African Union mulls Madagascar suspension

The African Union began an emergency meeting here on Friday to discuss the possible suspension of Madagascar following the dramatic toppling of Marc Ravalomanana as president.

The meeting of the AU's peace and security council, which began at 10:30 am 0730 GMT, was taking place behind closed doors.

But one of the 15 ambassadors taking part in the meeting, which was being chaired by Burkina Faso, said he expected that it would result in Madagascar's membership of the bloc being frozen.

"There is a likelihood of a suspension from the AU against Madagascar," the ambassador told AFP on condition of anonymity.

Andry Rajoelina has taken over as interim president of the vast Indian Ocean island, having received the backing from both the military and the country's constitutional court.

Rajoelina, a one-time DJ who was sacked by the former president as the mayor of Antananarivo, led a months-long campaign against Ravalomanana before finally succeeding in driving him from power on Tuesday. Around 100 people were killed in political violence leading up to the ouster.

International condemnation has begun to gather momentum with Western powers and some African nations describing it as a coup on Thursday.

The Southern African Development Community SADC, whose 15 members include Madagascar, refused to recognise Rajoelina as president at a meeting in Swaziland.

Washington also criticised Rajoelina's rise to power as "an undemocratic transfer of power", State Department spokesman Robert Wood told reporters.









Curry