28.03.2002

Repression stepped up

Buoyed by the failure of the general strike called by the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions, Robert Mugabe's Zanu-PF regime has stepped up its offensive against oppositionists. On March 20 five members of the International Socialist Organisation were arrested at the National University of Science and Technology in Bulawayo for supporting the ZCTU three-day stayaway. They had succeeded in winning over students to boycott lectures. The five included John Bomba, ISO national student coordinator and president of the National Union of University Students, and Bernard Mupamba, coordinator of Bulawayo Students Against Privatisation. The ISO offices in Bulawayo were ransacked. The student leaders were severely beaten on their arrest and at the central police station. They were held in appalling conditions and had to rely on comrades to bring them food and water. They were held until March 25, when they were charged under the draconian Pubic Order and Security Act (Posa), section 17, for "disrupting lessons and inciting students". Under Posa all meetings are banned without the explicit permission of the police, which must be obtained four days in advance. Those who fall foul of its provisions can be held for two weeks without charge. The ISO arrests came on the same day that the leader of the Movement for Democratic Change, Morgan Tsvangirai, was hauled before the courts on charges of treason arising from a secretly filmed meeting where he appeared to be discussing the 'elimination' of Mugabe. On March 19, ZCTU leader Wellington Chibhebhe was also picked up by police - the union action itself was declared illegal under Posa. All this is taking place against the backdrop of continuing violence in the townships that has seen attacks on several activists. The response to the general strike was poor - in Harare only around 6,000-7,000 workers answered the call on the first day and numbers dwindled to a few hundred by day three. According to ISO comrades, there were a number of reasons for this. Firstly, the ZCTU failed to mobilise for the stayaway. It was simply announced in the opposition press - read by very few workers. Although the comrades insist that "workers and students are ready to fight", the strike was called as a result of pressure from radical elements, not the masses as a whole. It was widely regarded, in the view of the ISO, as a strike for Tsvangirai and the MDC, not for workers' own interests. For the ZCTU and MDC tops, the strike was viewed merely as a protest - change will come not through mass action, but through the courts, parliament and international - ie, imperialist - pressure. Although many white-owned businesses had undertaken to close, most remained open, fearing Zanu-PF reprisals. Comrade Biko of the ISO told me that this categorically demonstrates that "the middle class are not reliable fighters for democracy" - it is primarily the collective interests of the working masses that are served by struggling for democratic rights. That is why the ISO is combining calls not to recognise the fraudulent election results with "bread and butter" demands, such as opposition to the latest batch of price rises. But the fear of victimisation is very real - and the ZCTU general strike debacle was an object lesson in how not to build workers' own confidence. One thing is becoming clearer by the day: the hopes of workers will be dashed if they rely on MDC leaders or their allies in the ZCTU leadership. They must look to their own self-activity. Peter Manson Financial appeal The ISO urgently needs cash, and the Socialist Alliance has agreed to help raise funds - already over £400 has been forwarded. Send donations to: First Direct Bank, 40 Wakefield Road, Leeds LS98 1FO. Account name: John Page; sort code: 40-47-78; account number: 1118 5489. Email details of deposits to isozim@hotmail.com