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MDC
condemns harassment and arrests of civic leaders, journalists
Movement
for Democratic Change (MDC)
December
03, 2008
The police in
Harare today arrested the ZCTU
deputy secretary-general Japhet Moyo, Progressive
Teachers' Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ) secretary-general Raymond
Majongwe, South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) correspondent
John Nyashanu and several members of the ZCTU general council as
security agents violently moved in to quell the labour union's national
protest against the inadequate cash withdrawals from the banks.
The MDC condemns Zanu PF's terror tactics. We believe that the workers'
rights are inviolable and inalienable and any democratic authority
should allow workers to exercise their constitutional rights of
assembly and movement. We believe that the ZCTU's peaceful protest
was justified as the people cannot survive on the $500 000 daily
maximum withdrawal limit.
The cash shortages and high inflation signify the general collapse
of all sectors in the country due to misgovernance, corruption and
patronage. The Global Political Agreement
(GPA) signed between the three major political parties guarantees
the basic freedoms and rights of people to express themselves.
The latest acts of thuggery are a clear indication that there is
no paradigm shift on the part of Zanu PF to act in accordance with
the GPA. Zanu PF remains the undemocratic party of terror and thuggery.
It remains the epicenter of repression of the people's basic rights
and freedoms. It remains the haven and sanatorium of an unstinting
instinct that believes that the solution to all problems lies in
violence and repression. Zanu PF's actions on the ground undermine
their commitment on paper. The practicalities on the ground basically
show that the leopard has not changed its spots.
In the new
Zimbabwe that we envision, never again should a government violently
clamp down on innocent people for expressing themselves. Never again
will a police force be allowed to beat up citizens for demanding
a daily withdrawal limit that will enable them to provide food and
other basic service to their families. Never again should a people
run away from their own police force whose duty is to offer protection
and professional service. That New Zimbabwe is our vision.
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