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South Africa: A victory for workers' solidarity with the Zimbabwean people
By Patrick Craven, COSATU
April 22, 2008 -- The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) welcomes the statement by a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman that the China Ocean Shipping Company which owns the An Yue Jiang, has decided to recall the ship because Zimbabwe cannot take delivery of the 77 tonnes of weapons and ammunition onboard.
If true, this is an historic victory for the international trade union movement and civil society, and in particular for the South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (SATAWU), whose members refused to unload or transport its deadly cargo.
Protest banner being removed from China's Pretoria embassy.
Today's meeting between the COSATU general secretary, Zwelinzima Vavi and the secretary general of the Movement for Democratic Change, Tendai Biti, confirmed beyond all doubt that the people of Zimbabwe are now facing a massive crisis -- a brutal onslaught from a regime that is determined to cling to power by stealing the elections and imposing its will through violence.
***
[For more background, go to http://links.org.au/node/352 and check the comments at the end of the article.]
***
In COSATU's view the ``government'' of Robert Mugabe is now illegal and illegitimate. Its term of office expired at the end of March when the people voted. Its has refused to release the results of the presidential
election and has illegally organised a recount of votes in 23 constituencies in which the ruling ZANU-PF lost narrowly to the MDC, long after the time limit of 48 hours had expired. It has even been ``recounting'' the presidential votes in those constituencies before they had been announced.
Combined with this blatant vote-rigging, the ruling party has unleashed a systematic campaign of violence against MDC members and supporters, which has already claimed at least ten lives. Thousands have been
displaced from their homes, five hundred injured and hospitalised and these numbers are increasing by the day.
Meanwhile the ``government'' is continuing to rule illegally, with the former ministers restored to their posts,even those who lost their seats in the parliamentary elections. COSATU demands that the governments of Africa refuse to recognise this despot who is desperately hanging on to power, and to stop inviting him to meetings of the Southern African Development Community or the African Union.
COSATU salutes the stand taken by its transport affiliate SATAWU and other unions around the continent, and now calls upon all its affiliates and Southern African trade union partners, to identify, and refuse to handle, any goods destined for Zimbabwe which could be used to assist the illegal government or be used to oppress the people.
The federation will be holding a meeting with civil society, church and NGO groups on Thursday, 24 April, at which plans will be finalised for a huge protest march in South Africa, in solidarity with the people of Zimbabwe, and to demand the removal of the Mugabe dictatorship and the installation of a government elected by a majority on 29 March 2008.
Congress of South African Trade Unions
1-5 Leyds Cnr Biccard Streets
Braamfontein, 2017
P.O. Box 1019
Johannesburg, 2000
SOUTH AFRICA
Tel: +27 11 339-4911/24
Fax: +27 11 339-5080/6940/ 086 603 9667
E-Mail: patrick@cosatu.org.za
[Patrick Craven is COSATU's national spokesperson. Visit http://www.cosatu.org.za]
Comments
Zims arms ship still in African waters
Satawu press statements re Chinese vessel and Nationwide
SATAWU MEDIA RELEASE ON THE CHINESE VESSEL STILL IN AFRICAN WATERS
The South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (Satawu) can confirm that the Au Yue Jiang is still on African shores attempting to off load the controversial lethal weapons destined for Zimbabwe. The latest reports through our global trade union federation, the International Transport workers Federation (ITF) confirm that she docked in the Port of Labito in Angola and off loaded building materials only. The report further confirms that the lethal weapons were not handled by Angolan dockers and therefore not off loaded. The vessel is now on its way to Congo Brazzaville where we believe a further attempt will be made to off load the weapons. The Durban based ITF inspectorate working with Satawu has been monitoring its movements and will leave for Congo Brazzaville on an urgent basis to ensure that the weapons are not off loaded there.
Satawu condemns both the Chinese government and the Chinese ship owners, COSCO for creating a false impression globally that they had recalled the vessel. This so called recall was clearly only intended to deceive and remove the massive groundswell of political pressure that had built up in a very short period of time. Both the Chinese government and COSCO have regrettably demonstrated that "profiteering" remains the over riding consideration over human solidarity and "saving lives". It appears a judgement call has been made by them to wait around until the Zimbabwean electoral crises is over, it will be a long wait in the context of avoiding a return trip and wasted expenditure.
Satawu, Cosatu, ITF and ITUC have already been vindicated with regard to the moral stance it had taken given what is taking place in Zimbabwe now in the build up to the presidential run off.
We again strongly call on all African governments and dock workers to refuse the vessel docking access and to refuse handling the weapons with a view to ensure that the vessel leaves African shores immediately.
We call on the United Nations to bring pressure to bear on the Chinese government to practically demonstrate their commitment to recall and stop using the politics of deception.
"Satawu's interest lies only with the six containers of lethal weapons on board being boycotted and returned to Beijing until the political crises in Zimbabwe is resolved in the context of the possibility of genuine democracy reinstated based on the will of the people there. To this extent local, African and global media must ensure that this important humane story remains in the public discourse until the vessel returns with the weapons on board as the struggle did not end in Durban on 18 April 2008 ", said Randall Howard Satawu General Secretary.
Released by Satawu on 8 May 2008. Please contact the general secretary @ 0825646298 for further comments.
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