In March and April, Lola Rasoamaharo, the publication director of the private daily La Gazette de la Grande Ile, was sentenced to four jail terms ranging from one to two months in connection with four separate criminal defamation charges. Gazette Editor James Ramarosaona was also given a one-month jail sentence in one of the cases. Both remained free pending an appeal.

French journalist Olivier Péguy was forced to leave the country in May after the government refused to renew his work permit. The reasons for the nonrenewal were unclear, and some CPJ sources said it might have been linked to Péguy's reporting. Péguy had reported from Madagascar for four years for Radio France Internationale and other international news organizations.

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