Raoilijon. Police used tear gas and rubber bullets throughout the day. [33] Protestors set up barricades and burned tires and rocks. Three homes of politicians close to Rajoelina were set ablaze by rioters, including the house of Senator Lalatiana Rakotondrazafy and MP Naivo Raholdina. [35] Looting at various retail, bank, and appliance establishments in Antananarivo began to take place in the afternoon, beginning in Anosibe with the burning of a train station. Looters set ablaze a hotel, a bank, and stations of the country's cable car system. [33] [36] According to a hospital source, five people died, all bearing AK-47 gunfire wounds, and an unknown number were injured. [32] Outside of the city, the offices of Jirama, the national electricity and water provider, were attacked by protestors. [33] The rally in Antsirabe and Toamasina also devolved into looting and vandalism. [29] [37]
Most looters were affiliated with the TMH group, led by Fidy, with participants from the districts of Andavamamba and Anosibe. However, videos also showed unaffiliated individuals looting furniture, freezers, and arcade equipment. Antananarivo police prefect Angelo Ravelonarivo announced a curfew lasting from 7 p.m. (EAT), to 5 a.m. the next day. [33] Despite the protests initially dispersing, they spread into various parts of the capital. National Police chief Jean Herbert Andriantahiana Rakotomalala warned that authorities would "take firm preventive...measures against those tempted to break the law." [14] [20]
26 September
In Antsirabe, protesters gathered at the city's train station at around 10 a.m. before being dispersed with tear gas by police. By noon, looting had began to occur against commercial buildings in the city, with limited police presence as most officers had been redeployed to Antananarivo. [38] Around 4 p.m., the death of Jean-Jacques Rabenirinia, the member of parliament for Betioky from the opposition group Firaisankina and dean of the National Assembly, was announced, after he succumbed to his injuries from an accident. His vehicle had been struck by a truck at a barricade erected by protesters. [39]
During his address starting at 7:30 p.m., live from New York City (where he was attending the United Nations General Assembly), Andry Rajoelina announced the dismissal of Jean-Baptiste Olivier, the Minister of Energy and Hydrocarbons, under the pretext that he "was not doing his job". [40] Rajoelina further condemned the violence which occurred after the protests as "acts of destabilisation", [41] and accused opposition politicians of taking advantage of the protests in an attempt to orchestrate a coup. [42]
Six people, including an university student, were reportedly killed in clashes with police across Antsiranana. Thirty people were also injured. [43]
27 September
Protesters continued to gather in Antananarivo, with some wearing colored straw hats as a symbol. [41] Rajoelina returned from New York, and summoned a meeting of military and police commanders to deploy military and security forces to secure fuel stations and storage, along with commercial areas. [44]
These protests took on a more specifically student and high school student character, with gatherings organized in six major cities across Madagascar. Student protesters complained of difficult living conditions and demanded the right to equitable study conditions, specifically calling for the same opportunities as the children of Malagasy leaders who study abroad. In Antananarivo, security forces pushed back the protesters using AK-47s and tear gas all along General Charles-de-Gaulle Avenue in Tsiadana, up to the Ankatso campus of the University of Antananarivo. This crackdown sparked additional outrage due to the presence, along this avenue, of the Mpitsabo Mikambanana 24/24 private hospital, one of the most prestigious medical institutions in the country. [45]
Curfews ranging from 7/8 p.m. to 4/5 a.m. were announced outside Antananarivo, Mahajanga, Toamasina, Antsirabe and Toliara. [46]
29 September
Student associations called for a general mobilization, and demanded the release of protesters arrested on 27 September on top of their initial denouncement of the water and electricity cuts. [47] As the group of students marched from the University of Antananarivo campus towards the Ambohijatovo neighborhood, they were blocked by security forces who attempted to disperse and push back the protesters with tear gas. Protesters also began demanding the resignation of Rajoelina. [48]
As protests continued, Rajoelina announced that he would dissolve the government (under Prime Minister Christian Ntsay), and provided a three-day period for choosing a new Prime Minister. [15] [16] MP Antoine Rajerison [ mg ] was arrested by security forces. [48] The curfew in Antananarivo was adjusted to 8 p.m. to 4 a.m. [49]
According to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights chairman Volker Türk, 22 people had been killed and 100 injured throughout the course of the protests, including both those killed by security forces and those killed in the looting and general violence by looters and gangs. The Malagasy Ministry of Foreign Affairs rejected this figure. [50]
30 September
Protesters called for another rally to be held in Antananarivo starting on 11 a.m. EAT. [51] Thousands of protesters gathered in Antananarivo's Ambohijatovo Square, with some protesters having travelled from provincial towns to join the protest. [52] In one incident, Senate President Richard Ravalomanana's car was accosted by protesters, which led him to disembark from his vehicle and pursue the protesters on foot. [53] There were also reports of violence against journalists including Mendrika Razafindratsima and Leonardjo Andriamparany, brutalized by GSIS forces in the afternoon in Ambohijatovo. [54]
1 October
Protests spread to other cities and towns, including Toliara, some 925 kilometres (575 mi) south of Antananarivo. [3] The government accused the demonstrators of vandalism and of promoting a coup d'état. [3] Opposition leader Rivo Rakotovao announced that his party and allies will not join any government under the leadership of Rajoelina and asked him to step down. [3] [55]
Labour unions began joining protests, and calls were made for a general strike. Protests on 1 October were relatively contained by police forces, and violence was much lower than in the previous days. [56] [57] Rajoelina met with foreign diplomats at the presidential palace on 1 October, and presidential spokesperson Lova Ranoromaro claimed that protesters had largely dispersed "without a clear leader emerging". [57] Pro-Rajoelina groups began announcing that they would hold counter-protests. [58]
5 October
Counterprotesters only numbered in the hundreds, lower than what President Andry Rajoelina hoped for. Barely any had clothing with his portrait. [59]
7 October
Police used tear gas on hundreds of protesters. A march was stopped by a barricade. One man was hospitalized. The United Nations criticized the police and the usage of live ammunition. [60]
9 October
Stun grenades, tear gas and rubber bullets were used on protesters. [63]
12 October
A contingent of the Malagasy military (CAPSAT) mutinied and called for the military to back and protect the protestors, encountering little resistance as it took control of central Antananarivo. [64]
14 October
Rajoelina issued a decree dissolving the National Assembly that was scheduled to launch impeachment measures against him. [67] Despite this, the National Assembly proceeded to impeach him with 130 votes in favor and one blank vote. At the same time, protests were held in Antananarivo denouncing Rajoelina as a French stooge over his dual citizenship and support from Paris. Several protesters carried Malagasy flags and the Straw Hat Pirates' Jolly Roger flag from the manga series One Piece . [68] After the vote, Colonel Michael Randrianirina declared that all state institutions were being dissolved, except for the National Assembly. [69] [70]
Reactions
The Council of Christian Churches in Madagascar (FFKM) issued a statement calling for an end to violence, looting, and destruction of property, while also noting that "the population must enjoy its most basic rights, those of having electricity and drinking water". [72] African Union Chairperson Mahamoud Ali Youssouf called for restraint and calm. [73] Pope Leo XIV released a statement decrying violence and asking for social harmony, the promotion of justice and the common good. [3]
Reporters Without Borders denounced "police violence against at least three journalists" on 25 September, [74] and Amnesty International condemned the "unlawful and excessive force used by state security officials" and called for investigations into the deaths. [75] The United Nations secretary general expressed sadness at the violence. [76]
On 13 October 2025, French president Emmanuel Macron expressed concern over the political crisis in Madagascar, emphasizing the need to respect the constitutional order and institutional continuity, supporting the actions of the African Union and SADC, and warning against any use of youth for political or military purposes. He commented on reports that President Andry Rajoelina had boarded a French military plane to Réunion before leaving for another destination with his family, stating, "I cannot confirm anything today," while speaking to the press from Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, during a summit on the Gaza peace agreement. [77] [78]
