Madagascar 1960: the Franco-African bet of Philibert Tsiranana

Text by: Laurent Correau Follow

On June 26, 1960, Madagascar proclaimed its independence. The Big Island regained its sovereignty after more than half a century of French colonization. In the spirit of the Madagascan president at the time, Philibert Tsiranana, this independence must be achieved gradually and by maintaining links with the former metropolis. But its governance and its choices ended up provoking in 1972 a popular movement which would bring about its downfall.

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With our correspondents in Madagascar , Sarah Tétaud, Laetitia Bezain and Laure Verneau

Thousands of them came to the Mahamasina stadium in Antananarivo at the end of the morning. A tight crowd settled. Ladies protect themselves from the sun's rays with the help of elegant parasols. Tananarivians wear the Lamba, a large stole by which they display their Madagascan identity . This will assert itself in a few moments in all its force. "  Mahamasina  ". Literally: "  that which makes sacred  ". The Antananarivo stadium has the solemnity necessary for a proclamation of independence.

Jocelyn Rafidinarivo,better known in Madagascar under the pseudonym "Jean-Louis Rafidy" follows the ceremony at the front row. He is a young Malagasy radio reporter. "  The crowd was already very, very excited," he recalls sixty years later at the microphone of RFI. It moved in the stands. Then, when the cannon shots sounded, the ceremony began. You could almost hear the silence.  "

The Madagascan leader Philibert Tsiranana and Jean Foyer, the French Secretary of State, in charge of Relations within the community, hoisted themselves on a sacred rock inherited from the time of the monarchy. Jean Foyer, first of all, advances towards the microphone: “  The French Republic recognizes the Malagasy Republic as an independent and sovereign State. She expresses her wishes for prosperity and her confidence in her future.  Then Tsiranana takes the floor and proclaims, in Malagasy, the independence of the Big Island, once again sovereign.

Philibert Tsiranana proclaims the independence of Madagascar on June 26, 1960

RFI

Jean-Louis Rafidy continues his story: “  Emotion is difficult to describe. We can see that everyone was tense. And when President Tsiranana announced 'we are independent, Madagascar is independent', there was the cry of the whole crowd. We no longer know if the applause crackled louder than the interjections and the screams, but it was something incredible. It was truly achievement.  "

“  Mahamasina stadium was packed, remembers his side Victor Razafiniarivo, who was then only a child. I never could forget this event because we sang for the first time the national anthem, Ry Tanindrazanay malala ô, that is to say dear homeland… and we were really proud ! Almost all of Tana's students took part in the parade.  "

Pride, symbols. Désiré Ramakavelo was 20 years old when independence was proclaimed. He is about to leave for France to take the entrance exam to the military school of Saint-Cyr (He has since become general). He was particularly touched by the first parade of the national army ... and moved to hear Philibert Tsiranana proclaim independence in Malagasy. "  On the day of June 26, he says, we really breathed a sigh of relief, saying to ourselves 'this is it, something is changing'. We were really happy. The parade took place in town and it was the first time that we saw a Malagasy army. It was like we were dreaming. It left an indelible memory. It gave a change in my head, in my heart, in my being. As long as we have never been colonized, we may not understand.  "

However, are all Madagascans committed to independence as it has just been obtained? Hearts are shared. No one has forgotten that, on September 28, 1958, the capital Antananarivo mainly voted "No" to the Franco-African Community proposed by General de Gaulle. Tana followed the advice of her mayor, Pastor Richard Andriamanjato. His party, the AKFM (the Congress Party for the Independence of Madagascar), was created in the days following the September 28 referendum and he has since shaken power over this independence issue.

Return of the heroes of independence

The holiday bounces at the end of July and takes on a fully popular dimension. Philibert Tsiranana succeeded in making a real political coup by bringing back to the country the three deputies who had been detained in France since the 1947 insurrection: Joseph Ravoahangy, Joseph Raseta and Jacques Rabemananjara. The three men are associated with the celebration of this independence for which they have sacrificed their freedom. Their names will quickly go down in history. "  They were people who had fought for the independence of Madagascar , explains the historian Helihanta Rajaonarison, and besides they are granted the authorship of independence. For all the Tananarivians I interviewed, the heroes were the parliamentarians. They were the ones who had suffered for that independence.  "

On these days, in any case, we install the podiums. We organize singing competitions. And we dance, on the tube of independence: "  Azonay Tsy Avelanay  ", played by the troupe of Odeam Rakoto.A unique sentence, repeated on a catchy rhythm: "  We had it (independence), we will not let it go  ". Odeam Rakoto's son Doly Odeamson still remembers: “  Ah, it was a party, it was the lanterns! President Tsiranana strolled around Analakely square, all alone, like that, among the people, there was no insecurity. What I remember is that the avenue was full of people. There were singers. And that my father was going to sing this song which has become a slogan for all Madagascans. I was behind the scenes. I kept the costumes, I stayed at the bottom of the podium. It happened in the evening, from 6 p.m. to midnight.  "

It was a party.

Testimony of Odeamson Rakoto, son of popular singer Odeam Rakoto from the 1960s

Sarah Tétaud

Negotiated independence vs. “ secession ”

This independence is the opposite of that obtained, in the breakup, by Guinea two years earlier. Tsiranana is close to General de Gaulle. Unlike the Guinean Sékou Touré, he supports the new framework in which Paris wants to reconfigure its relations with its former colonies in black Africa, the French Community. The terms of Malagasy independence have been negotiated. As soon as independence was proclaimed, Franco-Malagasy agreements were signed on June 27. Tsiranana is convinced that the young Republic must maintain close ties with Paris: "  For him, analyzes historian Lucile Rabearimanana, France is the liberal world and in this period of the cold war, he is really on the side of the world liberal, of capitalism… it is also a real conviction in Philibert Tsiranana that French culture and the French language are what connect Madagascar to the rest of the world.  "The first president of independence also shows a good dose of pragmatism:"  In terms of economy , continues the retired academic, he finds that Madagascar is poor and that precisely, without the help of the France, without French investment, Madagascar will never get out of it.  Consequence: French companies play a central role in the post-independence economy, French advisers are omnipresent within the State. French culture and language occupy a special place in the dominant culture.

The First Republic appears, as historian Nicolas Courtin recalls, as a “Post-Colony”. "  The regime of Philibert Tsiranana ," he explains, " is considered a centerpiece of a larger puzzle, making the bed of Françafrique at the time of independence. The independence agreements, signed between June and July 1960, along with secret defense agreements, included the Malagasy Republic in the Pré Carré. The policy led by Tsiranana joined, in 1960 and the Congo Léopoldville crisis, the line drawn by Félix Houphouët-Boigny who gathered around him the French-speaking African family in a line of close alliance with France.  "

" Second independence "

Two generations later, Tsiranana's granddaughter, Éliana Bezaza took over the leadership of the party he founded, the Social Democratic Party. According to her, the maintenance of the French presence was necessary at the time. "  Staying with the former colonizers ," she said, " was a deliberate choice, especially in the context of the Cold War. The defense of the territory was attributed to France and, in return, Madagascar was a preserve ... but the regime enjoyed the security necessary to devote itself to the development of its people. This nuance was very badly understood by the detractors of Tsiranana, who saw the French presence as an interference and an insult to national sovereignty.  "

For what assessment? Historian Lucille Rabearimanana recognizes that in terms of infrastructure, the pro-French bet has paid off. "  We witnessed during the First Republic ," she says, " an extension of the road network, the maintenance of this same road network and the rail network. Madagascar benefited, during the First Republic, from social and economic investments and therefore harvested the 'crumbs' of the Thirty Glorious Years in France.  "

At the end of the 1960s, however, Tsiranana and his power were tired. Close ties with France end up turning against the president. Anger broke out in 1972, on January 23, at the medical school of Befelatanana, a vocational school described by the historian Françoise Blum as the "  archetype of this colonial education at two speeds  ". It all starts with a strike by the students who protest against their living conditions at the boarding school. “  The Jules Ferry and Gallieni high schools went on strike on April 24, says Françoise Blum, followed by all of the secondary and university establishments in Tananarive: on the 26th, the strike was already general. On the 29th, observers count 95 establishments on strike and up to 70,000 strikers.  The university enters the dance. The claims are growing. "  The reason for our revolution is very simple ," sums up Charles, of the Mahaleo group, the emblematic group of "Malagasy May". We just wanted to speak Malagasy.  The movement, however, goes far beyond a cultural claim, it crystallizes unease with various causes. The protest extends beyond school and university circles. There are parades, rallies are organized at the Ambohijatovo Garden, renamed "  Garden of the strike  " for the occasion. Dressed in black, the statue of Joan of Arc is also surrounded by a banner which proclaims: "  You are right, children  ". On May 18, 1972, Philibert Tsiranana announced on the radio that he was giving full powers to General Ramanantsoa.

An epilogue… or the beginning of another story. This January 18, 1973, it is a young officer who animates the press conference: the frigate captain Didier Ratsiraka, then Madagascan Minister of Foreign Affairs. He speaks of the Franco-Malagasy agreements of 1960 which he describes as "  assistance  " rather than "  cooperation  ". Negotiations for the revision of these agreements will open in Paris in the coming days. The new Malagasy diplomacy has decided to break with the past.

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