* This link was active on the date it was posted. PCOL is not responsible for broken links which may have changed.
U.S. Pulls Peace Corps From Madagascar
April 22, 2002 12:03 pm EST
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Peace Corps has withdrawn all its staff from Madagascar and suspended programs on the Indian Ocean island because of the violence over disputed presidential elections, a statement said on Monday.
Director Gaddi Vasquez said the 108 Peace Corps volunteers serving in Madagascar had gone to the Kenyan capital Nairobi to discuss whether they want to work in other countries or rejoin the Peace Corps at a later date.
The State Department last week ordered non-essential embassy staff and embassy dependents to leave the country because of the conflict between Didier Ratsiraka and Marc Ravalomanana, who both claim the presidency.
Ravalomanana controls the capital Antananarivo but the rest of the country is divided between him and Ratsiraka, the incumbent when elections took place in December. Up to 60 people have been killed in the fighting, officials say.
Vasquez said the violence had not directly affected Peace Corps volunteers. But he added: "Deteriorating security conditions and increased logistical difficulties and indications that the political and security conditions could worsen have lead to a complex and difficult political situation with no clear resolution in sight."
"Trends over which the Peace Corps has no control indicate that there are no longer conditions in the country's safer areas to justify continuance of the program at this time."
Volunteers in Madagascar taught English, trained teachers and worked on health education, child survival, natural resource management and community development projects.
Some postings on Peace Corps Online are provided to the individual members of this group without permission of the copyright owner for the non-profit purposes of criticism, comment, education, scholarship, and research under the "Fair Use" provisions of U.S. Government copyright laws and they may not be distributed further without permission of the copyright owner. Peace Corps Online does not vouch for the accuracy of the content of the postings, which is the sole responsibility of the copyright holder.
This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines
