On Monday 29 August 2022, a shooting broke out in the small town of Ikongo in the south-east. Gendarmes fired on a crowd of residents demanding the heads of four suspects arrested in the kidnapping of an albino child a week earlier. The provisional figure is at least 19 dead and more than thirty injured, according to the announcement made in the morning of Tuesday 30 August by the gendarmerie.
The population is angry after the kidnapping of an albino child a week ago.
The inhabitants of Ikongo became very angry. Very dismayed, they went to the gendarmerie on Monday morning to demand the four people, suspected of being involved in the case and detained at the gendarmerie. In front of a crowd determined to take justice into their own hands, the gendarmes fired to disperse the demonstrators. The first shots were fired at around 11am.
Self-defence, according to a gendarme involved in the shooting.
About 500 people with knives, including machetes, tried to force their way into the barracks to seize the suspects, said a gendarme involved in the shooting. According to him, the shooting was in self-defence. “We had no choice but to defend ourselves. He also stated that negotiations were held, but without success. He continued that the gendarmes then threw smoke bombs and fired warning shots, before deciding to shoot to protect themselves.
A parliamentarian disagrees with the gendarmerie’s version and demands an investigation.
Jean-Brunelle Razafintsiandraofa is a deputy from the locality of Ikongo. According to him, the version given by one of the gendarmes involved in the shooting is not convincing. He called for a parliamentary enquiry to determine who gave the order to shoot first.
“We need to know the responsibilities of each entity. Who fired first?
The gendarmes who carried out the shooting are on the run, one of the kidnap suspects is in the hands of the victim’s family.
A few hours after the incident, the gendarmes involved in the shooting left their barracks. According to the explanations of the chief of the Ikongo district, they are said to have fled to the nearest towns. One of the four suspects arrested by the gendarmes in this kidnapping case was captured this morning by the child’s family. As for the other three suspects, no information is given about them.
An apparent calm has recently been observed in the locality of Ikongo. Funeral ceremonies to honour the memory of the victims will start tomorrow, Wednesday 31 August. As for the President of the Malagasy Republic, he did not remain insensitive. He announced the opening of an enquiry to shed light on the tragedy and determine who was responsible.
