its secretary-general; together with five other parties, AREMA formed the political alliance called the Vanguard of the Malagasy Revolution (FNDR). All politicians were required to be members of FNDR; AREMA was the dominant party in election results. In the midst of a poor economic situation, Ratsiraka abandoned socialist policies after a few years in power and implemented reforms recommended by the International Monetary Fund. He was re-elected as President with 80% of the vote in 1982 and with 63% of the vote in 1989. The latter election was condemned as fraudulent by the opposition, which protested, and at least 75 people were killed in the resulting violence. Ratsiraka faced intense opposition to his rule in 1991. On 10 August 1991, tens of thousands people marched on the Presidential Palace, The government placed the death toll at 11, although other reports placed the toll higher. The incident severely undermined his already precarious position. On 31 October, he signed the Panorama Convention, which established a provisional government and stripped him of most of his powers; although he remained President, opposition leader Albert Zafy became head of the newly established High Authority of the State. 1990s elections and second presidency Ratsiraka ran in the multiparty November 1992 presidential election, placing second behind Zafy in the first round. In the second round, held in February 1993, Ratsiraka lost to Zafy, taking about one-third of the vote, and left office on 27 March. Zafy was impeached by the National Assembly of Madagascar in 1996, and Ratsiraka, who had been in exile in France, mounted a political comeback in late 1996 when he won that year's presidential election, running as the candidate of the AREMA party. He came in first place in the first round with 36.6% of the vote, ahead of his three main opponents: Zafy, Herizo Razafimahaleo, and Prime Minister/Acting President Norbert Ratsirahonana. He narrowly defeated Zafy in the runoff with 50.7% of the vote and took office again on 9 February 1997. Members of the opposition, including Zafy, unsuccessfully attempted to impeach Ratsiraka in February 1998, accusing him of violating the constitution through decentralizing reforms that would increase his own power at the expense of that of the National Assembly. The impeachment motion also accused him of perjury, nepotism, and failing to act as supreme arbiter of disputes, and it cited his ill-health. In the National Assembly vote on 4 February 60 deputies