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By Lewis Machipisa IPS Article Dated 12/10/2002
HARARE - A general strike called Tuesday to protest Zimbabwe's deteriorating economic situation was ignored by most workers across the southern African country. Banks, supermarkets, offices and industry did not take heed of the call by the National Constitutional Assembly (NCA), a non-governmental organisation (NGO), to close shop. The one-day strike was called to protest the declining economic situation and alleged state repression of political opponents. �'In various parts (of the country), we received no meaningful response but we will plan another one (general strike),'' said Lovemore Madhuku, chairperson of the NCA. But, according to Wayne Bvudzijena, police spokesperson, at least 13 people had been arrested by Tuesday afternoon for barricading roads, stoning buses and organising the stay-away. In a statement, Bvudzijena said police investigations have revealed that some of the participants �'have been paid by an MDC (the opposition Movement for Democratic Change) member 300 Zimbabwe dollars each and promised 5,000 dollars on completion of their criminal activities of blocking roads and turning away commuters.'' One U.S. dollar is equal to 55 Zimbabwe dollars. Eight people were arrested Monday night in Harare, the capital of Zimbabwe, for organising the strike. �'The eight were arrested during a meeting they were having,'' said Bvudzijena. According to the Brussels-based International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU), five of those arrested are members of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU), which supported the strike. The five include Wellington Chibebe, the secretary-general of ZCTU. �'Although the detained trade unionists were later released, the arrests are a chilling reminder of the repression and intimidation faced by all those who do not support the policies of President Robert Mugabe's regime,'' said the ICTU in a press statement, made available to IPS on Tuesday. The strike action, which was supported by the country's main opposition party, the MDC, and the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions was also to push for a new constitution, said Madhuku. �'It is a protest to express the anger of the people at the current economic hardships and it is also a call for open democracy, which can only be guaranteed by a new people's constitution,'' said Madhuku. Zimbabwe is engulfed in its worst economic crisis since independence from Britain in 1980. Currently, inflation is at an all-time-high of 144 percent, 60 percent unemployment and crippling fuel and food shortages. The NCA blames President Mugabe for the country's economic woes, which have been sparked by the 78-year-old leader's controversial land reform programme. Under the programme, the government seized land from white farmers and distributed it to black people. Saying it was redressing past colonial land-ownership imbalance, the government has seized 4,500 farms from white farmers, who owned 70 percent of the country's prime farmland. At least 10 white farmers have been killed, while more than a million labourers have been rendered homeless, since the land-reform campaign began in 2000, according to local human rights groups. The land reform programme has affected Zimbabwe's farming. About half of the country's 14.5 million people need urgent food aid between now and March 2003, according to the UN World Food programme (WFP). The NCA is a coalition of churches, civic groups, political parties, trade unions, students and individuals. Initially, the NCA had anticipated a 50-percent success rate during the strike but Madhuku was forced to down scale to less than 20 percent after most workers reported for duty, as they were not aware of the call. Madhuku said fear of reprisals by the Mugabe regime also left workers with no option but to report to work. �'In some places, there was confusion as to the actual date of the stay-away,'' said Madhuku. �'But this is a start of mass protests. We intend to call for another stay-away on Friday (Dec 13).'' But, having dismissed the NCA as front for the MDC, the government had banned the strike. �'Peace-loving Zimbabweans are warned against being misled into engaging in an illegal activity,'' warned Bvudzijena, police spokesperson. Moses Tekere, an economic analyst in Harare, blamed the failure of the stay-away on bad timing. �'It's the timing. People are waiting for their bonuses, while others have been paid,'' Tekere said. �'The best way forward is to organise for the closure of industry for a long-time. But this needs to be planned. As it is, not many people were aware of the stay-away on Tuesday.''
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