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Demonstration against the constitutional chicanery
Democratic United Front for a People Driven Constitution
December 10, 2009

Protesters storming the Town House to present a petition to the Harare Mayor Muchadei Masunda

The Democratic United Front for a People Driven Constitution took advantage of the World Human Rights Day and mobilised hundreds to demonstrate against the constitutional chicanery currently characterising the constitutional reform process.

Peoples' Petition to Parliament
To: The Speaker of Parliament, Hon. L. Moyo
cc: The Minister of Finance, Hon. T. Biti
The Mayor of Harare and the Mayor of Chitungwiza
From: Democratic United Front for a People-Driven Constitution [DUF]
Date: 10 December 2009

RE: 10 December - International Human Rights Day: - The People Demand a People - Driven Constitution Now and Reject the Anti-Poor and Anti-Worker Draft 2010 National and Local Budgets

1. The 2009 Human Rights Day on 10 December comes at a critical juncture for workers, peasants, women,
youths, the disabled, the urban and rural working people, and the democratic movements in Zimbabwe.
Despite one year of the GPA, the people are suffering, hungry and starving, pupils failing to write exams,
workers earning slave wages, the youths unemployed, peasants without farming inputs, informal trader s
being arrested and killed for simply trying to earn a living, opposition and civic society activists continue
being terrorized, arrested and tortured and the nation still does not have a democratic pro- poor constitution
written by the people themselves and not politicians and elites.

2. It is against such worsening conditions of poverty and lack of true democracy that we assemble today to
register our concern and anger under the banner of DUF, a coalition of over 130 social movements, trade
unions and organizations of the urban and rural poor and working people, in particular against two
issues :

3. Firstly, the people reject the elitist draft budget proposed by the Minister of Finance which is based on
free-market neoliberal principles that have failed both in this country as ESAP and under the current
global economic crisis. The Minister gave politicians $50 000 a year to waste after the $30 000 already given
for their posh cars, cut corporate taxes from 30% to 25% over and above the removal of the 7% export income retention levy earlier in the year; taxes for the capitalist speculators at the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange have
been cut from 7% to 3.5%, whilst bosses and middle classes' income tax has been reduced from 37% to 35%
and import duty on their luxury cars cut from 40% to 25%. And only peanuts for the poor. There has been no
tax cut for workers, the tax threshold increased by $10 from $150 to $160, which is the figure the Minister is
telling employers to pay workers, when the bread basket is over $450. There is nothing for ARVs, no
subsidies for education at schools, colleges and universities or for public works to employed the unemployed.
The amount for support of rural farmers is an insult. Informal traders are now going to be massively
victimized at the borders. This is clearly a budget against the poor and we demand that Parliament throws
it out. We demand that the natural resources of Zimbabwe like diamonds, the mines, banks and big
businesses be under full public control and be used to fund the needs of the people and not just politicians,
capitalists and the rich. We demand much more taxes on the rich for the people to have food, jobs, farm
inputs, houses, ARV's, education . . .

4. Secondly we demand a immediate end to the harassment of vendors, traders and other informal sector
workers of Harare and Chitungwiza. The right to trade, vend and self-employment is a fundamental human
right. We demand compensation for lives lost and goods seized as indicated fully in the accompanying
petitition.

5. Finally we demand a full people-driven constitution-making process. The national constitutional consultative
process which was supposed to finish by November 2009 has not even kicked off with yet more empty
promises of kicking off next January. There is no consultation of civic society, the trade unions or society at
large. It is clear that the political parties, parliament and government are seeking to fast-track an elitist
anti-poor constitution, modeled on the draconian and elitist Kariba Draft. We demand the immediate
starting of a democratic constitution-making process that is all-inclusive, including the full participation of
civic society and non-imposition of the Kariba Draft. We demand a constitution that includes fully funded
social-economic rights for the poor and majority from the state, big business and the natural resour ces of
Zimbabwe. We demand transitional justice measures for past human rights violations.

We serve notice that should parliament and government refuse to heed the people's demands we and all
democratic and poor people's movement shall mobilize for an all out struggle to defend our rights, our families
our livelihoods and our country for whom so much blood has been shed, including withdrawal from the sham
constitution-making process.

Varombo Tamuka! Abayanga Sesivhukile! We say no to dictatorship, neoliberalism and capitalism!

Mike Sambo (0912908847) and Hillary Jana (0912960867) alliance.constitutional@gmail.com

TODYA MARARA HERE? PETITION

On Earning An Honest Living By Roadside; Streetside; & Gateside Vending and Cross-Border Trading

Presented to His Lordship The Mayor of Harare Cllr M.Masunda and Mayor of Chitungwiza

PREAMBLE:

Trading is our inalienable right for sustainable livelihood.Whilst it is abundantly clear that Zimbabwe has got zero-economy to talk about, thus meaning many adverse socio-economic environment for Corporate business to generate near adequate employment.

Leaving the poor citizen with no choice but to create alternative employment thru trading at micro-level The Council of Harare is increasingly becoming notorius on destroying all means of livelihoods for the poor. In May 2005: Harare had the waste destruction under the guise of Murambatsvina;

Jan-ongoing 2009, the Council is unleashing total destruction to vendors at unprecedented scale. We are still mourning the unnecessary death of a bonafide vendor-Godfrey Tonde.

Therefore we the undersigned DEMAND:

1) Immediate HARASSMENT-STOPPAGE of the TRADERS & VENDORS until an all-stakeholders meeting is convened;

2) The audit of stall-holders at Mupedzanhamo & other suburban open-air markets;

3) The immediate closure of Siya So Home Industry-the section which was affected by Murambatsvina. If it continues operating we demand the mechanism which the Council is using in allocating stalls;

4) The availability of trading/vending space for the poor local citizens, if Chigumba was given the downtown area,why not CONSIDER the poor citizens of this City,

5) To know the LICENSING System as it now seems to be easier to attain a shop-license than a hawkers license;

6) That Harare also learns other best-practises from other Asian cities with huge populations on how they manage the vending-industry;

7) Progressive by-laws; than clinging to colonial and archaic Laws which are basically now being used as tools of oppression and control by the elite;

8) The total care of Tonde's family by the Council as it is responsible for his death; Presented on
this Day 10 December,2009

Signatures:

• Alternative Business Association - Israel Mabhoo 0912-752603
• Zimbabwe Cross-Border Traders Association - 0913-883215
• Harare Street Vendors Coalition - 0733545433
• Harare Homeless Movement - 0912-908876
• Harare Residents' Trust - 0912-112515
• CHIRRA - 0912-284219
• Democratic United Front For a People Driven Constitution - 04-704209

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