Ministers of Madagascar's Self-styled Govt Appear in Public

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Sunday, March 03, 2002

Ministers of Madagascar's Self-styled Govt Appear in Public

The ministers nominated by Madagascar's self-declared president Marc Ravalomanana were presented Saturday to pro-Ravalomanana supporters rallying in downtown Antananarivo.

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The ministers nominated by Madagascar's self-declared president Marc Ravalomanana were presented Saturday to pro-Ravalomanana supporters rallying in downtown Antananarivo.

"Our government is open to national and international dialogue," said "prime minister" Jacques Sylla when presenting his 17 "ministers" and one "secretary of state" to the public.

Most of the "ministers" are new faces on Madagascar's politicalstage. Ravalomanana nominated his ministers Friday at the city hall of Antananarivo, of which he was mayor, and Ravalomanana's cabinet will run parallel to the one of President Didier Ratsiraka.

There was no military intervention during the rally although Ratsiraka declared martial law in the capital on Thursday, ordering security forces to dispel all demonstrators and protesters in public places.

Ravalomanana declared himself "president of the republic" last Friday following nearly two months of election disputes with Ratsiraka.

Ravalomanana, an opposition leader, claimed victory in last December's first round of election while Ratsiraka said neither secured a majority. Madagascar's High Constitutional Court ordereda second round set for March, but Ravalomanana rejected the ruling.

Ratsiraka issued a state of emergency decree following Ravalomanana's self-proclamation last Friday. Police imposed an overnight curfew on the capital from Wednesday to Thursday after rioting flared up between supporters of the two camps.

Ratsiraka on Thursday transferred his power to General Leon-Claude Raveloarison, the "military governor" of Antananarivo, a post the president newly created.

Raveloarison was quoted as saying his priority was to help restart the negotiations and his troops would not fire at the demonstrators.

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