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The despotic regime continue to live up to its dubious title as an outpost of tyranny. 20 arrested students were subjected to barrack gangsterism, wanton assaults from the members of the brutal Zimbabwe Republic Police. However, 16 students were released today while the other 4, thus, the Zimbabwe National Students Union ( ZINASU) Secretary General Beloved Chiweshe, Tust Nhubu, Lawrence Mashungu and Simbarashe Mukusha are still detained at the notorious Hillside Police Station. This brings the number of arrested students in the month of March to 23 following the arbitrary arrest of Tineyi Mukwewa, the Student Executive Council (SEC) president at the University of Zimbabwe (UZ), Trevor Murayi, the Treasurer General in the UZ SEC, and Garikai Tshuma, the Secretary General of the Students Representative Assembly SRA on Thursday, the 1st of March 2007. SRA is a student parliament which oversees the SEC.

The boycotts are spreading to other ZINASU regions. Reports coming from Masvingo, where the union Vice President Gedion Chitanga is spearheading the process revealed that all the Colleges, save for Bondolfi Teachers College were deserted. Few students were seen trickling in and out of the Masvingo State University. In most colleges in Gweru, Harare and Chinhoyi lecturers are still on strike and students also stayed away from college. To further compound the situation, the public transport operators have increased the bus fare today. It now costs around $ 20 000 per day for a student commuting to and from Chitungwiza and University of Zimbabwe . In Gweru students at Midlands State University are forking out $16 000 to and from Mkoba and the main Campus. That is the same situation with other students studying in major cities such as Mutare, Masvingo and Chinhoyi. In Mutare, it is reported low turnouts and the situation was pathetic at Africa University where most students were forced to return home after spending days without running clean tap water.

The ZINASU president, Promise Mkwananzi has however vowed to continue with the class boycotts despite the arrest and victimisation from the state repressive machinery. He urged all the students to remain focused and steadfast in the wake of brutal and heartless campaigns against humanity by the regime.

Student leader missing
United College of Education (UCE) Student Union president, Cosmas Gwature is reported missing and suspected to have been abducted by the state security agents. Cosmas Gwature was arrested alone at the UCE on the same day that others were arrested at Hillside Teachers College. He has been missing since then. Efforts by lawyers and other students collegues to establish his whereabouts have hit a brickwall . ZINASU is gravely concerned that he may be tortured or even killed by the desperate and vicious vampire regime.

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