National strike called off

Roadblocks choking the capital of fuel and essential supplies were still in place on Wednesday night, after self-declared president Marc Ravalomanana called an end to a national strike he launched in January to pressure President Didier Ratsiraka out of office.

Ravalomanana, who insists he won a 16 December presidential poll with an outright majority, claimed the election was rigged to favour Ratsiraka. Ratsiraka has been in power for most of the past 23 years.

When official results forced a run-off - now scheduled for 24 March - Ravalomanana mobilised massive protests. He installed himself as president last month and has since appointed a cabinet of his own in the capital Antananarivo.

While Ravalomanana and his rival government control the capital, Ratsiraka and his government have set up an administration in the coastal town of Tamatave. They have blocked roads to Antananarivo, preventing the delivery of fuel and other essential goods.

A source in the capital told IRIN on Wednesday that, among other things, Ravalomanana wanted to pressure Ratsiraka to remove the roadblocks. An Organisation of African Unity (OAU) delegation, which visited the country recently to broker an agreement between the two leaders, included in its six-point proposal a halt to the strike and roadblocks.

"The OAU is expecting both of them to respond to its six-point proposal and says they should meet and discuss a way out of the crisis without conditions," the source said.

The OAU delegation called for a government of national unity consisting of people accepted by both men to organise a fresh round of polls. However, political analysts believe a second round of polling is unlikely because Ravalomanana has gone too far to entrench himself in power to turn back now.