Southern Africa rejects Madagascar's new leader

By THULANI MTHETHWA Associated Press Writer, in Salon

Mar 19th, 2009 | MBABANE, Swaziland -- Southern Africa will not recognize Madagascar's new leader, an army-backed politician who ousted an elected president, key regional leaders said Thursday.

After a mini-summit about the Indian Ocean island, in Swaziland on Thursday, the main decision-making committee of the Southern African Development Community also urged the African Union and the international community not to recognize Andry Rajoelina as president and called for a return to "democratic and constitutional rule in the shortest time possible."

After months of street protests, Marc Ravalomanana resigned as Madagascar's president Tuesday and placed power in the hands of the military. Within hours, the military announced it was making opposition leader Andry Rajoelina president.

The regional leaders meeting Thursday said that if Rajoelina refuses to relinquish power to Ravalomanana, the bloc would recommend imposing sanctions.

Madagascar is a member of the regional bloc. Thursday's meeting, chaired by Swazi King Mswati III, included Mozambican President Armando Guebuza, South African Defense Minister Charles Nqakula, and the bloc's executive secretary, Tomaz Salomao.

Earlier Thursday, Zambian Foreign Affairs Minister Kabinga Pande called Rajoelina's coming to power in Madagascar "a setback and danger to the entrenchment of democracy and constitutional rule on the continent which should not be allowed to take root."

In a statement in government papers Thursday, Pande also called for the suspension of Madagascar from both the Southern African Development Community and the African Union. The AU was to have held its annual meeting in Madagascar later this year.

An AU committee was to meet Friday, to examine whether the events in Madagascar constituted a coup, which would lead to Madagascar's automatic suspension.

Rajoelina has accused his ousted rival of misspending public funds and undermining democracy, and said Wednesday his rise was a victory for "true democracy" over dictatorship. He had promised new elections within two years.

France, Madagascar's former colonial power and current main donor, said that two years was "too long" to wait for elections.

Ravalomanana had accused Rajoelina of seeking power by unconstitutional means, since under the constitution the opposition leader was too young to become president.

Some of Rajoelina's anti-government protests had led to deadly clashes. The deaths of at least 25 civilians last month cost Ravalomanana the backing of many in the military, and a mutiny spread and gained popular support.

Associated Press Writer Lewis Mwanangombe in Lusaka, Zambia contributed to this report.

Ethiopia, Lalibela Churches

Bieta Giyorgis (Saint Gerorge) Church.

Lalibela Churches : As a kind of Jordanian's Petra, they say it's the 8th world wonder. Lalibela is a small town in the middle of the Ethiopian highlands. It's surrounded by a rocky and dry area where just in the raining period farmers can grow their crops.

One's called Roha and the capital of the Zagwe Dynasty wich ruled over Ethiopia from the 10th century to the mid- 13th century. It was King Lalibela who build the 11 rock-hewn monolithic churches. These 11 churches are all cut out of solid red volcanic rock, it was constructed to represent Jerusalem.

The churches are divided into Northern and Eastern groups of churches by a rock-cut channel (river) called Yordannos (Jordan River) and all connected by a labyrinth thine of narrow and deep passages, tunnels, small canyons, and bridges…

Bieta Medhane Alem is the largest and most impressive monolithic church. Of all the churches, Bieta Giyorgis (Saint George) is particularly stunning and beautiful, situated apart from the other churches to the west, intricately carved into the shape of a cross. All the churches are still used as places of worship.

The churches are also a significant engineering feat, given that they are all associated with water (which fills the wells next to many of the churches) exploiting an artesian geological system that brings the water up to the top of the mountain. (Thx Makzid)