Malagasy authorities must immediately and unconditionally release MP Marie Jeanne d’Arc Masy Goulamaly, arbitrarily arrested and accused of orchestrating demonstrations following an official complaint she filed regarding the credibility of the legislative elections last month, Amnesty International said on Friday June 7, 2024.
Marie Jeanne d’Arc Masy Goulamaly has been arbitrarily detained since her arrest on May 31. She was arrested after denouncing irregularities in her district of Tsihombe, in southern Madagascar, during the May 29 elections.
“It is scandalous that Malagasy authorities arrested MP Marie Jeanne d’Arc Masy Goulamaly for filing a complaint about the fairness of legislative elections in her district,” said Tigere Chagutah, regional director for South Africa. East and Southern Africa to Amnesty International.
It is scandalous that Malagasy authorities arrested MP Marie Jeanne d’Arc Masy Goulamaly for filing a complaint about the fairness of legislative elections in her district.
Tigere Chagutah, Regional Director for East and Southern Africa at Amnesty International
His continued arbitrary detention violates his right to freedom of expression and association. The authorities must immediately and unconditionally release Marie Jeanne d’Arc Masy Goulamaly, detained solely for peacefully exercising her human rights. »
On May 31, without a search warrant or arrest warrant, around fifty Malagasy police and gendarmes forcibly took the MP from her home in the Tsihombe district. They drove her to Ambovombe, about two hours away, where she has been arbitrarily under house arrest ever since.
“It is obvious that the Malagasy authorities are keeping Marie Jeanne d’Arc Masy Goulamaly in detention for political reasons. These repressive tactics flout Madagascar’s obligations under regional and international human rights law, including the right to freedom of movement and choice of residence within a state, as provided for in the African Charter of Rights. of man and people,” said Tigere Chagutah.
It is obvious that the Malagasy authorities are keeping Marie Jeanne d’Arc Masy Goulamaly in detention for political reasons.
Tigere Chagutah
Additional information
Legislative elections took place in Madagascar on May 29, 2024. The process was reportedly marred by electoral irregularities that voters saw and filmed in the Tsihombe district. Among these irregularities are the refusal to delegates of three of the four candidates in the legislative elections to enter polling stations, the counting of votes in their absence, the registration of minors on the electoral lists and the use of threats and acts of intimidation.
Protests broke out two days later, on May 31, shortly after Marie Jeanne d’Arc Masy Goulamaly, together with another candidate, Christian Vontsoa, filed an official complaint with the relevant authorities, calling for action against these irregularities. These demonstrations led to the burning of two administrative buildings of the electoral commission.
