Business as usual
Today is the first day of a stay away called by the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU). I’ve had a bit of a drive around Harare and things seem slower but most businesses have opened – business as usual.
One of the emails I received today includes this information
We have been made to sweep the road with bare hands by the police and soldiers.
So restaurants continue to sell their sandwiches in the suburban shopping centre where I work, while late last night the police were hard at it making sure that Zimbabweans living in high density areas knew better than to stay away.
The workers of Zimbabwe on the front line of both state brutality and economic oppression deserve a clearer demonstration of solidarity from us all, especially business leaders who won’t engage either the courage or the leadership to support the stay away.
Wednesday, April 4th 2007 at 12:42 am
Reading between the lines it seems that you are waiting for the “white” business leaders to lend support to the stay away. Why is that the people of Zimbabwe “Blacks” are always waiting for the “whites” to do the changes, why are the people not willing to stand up together and change things. It is alot easier to vicitimise and torture the handful of White Business owners than the masses. For sure the black business owners are not going to support the stay away as they are either pro – ZANU PF or making more money off the currnet system than would otherwise be the case. To change this goverance there will have to be another stuggle, and just as the Liberation Stuggle it is going to have to be people who make the sacrifices. However I feel this unlikely as the Shona’s are cowards, that is why it took them longer than 99% of Africa to gain independance.