Madagascar seeks to curb

by AFP

As the Christmas shopping season starts, Madagascar has banned the sale of mock military uniforms and toy weapons after they were used in several real-life robberies, police said Wednesday.

"Even though it's plastic, the Madagascans are afraid of guns and rifles," Colonel Richard Ravalomanana, head of military police on the Indian Ocean island state, told AFP.

He said a 1960 edict banning clothes or equipment that could be confused with military issue.

Madagascan forces have already started cracking down on toy police and army accessories, seizing 731 items during a four-day raid late last month.

Even khaki school uniforms were seized by the authorities but Ravalomanana pledged the police would remain tolerant and ensure that "children are not deprived of their favourite war games."