ANTANANARIVO — Rallying behind a pirate flag from the Japanese anime One Piece, youth-led demonstrators in Madagascar say they are inspired by Nepal’s “wind of change” and insist their country’s “system must fall.”

With power and water cuts lasting up to 12 hours a day, thousands have taken to the streets in fury. After days of protests forced the government’s dismissal, demonstrators are now demanding the resignation of President Andry Rajoelina.

Since Thursday, unrest has left at least 22 people dead and dozens injured, according to the United Nations, which condemned Madagascar’s “violent response” to the protests.Meva, a 30-year-old agricultural engineer, said she had long watched the country’s decline in silence until misgovernance pushed her into action.

“We were terrorised by fear for many years and still are. As a millennial, I’m somewhat angry with myself because for years I saw what was happening and did nothing,” she told AFP.

She said Rajoelina’s dismissal of ministers and calls for fresh faces following the protests were distractions meant “to divide us.”

“They’re trying to make us believe that the government is the problem... But it’s the system itself that ensures that even if you’re a good minister, if you’re not corrupt, you can’t do anything. Because there are really powerful lobbyists behind the president,” she said.