Ketakandriana Rafitoson

Ketakandriana Rafitoson is a Malagasy political scientist and human rights activist. Quotes I think that I am a pure product of the Catholic Church, and it is something I’m very proud of. You have to work hard in order to become someone and to achieve your dreams Because I am coming from a poor background, it is essential to work, work, work. And pray Why is the world unequal? Why is there so much inequality in the world? That question triggered my reflection at the time I chose to do political science, not with the idea of becoming a politician, but to understand the “science” of politics: What does politics and policy do to reduce inequalities in the world? I faced a lot of injustice in our family, in the society, and had many personal stories that moved me to think Social justice really matters to me, and I found in the teachings something that I had been striving for, the end purpose I discovered how the judiciary really works in Madagascar. And it is full of corruption. People say openly that as a judge, you receive calls from ministers and people in power telling you that in this such case you have to do this and that, despite what the law says. And I’m the only Malagasy person who has ever quit the judiciary, because becoming a judge here is the guarantee for fame and fortune. But that didn’t match my values, and I could not see practicing law this way. I preferred to quit. I began to dream about a revolution in Madagascar. Everybody is so poor here; we are living in extreme poverty. I wondered if perhaps people could trigger a revolution against greed, politicians, corruption, everything Complaining is not enough: we have to act as citizens and also as soldiers of faith. If you believe in God, that is just helping you, but you have to do the main stuff. You have to strive for change The president is promising everything: to build new churches, give to specific causes. I feel it’s not sincere and I’m afraid Christians will be used for political purposes, as it already happened before. Social reconstruction or reinsertion is also important, because people are very poor You have to work with people instead of fearing them That’s what is very frustrating with Madagascar. We have all the resources we need here. We have the land, we have the people, the resources, but we are not able to manage to do something good with them When I say we, we all have a shared responsibility. It is not just the politicians, it’s also us citizens\ We are busy making a living, but that’s not a reason to resign from the civic community and from your duty as a citizen Investigative journalism is an important path, and it is one of our greatest successes For young people, we need to find ways to empower and to make them believe in something better We need leaders filled with integrity Anti-corruption has a moral side and beyond the specific work that we are launching every year, there is a huge area that we have to do with people on that moral issue. It’s a key thing to change. I keep trying and trying to find the new recipes for it to work. I am looking for inspiration. A Discussion with Ketakandriana Rafitoson, Transparency International Initiative Madagascar 14 February 2023 External links Category:Political scientists from Madagascar Category:Living people Category:Women activists from Madagascar Category:Human rights activists