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ZINASU salutes the brave workers of Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe National Students Union (ZINASU)
April 29, 2008

The Zimbabwe National Students Union (ZINASU) joins the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) and the rest of the workers worldwide in commemorating International Labour Day on the 1st May.

We note with great concern the challenges being faced by the workers in this country which are a result of the governance and legitimacy crisis.

The commemorations come against a background of a multi-layered and multi-faceted crisis which has condemned Zimbabwe into a failed state. It is poignant to note that 80 percent of the working population is now informally employed due to the Government's inability to offer formal employment. Mugabe's failed fiscal and monetary policies have resulted in the death of our once vibrant and robust industry and economy, aggravating the plight of the workers. The majority of the workers are living far below the poverty datum line as their so-called "take home salaries" are failing to take them home because of the high cost of living bedeviling the nation.

The labor movement has played a critical role in the trajectory Zimbabwe has embarked on since independence. The struggle against the one party state was spearheaded by the labour movement in joint forces with the student's movement. Equally the anti ESAP struggles were fought again by a united front of the labour and students movement. More importantly, Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions played the central role in the formation of the National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) and the vibrant Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), the democratic alternative to the Mugabe dictatorship.

Despite constant wanton and vicious attacks on its leaders the ZCTU has remained resolute, focused and determined in the pursuit of democracy and workers' rights. We urge you to maintain the vigilance and resilience you have exhibited over the years.

ZINASU stands shoulder to shoulder with ZCTU and its leadership in the struggle for the emancipation of the workers and the people of Zimbabwe. It has been a bitter and protracted struggle. Many have lost their lives; many others have been permanently paralyzed at the hands of Mugabe's despotic regime.
Together we will conquer. Victory is on the horizon.

Amandla!
Shinga mushandi Shinga!

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