Three days of talks on forming a unity government intended to restore stability to Madagascar after months of political turmoil ended inconclusively on Friday, according to dpa. The chief mediator, former Mozambican President Joachim Chissano, gave the four rival parties until September 4 to present their composition for a power-sharing government. "We could not reach a consensual power sharing structure. The pending issue is still who's going to occupy the presidency, the vice presidency and the post of prime minister," Chissano said. The Southern African Dwevelopment Community (SADC) appointed Chissano in June to mediate in the crisis after the failure of initiatives by the African Union and the United Nations. The main dispute is between Andry Rajoelina, who seized power in March this year, and ousted president Marc Ravalomana. Rajoelina insists he must remain president for a 15-month transition period, with the Ravalomana camp taking the post of vice president. The talks in the Mozambique capital Maputo were designed to elect members to several transitional bodies, including a high council and a congress, from the country's four leading parties. Ravalomanana and former presidents Didier Ratsiraka and Albert Zafy participated in the conference along with Rajoelina. As outlined in an accord unveiled August 9 in Maputo, the deal foresees Rajoelina remaining as an interim president, but ceding some power to a consensus prime minister in advance of elections in 2010.
