Brainstorming…
I met with Dr. Selway today about my project. We discussed some of the dynamics of Malagasy politics and narrowed down what I really want to examine. He showed me some interesting resources and brainstormed with me for about an hour. In 2008, the people of Madagascar passed a referendum put forth by the president that dissolved the six provinces which had previously been semi-autonomous and created 22 smaller regions thus concentrating more power in the executive branch of the government. My tentative goal in my research will center around this key institutional change. I will start by getting a grasp on the ethnic dynamics in the country. Through surveys, focus groups, and interviews I will ask questions that evaluate how divided the country is across ethnic and geographical lines. With these descriptions as a background I can then evaluate the institutional changes that happened during Marc Ravalomanana’s regime, specifically the 2008 referendum. As an extension of that, I will then examine military institutions. How are they structured? What is the chain of command? Where are the loyalties? What are the people’s perceptions of military institutions? How is recruitment accomplished? What roles do the various military institutions fulfill?
Abraham Contos 