Madagascar president denied right to speak
It might not be in the same league as Qaddafi warning about fish flu, but the debate that just happened in the General Assembly over whether to let Madagascar coup leader and African pariah Andry Rajoelina speak could have been a parody ofhow these things work. Assembly President Ali Treki rambled for a while and ...
It might not be in the same league as Qaddafi warning about fish flu, but the debate that just happened in the General Assembly over whether to let Madagascar coup leader and African pariah Andry Rajoelina speak could have been a parody ofhow these things work.
It might not be in the same league as Qaddafi warning about fish flu, but the debate that just happened in the General Assembly over whether to let Madagascar coup leader and African pariah Andry Rajoelina speak could have been a parody ofhow these things work.
Assembly President Ali Treki rambled for a while and read from a ruling by the U.N. legal counsel and seemed pretty confused about how to interpret it. "The secretariat has given me a lot of paper," he said. Eventually Treki reached the conclusion that Rajoelina should be allowed to speak, though not as a head of state.
The delegate from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the most outspoken opponent of Rajoelina’s presence, called for a vote. The motion to let Rajoelina speak was overwhelmingly voted down, but not everyone quite understood how it was being phrased.
The delegate from Jamaica may have had the line of the day when he said, "I’m not sure what we just voted for and I’m very confused." After a second vote and some more confusion, Treki finally announced that Rajoelina would not be allowed to speak.
It’s not easy being a coup leader these days.
Joshua Keating was an associate editor at Foreign Policy. Twitter: @joshuakeating
More from Foreign Policy

Saudi-Iranian Détente Is a Wake-Up Call for America
The peace plan is a big deal—and it’s no accident that China brokered it.

The U.S.-Israel Relationship No Longer Makes Sense
If Israel and its supporters want the country to continue receiving U.S. largesse, they will need to come up with a new narrative.

Putin Is Trapped in the Sunk-Cost Fallacy of War
Moscow is grasping for meaning in a meaningless invasion.

How China’s Saudi-Iran Deal Can Serve U.S. Interests
And why there’s less to Beijing’s diplomatic breakthrough than meets the eye.