17.01.2002

No to dictatorship! No to neo-liberalism!

International Socialist Organisation statement

The ISO Zimbabwe strongly condemn the move by the Mugabe Zanu-PF government to introduce draconian semi-fascist laws, the statement by army commander Vitalis Zvinavashe and the violent campaign that Zanu-PF has embarked on. We also condemn the introduction of tuition fees at colleges and university and the introduction of loan facility for students from Bank CBZ and the Metropolitan. This further worsens the economic and political crisis in Zimbabwe. For political survival in the forthcoming presidential elections Mugabe has resorted to the smashing of democracy and any potential resistance. On the economic front Mugabe continues attacking workers, students, peasants and the poor by serving the rich, IMF and World Bank, hoping that they would forgive him like they did Moi in Kenya. The Zanu-PF government is preparing for a multi-front attack on democracy and is preparing a fight in the elections and streets. Cases of political violence are on the increase - the youths trained by the Zanu-PF government have caused havoc in the townships. An MDC MP from Matebeleland is fighting for his life in hospital after being beaten by eight men and left for dead. The army commander issued a statement last week meant to encourage and incite violence from Zanu-PF militias and the liberation war veterans. It is also to instil fear in the ordinary people, especially those in the rural areas that if they don't vote for Mugabe it means the return of war or what happened in Matebeleland in the early 80s. Besides its campaign of terror, Zanu-PF has now introduced semi-fascist laws to crush any resistance to this multi-faceted attack: * denying free and fair elections by the amendments to the Electoral Act * smashing press freedom, the right to demonstrate and assembly through the Public Order and Security Bill and the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Bill l the movement of resistance to Mugabe, Zanu-PF and their neo-liberal policies was started in 1997 by strikes, demonstrations and stayaways of workers and students and, fearful of this power, Mugabe is now seeking to outlaw all strikes and stayaways through the Labour Relations Amendment Bill and the privatisation of colleges and universities and expulsion of militant student activist leaders. The only way to smash this two-headed snake that Mugabe is creating is to attack it on all fronts at the same time, uniting all forces under attack in a democratic and transparent united front without domination of any one group. The demands must be broad: firstly resisting the attacks on democracy by Zanu-PF, and secondly resisting its IMF, World Bank (ie, US- and EU-sponsored) neo-liberal agenda, which has brought massive poverty to workers, students unemployed and ordinary people. The movement must be based on action: ie, general strikes, class boycotts and demonstrations - the tradition of 1997-1999 in dealing with this arrogance. It is obvious that parliament is a toothless dog, and going to the courts will not achieve much, as Chidyausiku will be waiting for us there. None but ourselves will liberate ourselves - the US, EU and other imperialist countries are no friends of democracy. They are massacring innocent people in Afghanistan, with Somalia and Iraq next. They are the biggest terrorists, who have killed millions in third world countries from Vietnam and Korea to Angola, and supported apartheid in South Africa and Rhodesia and Mugabe in the gukurahundi era. They and their local 'puppets' like Zanu-PF have imposed neo-liberal policies that have brought so much poverty to the workers, students and peasants of this world. But, as events from Seattle, Brussels, South Africa, Genoa, etc show, they are now facing massive resistance in the emerging anti-capitalism/anti-war movement. If we are to ensure that the struggle to remove Zanu-PF dictatorship does not result in its replacement by just another set of 'puppets' of imperialism, as happened under Chiluba in Zambia, we have to start now by combining the struggle against Zanu-PF for political democracy with the struggle for economic emancipation of the working people against Esap, neo-liberalism and imperialism. Jambanja ndizvo! Say ... * no to Zanu-PF's electoral amendments * no to Public Order and Security Bill and The Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Bill * no to Zanu-PF's Labour Bill that prohibits strikes and stayaways * no to privatisation of colleges, universities and new tuition policy. Demand immediate reinstatement of expelled students and a living allowance for all students * no to the Zanu-PF constitution * no to the Zimbabwe Democracy Bill and EU sanctions * no to imperialist war in Afghanistan and Somalia.