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Lice feast on ZCTU leadership at Harare remand prison
Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition
May 16, 2008

Lovemore Matombo and Wellington Chibebe, the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions president and secretary general respectively have complained about ill-treatment at the Harare Remand Prison were they are held for allegedly inciting public violence on May Day.

They were arrested by state agents last week.

Chibebe and Matombo who were on Thursday remanded in custody after the High Court delayed their bail application ruling to next Monday complained that they were being ill-treated while in custody.

The trade unionists told The Crisis Coalition that lice were feasting on them because of the deteriorating health conditions in the cells.

They also complained that they were having salt solution as relish during meals in the holding cells.

The unionists who appeared tied together in leg irons like common or convicted criminals also complained that the water they were drinking was not clean.

Attempts by The Coalition team to give them treated water was met with ridicule by the prison officers claiming that it was not allowed to give inmates water from outside.

The government of Zimbabwe has been on a warpath against the trade union leadership and its followers for some time on allegations that they were opposition activists receiving foreign sponsorship to topple President Robert Mugabe's regime. However, the unionists deny the allegations and instead accuse the Harare regime of rampant human rights violations against workers and ordinary Zimbabweans.

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