Dr. Nabulo Mabaso, Deputy Medical Director of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation's Ithembalabantu “People's Hope” Clinic in Durban expresses his satisfaction that support for marginalized communities (sex workers, men who have sex with men, and indigeneous people) was emphasized by conference organizers. However, he explains that this focus should extend to other marginalized communities and even currently isolated nations:

“There is still limited access to treatment. For example, my neighboring country, Zimbabwe, it might be politically unstable, but there are people on the ground who are suffering and because of sanctions that are being imposed funders are not going to Zimbabwe. At the end of the day, it's the lives of individuals and I hope the theme of universal access is really put into practice”.

George Kanuma lives in Bujumbura and is an activist for the France-based association Africa Gay and is a member of ANSS (National Association for HIV-Positive and AIDS patients in Burundi). He is content with the renewed emphasis on MSM (Men having Sex with Men) and sex workers at the conference (fr):

However, in some French-speaking African countries, discrimination is still very strong, he explains (fr):

“Il y a certain pays comme le Cameroun ou le Sénégal qui criminalise encore l’homosexualité [..] Il y a des cas aussi comme au Ruanda, la présidente de l’association gay et lesbienne au Ruanda ne peut toujours pas quitté son pays, parce que la police de l’immigration a pris son passeport.”

A few countries, like Cameroon or Senegal, still criminalize homosexuality. [..] There are also cases like the one in Rwanda, where the president of the LGBT association cannot exit her country because the immigration police is still holding her passport.

The Fimizore project in Madagascar was one of the recipient of the 2008 UNAIDS Red Ribbon Award. Balou, a trans-gendered sexual worker and her colleague Jeannie, are members of the project and they both weighed in on their hope and concerns for the conference. Like Kanuma, they both emphasized the need to end marginalization of sexual workers if we want to effectively fight HIV/AIDS (mg):

“Ny fanilikilhina indrindra no manankana ny MSM sy ny TDS hikarakara ny fahasalamany […] Io moa dia eo ihany ny fomba-drazana antsika malagasy, raha ohatra hoe msm dia tsy tafiditra am-pasan-drazana. Raha amin’ny autorites dia mahafa-po fa raha amin’ny societe civile, mbola mila fivoarana.”

Marginalization is what prevents MSM (men having sex with men) and TDS ( sexual workers) from taking care of their health [..] There are also the walls of traditional Malagasy culture. For instance, if you are a MSM, you will not be allowed to enter the familial cemetery (when you pass away). The official authorities have made great strides but the civil society has still a long way to go (in ending marginalization).

Finally, marginalized communities in the fight against HIV/AIDS are not only products of cultural intolerance or political agendas. They are also the result of economic hardships or plain geographical locations. In this video, on The Hub, Dr. Phillip Njemanze, in Imo State, Nigeria, explains the struggle for HIV positive people in rural areas to monitor their immune system:

“In rural areas in Imo State, CD4 testing is non-existent. This means for 3.5 million people you have only two centers that can measure CD4 count in the whole state [..] The most important thing would be, to be able to move around with the test and go where the patients are.”

Je regrette profondément que le président de la République de Madagascar ne m'ait pas accordé la moindre chance pour pouvoir remplir l'exaltante mission dont je rêvais depuis longtemps.

I profoundly regret that the president of the Republic of Madagascar has not given me the smallest chance to fulfill the exciting mission I have been dreaming of for a long time.

The reasons for the ambassador's departure are not clear. Some have speculated Malagasy President Marc Ravalomanana many not have appreciated Le Lidec's habit of being in countries during times of crisis.  Le Lidec was in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, in October 2000, when Laurent-Désiré Kabila was murdered, and in Cote d'Ivoire from 2002 to 2005, during the armed rebellion against Laurent Gbagbo.

Probably thinking that Le Lidec's presence during these turbulent times was more than a coincidence, some journalists close to the Malagasy government have wondered about French intentions in the Great Red Island:

Il vient pour tuer le President.

He is here to assassinate the President.

The French press has been quick to ridicule Marc Ravalomanana's aversion to Gildas Le Lidec, reporting on the Malagasy President's supposed superstitions:

La raison de la défiance dont est victime le diplomate tient, selon les responsables français, à la personnalité du président Ravalomana, “un homme jeune à la fois moderne et superstitieux, voire arriéré.

According to French leaders, Ravalomanana's personality is the reason [Le Lidec] has fallen victim to this distrust; Ravalomanana, a “young man, both modern and superstitious, even backward”.

Sylvain Ranjalahy, a Malagasy journalist, sees in the public nature of this incident a sign of rupture in Franco-Malagasy relations.  Although this type of information is usually not disclosed to the general public, the French ambassador publicly accused the Malagasy President of being responsible for his persona non grata condition.

Some in African blogospheres, including Ivoirian blogger Théophile Kouamouo, seemed to agree with Ravalomanana's distrust of the French ambassador:

Le Lidec semble étonnamment présent quand les présidents se font tuer, ou vivent des tentatives d'assassinat, surtout dans les pays où la France est potentiellement fortement impliquée.

Le Lidec seems to be magically present wherever presidents get killed, or experience assassination attempts, especially in countries where France is potentially strongly involved.

Others see in the “expulsion” of the French diplomat as a sign that African presidents have lost their meekness and timidity towards their former colonizers. The following comment by Rakoto, a reader from Madagascar, in response to Kouamouo's post is particularly telling:

… ça discréditait un président que n'apprécient guère certains milieux.
Un journal français l'a même traité “d'arriéré”. Que diraient ces “vazaha” si notre Presse utilisait des qualificatifs équivalents à l'égard de leurs hommes d'Etat ? Une mentalité raciste et méprisante n'a pas été éradiquée chez les anciens colonisateurs et certains compatriotes psychologiquement “aliénés ” leur emboîtent hélas triomphalement le pas.On a donc mis sur le dos du président Ravalomanana, à qui on ne pardonne pas non plus l'utilisation de la langue maternelle dans l'enseignement primaire, ce qui est une querelle franco-française ; Ce faisant, on se défausse de ses turpitudes sur quelqu'un qui, pour le moment, n'a pas rejoint la “France-Afrique”. Ce qui est clair c'est que, dans le départ de l'ambassadeur, ni la superstition, ni le côté arriéré de notre président ne sont en cause.

“…it's discredited a president and that won't be appreciated in some quarters. A French newspaper even called him “backward”. What would these “vazaha” (translator's note : Vazaha means white foreigner, but is mostly used to designate French people) say if we used similar adjectives towards their statesmen? The former colonials and some of their mentally ill countrymen, who joyously follow in their footsteps, still hold onto old racist ways of thinking. They have blamed President Ravalomanana, whom they have also not fogiven for the use of the mother tongue in primary education (Translator's note : The Malagasy government has decided to use Malagasy instead of French), for what is really a Franco-French quarrel.  This way they deflect their weaknesses on someone who, for the moment, has not joined the “France-Afrique” clan. What is clear is that the departure of the ambassador has been caused by neither the superstitions nor the backwardness of our President.

This skepticism of the Malagasy President's responsibility in the matter is echoed by this Malagasy comment on the Serasera Forum:

Raha tena i filoha hajaina marina no nitondra ity baolina ity, nahoana kay no ingahy Ambasadaoro no nampilAza azy voalohany t@ mpanao gazety, ARY t@ andron'ny fety nasionaly firantsay? Mahagaga!!!
Raha tena i filoha hajaina marina no tena mazana t@ ity aferafera ity, nahoana ingahy zokinibe Ramarisely toa nihanahAna sahala @ zanak'Akoho natelindrRamenarana t@ io fotoana io? Io ihany dia efa manambara amiko fa TSY nampoizin'ingahy zokibe Ramarisely ity fanambarAna nataon'i ambasadaoro ity.

“If really the president was the one holding the cards, why was the ambassador the first to announce this to the press, AND on the French National Day ? Amazing!!!
If really the president was the one to blame why was the Minister of Foreign Affairs so taken aback? This tells me that the Minister of Foreign Affairs did not expect this announcement from this ambassador.

A French netizen, responding to an article in Le Monde, “French Ambassador expelled from Madagascar for giving the evil eye,” wonders if all this could have been avoided:

“Pour autant, si la raison est vraiment un problème de superstition, c'est une faute de notre diplomatie de ne pas l'avoir prise en compte lors de la nomination de notre représentant. Tout ceci n'enlève rien à son talent, bien entendu. Tout simplement une erreur de “casting”

“Anyway, if it was really a matter of superstition, it is the fault of our diplomacy not to have taken it into account during the nomination of our ambassador. This does not lessen his abilities, of course. Simply a casting mishap.”

While another Le Monde reader wonders if this was a repercussion of Ravalomanana's allegedly bitter personal experiences with the French administration:

Peut-être faut-il aussi rappeler le sentiment anti-français du président malgache. Peu de gens savent que ce sentiment est né alors que le Président actuel n'était qu'un petit industriel et qu'il s'est vu maltraité par le consulat lors d'une demande de visa. Faut-il aussi rappeler les sarcasmes entendus dans la bouche de nos diplomates toujours si arrogants lorsque ce petit industriel devenu plus grand a accédé à la mairie de Tananarive. Et nos diplomates continuent de railler…

Maybe one should remember the anti-French feelings of the Malagasy President. Few people know that these feelings originated from when the current resident was just a small-time industrialist, and saw himself mishandled by the consulate when asking for a visa. One should remember the sarcasms uttered by our diplomats who were still arrogant when this small-time industrialist grew in stature and became the Mayor of Antananarivo. And our diplomats keep on mocking…

And another sarcastically comments on the “backwardness” of African societies:

L'horoscope de l'ambassadeur était en contradiction avec celui du président malgache ? Mon Dieu ! Mon Dieu ! L'Afrique est bien sur la voie du modernisme ! Aucun doute …

The ambassador's horoscope contradicted the Malagasy president's? My God! My God! Africa is really on the way to modernity! No doubt…

The ruling came out 8 months ago but an increased online campaign for clemency for the farmers put the story back into public awareness. Polarized conversations about the verdicts are taking places on online forums and blogs.

(Photo credit L'Express de Madagascar)

Before reporting the different viewpoints, a brief background on the legal implications of the dispute and sentences is necessary.
According to L’Express de Madagascar, The legal rights to the 172 ha of land belongs to a promoter who acquired the land for a development project (unconfirmed sources mentioned the construction of an amusement park). However, the farmers have been effectively growing crops on the land since the 70’s when the legal ownership of the land were not clearly defined.

The 21 farmers were sentenced as follows: 13 received death penalties, 6 to 12 years were sentenced to forced labor, one farmer received one year of imprisonment and another one year on probation.
(

(Photo credit to AFASPA)
A netizen, Raharimbahoaka Andriahobijaona, explains on the facebook page advocating clemency for the farmers that Madagascar is one of the nations that signed the pact to abolish death penalty (instituted in 1958 in Madagascar) so even though death penalty has not been removed from the constitution yet, all the 53 death penalty sentences pronounced to this day have all been effectively “transformed” into life sentences. He goes on arguing (fr):

“ devant la justice, vu les faits et les preuves, les riches ont presque toujours gain de cause. La justice n'est pas mal faite, mais certaines lois sont dépassées et ne correspondent plus au monde actuel.[..]Le vrai problème est que le foncier dans la tradition malgache reste un héritage culturel.”

In front of the court of justice, given the facts and evidences, wealthy people will always eventually win their case. The judicial system is not all at fault here, it’s just a few laws that are obsolete and do not correspond to the reality of the current world. The main issue in Madagascar is that real estate is still rooted in the tradition of cultural inheritance [inadequate in the globalization trends]

He also adds:

“Utiliser la presse étrangère, la diaspora malgache et tous les médias dont on disposent est, je pense, très utile. Car à notre ère, la présidence suit de très près ce qui se passe au pays et ailleurs. Ce qui compte c'est la manière et la façon dont on s'y prend pour agir. Nous devons respecter la loi en vigueur tout en négociant pour pouvoir trouver ce qu'il convient de faire sur le moment.”

I believe that utilizing foreign media, the Malagasy diaspora and all other media avenues can be effective. In this era, the presidency is following closely what is being said in the country and overseas. What matters is the way that we would go about acting [on behalf of the farmers]. We must respect the current legal system while negotiating what is best [for the farmers] at the moment.

A petition to free the farmers has been issued and formally presented to the president Marc Ravalomanana and the minister of Justice Bakolalao Ramanandraibe Ranaivoharivony by the French Association for friendship and solidarity with the African People (AFASPA).

Supporters of the liberation of the Malagasy farmers voiced their outrage at the sentencing especially considering the complex history of real estate inheritance in that region. Jean Razafindambo explains that the colonization period induced a lot of confusion regarding actual ownership of land. He offers the following solution (fr):

“Le dialogue ne devrait-il pas toujours primer sur la répression dans un litige foncier? [..]L'Etat de Madagascar devrait racheter ces hypothèques à leurs justes valeurs actuelles et effectuer une réforme agraire en bonne et due forme qui tient compte des facteurs historiques et non juste des archives héritées de la colonization”

Shouldn’t a dialog always be attempted before one moves on to aggressive repression when it comes to real estate dispute? […] The State of Madagascar should purchase back all the mortgage at their current values and implement an agricultural reform that takes into account historical factors and not just real estate archives inherited from the colonization period.

The Malagasy blogosphere had mixed reactions to this donation, despite unanimously recognizing the sadness of a catastrophe of this magnitude, citing that more than 70% of the population still lives below the poverty line, there is a global food crisis and some regions in Madagascar are still trying to recover from the destruction caused by the hurricane season.

Tomavana, who also translates for GV Malagasy, posted on the blog, Malagasy Miray:

“Car c’est de façon quotidienne que la majorité de la population malgache affronte les difficultés de la cherté de la vie, augmentation du prix de l’huile alimentaire, de celui du carburant, des coupures “chroniques” de courants et autre cyclone de façon annuel. Or quel contraste entre le manque de fonds, excuse immanquablement invoquées par le gouvernement face à l’absence d’efficacité des réponses apportées à tous ces problèmes nationaux et cette solidarité internationale. A ce que je sache, ce don ne provient ni de l’argent de Ranjeva ni de celui du président Ra8, mais bien des caisses de l’état, donc du contribuable ?”

Tomavana’s post induced a few reactions in the comment section:
Manalina agrees with Tomavana (fr)

“Si sans cœur tu es alors sans cœur je suis … on sait tous ce qu’il en est”

The Malagasy government is working hard to strengthen the ties with China. In recent news, President Ravalomanana traveled to Shanghai in May and is on record for wanting to “expand collaboration with China”. The Malagasy government also was also prompt to support China’s handling of the riots in Lhasa in March and state that they would participate in the Beijing Olympics whether a boycott is in place or not.

Tattum believes that charity ought to start at home and Maintikely says that her grandmother is still waiting for the roof and the walls of her home to be replaced after the latest cyclone. Maintykely also wrote in her personal blog that the president was guilty of a blatant conflict of interest when he protected the price of oil from going up with state subsidies when he owns the company that provides most of Malagasy cooking oil.

Dotmg, on the other hand, does not understand all the negative reactions to the act of solidarity by the Malagasy government (mg):

“Rehefa misy andrarezina lavo ve ao amin’ny tanànanareo dia tsy mandeha mamangy ianareo, na mandeha mamangy ihany fa tsy mitondra solondranombary tsy masaka, sa manome ihany fa fanahy iniana atao kely satria izy aza manankarena noho ianao, ka tsy ho hitan’ny vazan’ainan’ny hareny izay kely hataonao anaty valopy?”

Vola thinks that the shocking part is the fact that 100,000 USD is really not enough when one considers the fact that 70,000 people died and many more are still not accounted for. If it was meant as symbolic gesture of solidarity, she asked, then wouldn’t a symbolic amount be more appropriate?

Many Malagasy bloggers have been actively raising fund for the earthquake victims in China and Cyclone victims in Myanmar through Facebook.

Another topic of international solidarity that got the Malagasy blogosphere talking was the call for help from Diana, a high school student in Mahajanga, who wants to help a baby born with a congenital malformation and his family get the proper medical treatment. The Malagasy Diaspora in Italy, France, Canada and South-Africa came together to raise funds for the operation and transport of the baby and his caregiver to the capital city, Antananarivo.

Madagascar is arguably most renowned for its unique biodiversity. However, the focus on the environment is sometimes resented by Malagasies who think it diverts attention away from the hardships of the Malagasy people.

One of the most famous Malagasy artists of all time, Rossy, wrote a famous song called “Resa-babakoto” (translation: discussing the apes) which includes this verse (mg):

“Ny gidro sy ny ala, Tsara karakara
Andaniana drala, Amina miliara
[..] Rakoto ‘ty mijaly, tsisy mpitotaly
Ny zanany tomany, tsisy mpanontany”

The apes and the forest are well-taken care of.
One spends a lot of money, billions on them [..]
Rakoto (average Joe) is struggling, no one really cares.
His children are crying, no one would ask why.

(photo via foko-madagascar)

Despite Rossy’s artistic exaggerations, there is a real concern among Malagasies that protection of the environment comes at the expense of the local population.

Rossy is known for his political activism and his current music tour in Madagascar has been canceled by the government for reasons that are yet to be clarified (fr). His view on the environment was probably not the reason for the sudden censorship but the current government has placed a strong emphasis on the environment as a major factor in sustainable development.

Windows on the New World of Sipakv points to a presentation given by President Ravalomanana on the importance of biodiversity, highlighting this odd quote:

“The famous German author Goethe already knew about the lemurs. The “Lemuren” play an important role at the end of Faust II. Mephisto calls them when Faust is dying. So, it was our lemurs that buried your ‘Faust'”.

If you are slightly puzzled by that quote and unsure of its purpose, you are probably not the only one.

In addition to the president’s speech, two major piece of environment-related news had the Malagasy blogosphere talking last week:

A major study about protecting biodiversity was featured on the front page of Science, a prestigious scientific journal. On my blog, Rakoto's Rants, I pointed out that although the main authors are from major US universities one of the collaborating institutes is based in Antananarivo and a Malagasy scientist is a collaborating author.

Also, one of this year's eight MacArthur Foundation “Creative and Effective Institutions” award grantees is the Tany Meva Foundation, an environmental organization in Madagascar. Jogany at The Purple Corner explains what the Tany Meva Foundation is about:

Tany Meva seeks to increase sustainable use of the environment, to educate and empower communities and to save the threatened forests. […]
(Their) mission is to sensitize and manage the financial resources so as to:
-promote the sustainable management of the environment in Madagascar
-contribute to the global challenges to this concern through the active engagement of the local communities.

Finally, Tomavana at Malagasy Miray questions the priorities and the authoritative nature of the current government:

Tandis que la famine et la malnutrition menacent plusieurs régions de l’île, rien ne semble ébranler le déroulement de la partie qui a commencé depuis un certain temps déjà

As famine and malnutrition threaten many regions of the island, nothing seems to stop the proceeding of the current game (participation in the Olympic games etc..) that seems to have already been set for a while.

( image credit to planete vivante)
Marie Sophie ( in French) and Tomavana (in Malagasy) list the reasons why cyclones have caused so much damage in Madagascar:
According to Tomavana (mg):

“ny orana[..], fisondrotry ny haavon’ny ranomasina [..], ny onja ateraky ny rivomahery [..] sy ny rivotra [..]no tena fototr’ireo fahasimbana ”

Precipitations [..], the increase of the sea level [..], the strength of the ocean waves caused by the storm [..] and the wind gust [..] are the 4 main causes of destruction.

Marie Sophie explains that (fr):

au nombre des victimes corporelles, souvent important (environ 6 000 décès chaque année), s’ajoute un nombre de sans-abri [..]; les habitations y sont généralement très loin d’une conception paracyclonique adaptée [..]. Les conséquences économiques peuvent également être liées à l’interruption des liaisons aériennes et maritimes ou aux dégâts portés aux réseaux divers (eau, téléphone, électricité) […]parmi les atteintes portées à l’environnement, on distingue les effets directs (destruction de forêts par les vents, dégâts des inondations, etc.) et les effets indirects (pollution des côtes par un naufrage, effets dus à un accident industriel ou technologique, etc.)

Not only the human toll is often substantial (6,000 casualties on average per year), one needs to factor in the number of homelesses […] Homes are in their vast majority not conceived with cyclone prevention in mind [..] The economic outcomes of such disaster also have to factor in the indirect consequences: interruptions of commercial airlines and ferries or the destructions of power lines, phone lines and pipelines […] from a environmental perspective, the damages can be direct ( destruction of forrests, flooding..) but also indirect such as pollution caused by the capsizing of boats at large, industrial accidents etc..)

Joan points to the many relief and rescue organizations where you can make donations for victims of the latest cyclones.

Ten poems were submitted from Colombia, Bangladesh, and Madagascar. Of those ten, the following three featured poems were selected by Dr. Ward and her poet friend to be featured in commemoration of women around the world.

“Paceñita / Cristina Quisbert

Priority

by Sufia-734 of Nari Jibon

(Originally written in Bangla - Translated by Kazi Rafiqul Islam)

Time has come now
To stand for that we need
Not equality, but priority.
Upright
We want to open our heart
Express our mind
For that we need
Not equality, but priority.
Fathers can be cruel even
Mothers cannot.
Mothers can sacrifice
Fathers cannot.
That is what women are
We can do everything.
Combating with sorrow
Win happiness.
No more shall we endure injustice
No more shall we remain within the four walls.
Time has come to open ears and eyes
To protest against unfair deeds.
For that we need
Not equality, but priority.

Women road repair crew, Kathryn Ward, Dhaka, 2004.

by Poupoune of FOKO from Toamasina, Madagascar.

NY VEHIVAVY

Vatolampy fehozoro ny nehivavy, ka zava poana raha tsy misy azy
Eny fa ny fo fanfahy dia atolony avokoa,ary miaraka @ dia ho tody ny soa
Herin'ny tokan-trano anie izy hatramin'izay, koa dera sy laza no atolotray
Indro anefa ireo zava bitany, hojoro ho mandrakizay, ka tsy ho toy ny rozy malazo ho dinganinay
Vola sy harena tsy misy raha jerena, fa raha lavitra anao dia ssento sisa atao
Anaovana hery setra sy verin-jo tanteraka, anefa dia mitalaho any @
Voninkazo midoroboka mamirapiratra tahaka riva, 

Koa masoandro mamiratra tokoa anie isika,
Izay mitondra fahasambarana sy fifaliana, 
Hoan'ireo rehetra maminitsika

THE WOMAN BEING

Poem by: Camila Urrea Morales (Colombia)

Translated by: Carolina Vélez López of HiperBarrio.

EL SER MUJER
En un principio, aún incierto, apareció la mujer, un ser creado fibra a fibra de azúcar, adornado con tanto hilos dorados como sentimientos, un ser que se derrite con cada palabra que infunde fuego en ella, y que se enfría, levantando la pared más fuerte, con aquellas que llegan como témpano ante ella. Luego, aparece aquella cubierta que es más que piel, una cubierta conductora de emociones, de latidos, de vibraciones. Y apareció la mujer, y con ella la dulzura de las cosas hechas con la delicadeza que nada más se encuentra en ese ser.

Finally, in a class all its own, a coordinator of the FOKO project in Madagascar, who prefers to go by the pseudonym SipakV, submitted this poem in Malagasy and English.

“Lehilahy iza no ho tamana amin'izao”
-Tsia ange fa izy no te handeha
-Ka tsy handeha ve izy
Vehivavy nilaozambady ianao
Manala baraka anay
Manala baraka fianakaviana
Jereo ity volonao
Jereo ity tarehy
Jereo ity sakafo 
Jereo ity trano mikorontana
Lehilahy iza no ho tamana amin'izao
-Koa mba efa niezaka ao re
Ny volo notapahina, natao plaquage
Ny tarehy nohosorana diloilo manitra
Ny sakafo niezahana hatsiro isan'andro
Ny trano ampirimina
Kanefa ange Ikoto sy Ikala
Mitaky fitiavana sy fikarakarana
Ny sakafo adino eo ambony fatana
Ny trano voakorontana
Angaha misy hitany akory
Izy anie ka mody alina
Mamom-behivavy hafa sy toaka
Domelin'ny hatezerana
Fa ratsy hono ny fiainanay
Ratsy taiza hono ny ankizy
Ratsy tarehy hono ny vadiny
Vehivavy hafa hono no tadiaviny
Koa dia ny fahareseny no vonoiny
Vonoiny amin'ny tavako sy ny vatako
Vonoiny isan-kariva fa tsy mety voafafany
Tamin'ny farany teo efa tonga ny fokonolona
Dia nohafatrafarana aho hoe
Vehivavy ka mihareta
Mihareta hatramin'ny farany
Fiharetana eto an-tany
Hatramin'ny nikororosian'ny lanitra eo ambony
Tonga teo ingahy mompera nilaza hoe
Tsarovy Victoire Rasoamanarivo
Fa tsy fahasambarana any ankoatra anie no tadiaviko
Fa mba kosa filaminana ho an'Ikoto sy Ikala
Tonga ianao androany ry Neny ka hoe
Efa izy no anjara
Fa vono olona ve no fetra
Ary fanagejana no lahatra
satria ho aiza moa
Fa izaho dia vehivavy tsy miasa?
Ka dia aleo re ry mama…
- Jereo ity volonao
Jereo ity tarehy
Jereo ity sakafo 
Jereo ity trano mikorontana
Lehilahy iza no ho tamana amin'izao…

Last month Madagascar was devastated by Cyclone Ivan and the world press barely noticed it. The Force and destruction of the tropical storm was comparable to Hurricane Katrina, yet Andriankoto of Foko Madagascar tells us that the coverage by the US and French press was “bare minimum”. Malagasy bloggers took to the task of filling the information void:

Mainstream media may have dropped the ball on covering the cyclonic season in the Indian Ocean but alternative citizen media filled the void and try their best to keep the lines of communication open within the country and with the rest of the world.

The combined efforts of bloggers covering the aftermath of the storm resulted in an interactive map of the current status of many regions in Madagascar after Ivan as well as a comprehensive slideshow illustrating the extend of flooding in Antanarivo and its surroundings.

Malagasy bloggers at FOKO blog club, a blog outreach initiative of FOKO, were also phenomenal in response. From the FOKO Blog:

One of our most enthusiastic bloggers, Avylavitra…has showered us with pictures from cyclone Ivan that devastated Madagascar.

Avylavitra also applied his recent learning of video-blogging by posting some videos on YouTube of the tidal surges Cyclone Ivan caused.

FOKO was busy last month with a lot of activities, including their first video and photo workshop.

For an example of the outcome, take a look at Avylavitra's Flickr account for coverage of the riots outside Mahamasina Municipal stadium during a football match.

FOKO also planted trees in the region of Andranovelona with the Namana SeraSera Youth Group. Avylavitra, a member of Namana SeraSera posted some pictures of the tree planting which can be found in his Flickr album.

They also initiated a blog commenting exercise. More seasoned bloggers are encouraging new ones by following up others' posts with tips and encouraging comments. So we have seen an increased flow of comments in participant blogs and a boost in the morale of budding bloggers..

A selection of three posts from January were translated for the international audience of Foko which can be found here. Please don't miss gazety_adaladala's translated post to learn about the indiscriminate parking of cars in Antananarivo from early morning to late at night.

Despite the cyclone, FOKO carried on with its expansion plan in Madagascar’s second largest town, Toamasina.

“Our interest in bringing the Foko Blog Club to Toamasina resides in bringing more attention to a very dynamic region where the youth and the communities are highly skilled and have many stories to share with the world. Our Toamasina group will be of course driving attention to environmental echues that are not commonly talked about on the web or even on the ground. With their charming accent is different, their wonderful seafront and kindness, this group will very quickly surprise us!”

The workshop went on well and you can get the feeds of the newly trained Toamasina Bloggers here.

A selection of five of the February posts of the FOKO bloggers were translated on the Foko Blog Club page. Two of the featured Toamasina bloggers reveal how quickly they have begun expressing themselves via blogs.

Karenichia, from FBC-Tana-Youth group, continues with her excellent posts and is now also writing in English. She shares her concern about the Malagasy society and also wonders “Why is it so important for Malagasy societies and companies to have employees who have spent some years abroad?”

Meanwhile FOKO has resolved to strengthen their ties with the other Rising Voices grantees, learn from their experiences and apply their tips to running workshops successfully. They have put up posts about Nari Jibon, Hyperbarrio andVoces Bolivianas in their Blog.

Hery, a member of the Serasera Namana Group, is planning to bring teens and will teach them blogging himself. Read an interview with Hery on ICT and Youth in Madagascar.

Please check the FOKO project blog on Rising Voices and the FOKO Club Blog (or subscribe to their feeds) regularly for more updates on this exciting project.

Tropical Cyclone Ivan has now left Madagascar leaving behind several regions in shambles and thousands of people without homes.
The official account by the authorities reports 2 deaths and 15,000 people without homes. Considering that Ivan was classified as a very severe cyclonic storm with winds at up to 137 km/h, many people are wondering what might be the final count of actual casualties and damages. As pointed out here, the intensity of the wind guts is similar to that of Hurricane Katrina.
One blogger reacts to the official temporary report (fr):

” Alors que des milliers de personnes ne sont pas recensées habituellement, comment peut-on savoir qu’il n’y a que deux morts à déplorer après un phénomène de cette ampleur ? Constat dérisoire lorsque l’on connaît l’état de l’habitat de ces régions”

The rescue effort, spearheaded by government agencies such as Apipa or BNGCR and NGOs, are already moving forward even though communication and transportation are still very difficult at this point.

The flow of information on the radio air and on the internet were unprecedented considering the magnitude of the disaster that frequently induced prolonged interruption of means of communication. People were sharing information via phone calls or SMS when possible and even blogs, online forums and videocasts.
A valiant effort was conducted by Joan to collect in one centralized place all the available updates under any formats about Cyclone Ivan. This led to an interactive map of up-to-date reports in several places.

Similarly, planete vivante was able to update the situation frequently and constructed a map of all the affected agglomerations and publish this striking sildeshow:

| View | Upload your own

(via http://planetevivante.wordpress.com)

This also led to conflicting reports that bloggers were quick to point out.
We wrote earlier that 9 people were trapped under the ruins of Hotel Antsara in Sainte-Marie and reported dead. This information was relayed by several radio stations and newspapers before being infirmed by the government. We are glad that the 9 people are reported safe. Jentilisa warns (mg) of the danger of spreading too hastily unconfirmed informations. An explanation for the conflicting reports can be found here.
The lack of emergency feedback and the overall difficulties to communicate and provide urgent response are discussed by Tomavana (mg). He wonders why there is no equivalent of a toll free 911 in Madagascar.
Providing tools for keeping track of the cyclone and predicting its path was illustrated by Harinjaka.
The aftermath on the short and long term is difficult to foresee but most predictions are pessimistic. Flooding are already taking places in Antanarivo. As seen on the photoblog of avylavitra, there is reason for concerns in the capital city as well.
Here is a video posted by avyalvitra illustrating the alarming rise of the Ikopa river in Antananarivo, already invading real estate on a few habitations.

(via meteo france)

Even though Madagascar is better prepared for cyclone season, having already taken the blunt of many cyclones (most recently cyclone Fame), the region was still devastated by the shear force of the combination of wind and rain.

Avylavitra reports that because of lines of communications being cut off, 9 people died already on the island of Sainte-Marie [mg] (translated in French here)

“Omaly dia nisy vehivavy niantso maika ny rainy taty Antananarivo nilaza fa nianjeran-javatra ny hotely nisy azy ary dia nirodana ka tototra ao miaraka amin’ny olona valo hafa izy. Ary dia io rainy io kosa nandefa antso vonjy tao amin’ny RNM (Radio National Malagasy). Naverina tao amin’ny Radio io antso io sao mba misy afaka mamonjy azy ireo any an-toerana. Rehefa avy nandefa ny antso tao amin’ny Radio ity raim-pianakaviana dia niverina niantso an-janany tamin’ny telefaonina indray, nefa indrisy fa tsy nisy nandray intsony izay antso rehetra nataony.
Na izahay nihaino ny radio aza dia nangitakitaka sy nientana anaty ihany niandry izay tohin’ity tantara ratsy ity mndra-paharainan’ny andro.
Tapaka daholo ny fifandraisana tany an-teorana taorian’ilay antso nataon’ilay ray mahantra. Eny fa na ny BLU tokony ho nampiasain’ny BNGRC (sampana misahana ny vonjy taitra mandritry ny tranga toy izao) aza dia tsy nandeha. Koa lasa antso tany an-tany efitra ilay filàna vonjy nataony.
Nivoaka tamin’ny gazety rehetra androany maraina fa tapitra maty avokoa ireo olona sivy tototra tao amin’ity hotely tra-doza ity. Indrisy, mampalahelo”

Mialisoa gives a thorough summary of the situation as Ivan moves toward the south (Fr):

” La partie Est de Madagascar est fortement touchée: Atsinanana, Analanjirofo, Alaotra Mangoro. Cette dernière avance un bilan provisoire d'un peu moins de 500 sinistrés ce matin, principalement dans le district d'Andasibe à cause de la crue des eaux. Aux dernières nouvelles relayées par la radio nationale grâce à son fameux “Ampitapitao” ( oui, l'émission existe toujours), la route nationale 2 qui joint la capitale à Toamasina est inondée, aucune navette n'est possible […] Le cyclone s'affaiblit mais la pluie persiste. Antananarivo boit la tasse ( comme vache qui pisse, me dit Anselme ) depuis samedi, vers 1h du matin. Aucune éclaircie en vue, la capitale est ses environs passent leur temps entre petite pluie et averses hargneux, coups de vents, coups de froid, boue et flaques. “L'eau monte à vue d'oeil”, me confie un riverain, “pas besoin d'averse, mais rien q'une fine pluie et dès demain, on y est”. Comme quelques uns de ses voisins, il est candidat aux premiers déménagements qui ont commencé depuis samedi soir du côté d'Anosizato.”

Jandre in Madagascar has more satellite images of Ivan and explains that considering that it takes 3 years for Vanilla to mature, the effects of Ivan are disastrous on many levels.

Tomavana has aslo posted an exhaustive summary (mg) about the recent updates from meteorologists on Cyclone Ivan in Madagascar.
We will update this story and the report from the ground as the story unfolds. We also would like to thank the folks at Rising Voices, Nari Jibon and Voces Bolivianas for their words of support to the people caught in the storm and their valuable advices on keeping the lines of communication open within the country and with the outside world.