What were our elders really thinking on June 26, 1960? It seems the day of the Republic (October 14, 1958) or the adoption of the first Constitution (April 29, 1959) did not stir much public excitement.
Even the term “return of Independence” is relatively recent. How many people recall or even briefly consider the 19th-century Kingdom, which engaged with major powers like Great Britain, France, the USA, and Germany? Yet, the bicentenary of the treaty of friendship on October 23, 1817, brought the children of the English Queen to our shores in 2017.
Happy holidays, but let it not become mere commerce: bulk-buying “country treasures” or renting prestigious spots around Lake Anosy to get the best view of the fireworks.
What kind of independence is it, if the populace is left to survive through plunder and theft, as seen on January 26, 2009, and September 25, 2025?
What kind of independence is it, if it involves destroying heritage, like the burning of the Rova of Antananarivo; or defiling it with shameful “structures” in Anatirova; or trampling on our culture by disregarding our ancestral language, whether in writing or song?
When will we have independence, if we lack the mindset to respect even the simplest rules of hygiene, traffic, or social interaction?
Can we have a virtuous independence if the powerful are hungrily smuggling gemstones, gold, and rosewood, while the poor resort to stripping street signs, digging out batteries, or robbing graves?
Independence in name only, while the country is impoverished—a democracy of the destitute, bitter with suffering and cloaked in shame.
Rainandriamampandry, executed by Gallieni, was the father of Dr. Rajaonah, who wrote the series “Japan and the Japanese” in the newspaper “Mpanolo-tsaina” in October 1889, after completing eleven years of study in Edinburgh (Scotland) from 1871 to 1882. Pastor Ravelojaona revived these articles twenty-five years later during the era of the Vy Vato Sakelika movement.
Whether in 1889 or 1914, we were an island that aspired to be like Japan, but instead, we fell into decline: masters begging for their own resources, landlords living in silence, and the bedrock of our nation being danced upon by foreigners.
What kind of independence is this? Heaven forbid we say it is beyond recovery because we have fallen too low. A holiday to gain awareness, a holiday that mandates duty, a holiday that inspires us to rise up, rather than mindlessly applauding fireworks.
Nasolo-Valiavo Andriamihaja
Captured & Published at: 2026-06-27 07:31:15 (Madagascar Local Time EAT)
Original Source: https://www.lexpress.mg/2026/06/fahaleovantena-inona-sy-ahoana.html