A Madagascar army contingent near the capital on Saturday called on soldiers and security units to “join forces” and “refuse orders to shoot” at protesters, while several thousand marched in the capital.
The United Nations on Friday called on the Madagascar authorities to avoid unnecessary force against protesters, after several were injured in clashes with police the day before.
“Let us join forces, military, gendarmes and police, and refuse to be paid to shoot our friends, our brothers and our sisters,” soldiers of a large military base in Soanierana district, on the outskirts of Antananarivo, said in a video released Saturday morning.
They called on soldiers in other camps to “refuse orders to shoot your friends”.
“Close the gates and await our instructions,” they said. “Do not obey orders from your superiors. Point your weapons at those who order you to fire on your comrades-in-arms, because they will not take care of our families if we die.”
It was unclear how many soldiers had joined the call on Saturday.
In 2009, the military base in Soanierana led a mutiny in a popular uprising that brought the current president, Andry Rajoelina, to power.
The newly appointed minister of the armed forces called on troops to “remain calm” in a press conference Saturday .
“We call on our brothers who disagree with us to prioritise dialogue,” Minister General Deramasinjaka Manantsoa Rakotoarivelo said.
“The Malagasy army remains a mediator and constitutes the nation’s last line of defence,” he said.
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