Malagasy historian Dr Denis Alexandre Lahiniriko will soon publish his second work “Nationalist Union Impossible”, after three years of meticulous research. Apparently, this scholar has dug into the past by analyzing the other facet that many researchers have never mentioned: the duality between the Malagasy elites, notably the nationalists.
Saying out loud what everyone is thinking, that’s exactly Dr. Lahiniriko. “I developed what we call a unionist political culture, which is our politics’ response to partisan division. Especially since, faced with the division of Malagasy nationalists, they were weak and did not constitute essential interlocutors for France,” he maintained. It must be admitted, Malagasy politicians are disunited. Moreover, they often have difficulty positioning themselves on the political spectrum. The author proves, in a way, that the political history of the Big Island is an eternal beginning. Plunged into a spiral of confrontations, the actors struggle to find a real point of connection. From another angle, the work, which has more than 340 pages and 6 chapters, illustrates “the Malagasy political landscape” in all its complexity. The 1940s and 1950s represent a pivotal period during which nationalists claimed to be united, although the reality was quite different. Indeed, the author allows us to affirm that “the nationalist forces have never constituted a homogeneous and coherent political bloc, ready to take charge of the destiny of the new nation leaving France”. This perspective specific to Lahiniriko will not fail to arouse the interest of readers. The “impossible nationalist union” is a fact, a legacy of the so-called firaisankina that politicians have retained over time. Unquestionably, this fragile cohesion justifies their powerlessness. Seeing things as they are, through the lenses of neutrality, is an essential quality for a good historian. Dr Denis Alexandre Lahiniriko stuck to this approach rigorously. “The analysis of this political culture, which is opposed to the unanimist political culture (already developed in the book on the MDRM), is thus fundamental to better understand the contemporary political games of Madagascar”he added.
Iss Heridiny
