Ravalomanana gets UN nod of approval

The presence of Madagascar's new president, Marc Ravalomanana, at the Earth Summit in South Africa this week is likely to put further pressure on African countries to reconsider their isolation of the Indian Ocean island, analysts said on Monday. Ravalomanana arrived in South Africa on Sunday, at the invitation of the United Nations, to attend the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg. Malagasy officials said the invitation was tacit recognition of the island's new leader. "This is a milestone in President Ravalomanana's international acceptance. There is no doubt that he is now considered the legitimate ruler of Madagascar," Madagascar's consul-general in South Africa, Bruno Ranarivelo, told IRIN. Ranarivelo said that Ravalomanana was expected to hold talks with world leaders and top government officials at the summit, including South African President Thabo Mbeki, and US Secretary of State Colin Powell. "A number of issues will be discussed, mainly dealing with rebuilding the economy and re-establishing political ties," he added. Since claiming an outright win in a disputed presidential election earlier in the year, a move backed by the country's highest court, Ravalomanana has gathered increasing international support from Western countries. But African leaders have been reluctant to endorse his presidency, saying his election had not been "legally constituted", and have called for fresh elections. At the launch of the African Union (AU) in South Africa in July, African heads of state upheld a decision to exclude the country from the new Union. However, a week following the AU's launch, Senegal formally recognised Ravalomanana's administration. Observers remarked that it was only a matter of time before the rest of the continent followed suit. A thaw in relations between the Union and the Malagasy government seemed to occur at the end of July when an AU delegation visited the country. Led by South African Foreign Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, the AU called for the removal of any obstacles that could further delay the return of Madagascar to the pan-African organisation. But the AU still did not say whether or not it would recognise Ravalomanana. "The AU now, despite its insistence earlier that it would not be guided by the fact that the major donors have accepted the new government, will have to rethink its position. Ravalomanana is here to stay, and the UN's invitation to the summit means he is part of international diplomatic circles," said a political analyst at the University of Madagascar, Didier Ramakavelo. France - the former colonial power - the United States, Britain and China, have all formally endorsed Ravalomanana's government. Currently, only a handful of African countries officially recognise Ravalomanana, including Senegal, Libya, Burkina Faso, Mauritius and the Comoros.