Müll zu Müll?

Rachefeldzug gegen Gebiete in denen bei den Wahlen am 31. März gegen die ZANU-PF gestimmt wurde oder "Stadtplanung" zur gewaltsamen Umkehrung der Landflucht der letzten Jahrzehnte - darüber mögen sich Experten streiten. Die Großattacke der Regierung auf die Slums und die Straßenhändler hat jetzt sogar die bei Touristen beliebten Holzschnitzer an den Victoria Falls erreicht. Quer durchs Land werden inzwischen Slums von Bulldozern plattgewalzt und das Ergebnis mit Müll vermischt um einen etwaigen Wiederaufbau zu verhindern. 22.000 Festnahmen teilte die Polizei in dieser Woche mit. Wie viele obdachlos gemacht wurden, wieviele durch Beschlagnahmung an Strassenständen alles verloren haben weiss niemand. Jetzt endlich ruft der Gewerkschaftsbund ZCTU zum dreitägigen Proteststreik - und das Jugendforum des Sozialforums Zimbabwe zum Widerstand (und zur Beteiligung an diesem Streik). Der (englische) "CALL FOR UNITED FRONT RESISTANCE IN ZIMBABWE" des Jugendforums vom 1. Juni 2005

OPERATION POVO YARAMBA! - Lets get free or die trying!

We are just coming out of a very charged meeting of twenty cdes. Everyone is raring to go. People shared experiences of police brutal actions in their communities and the building spirit of resistance, which currently lacks leadership, organization and coordination. Testimonies ranged from reports of women being mercilessly beaten up by the police and thrown into police trucks for resisting arrest and the seizure of their wares to families stranded in the open in this cold winter with their dwellings tortured and demolished, kids dropping out of school as a result of this chaos. People spoke of the informal traders whose lives have been totally shattered and now faced with desperate destitution. Basically a humanitarian crisis has set in, in the affected ghettoes. And an outbreak of disease looms as people are living in the open with no sanitary facilities. In the ghettoes people are speaking of a TSUNAMI, and the chaos and destruction there is comparable to the tsunami that hit Asia last Christmas. People also spoke of the heavy handedness and brutal manner with which the police are dealing with any form of resistance to their actions. The police are using a strategy of storming a place in their hundreds and employing maximum violence and brutality in squashing resistance. Also reported was how Zanu t-shirts have disappeared from all urban centers and how some who were Zanu are openly breaking ranks and joining the people. This includes war veterans who have been affected.

We believe in no uncertain terms that the most immediate and important task of all progressive forces is to forge a united front to resist Mugabe and defend our lives. Isolated response will neither be successful nor help anyone. With that understanding we see it as a matter of paramount importance that we all throw ourselves into massive mobilization for the ZCTU planned stay away of next week Tuesday to Thursday and broaden the action into united front national action of resistance. We have resolved to adopt the already suggested operation 'Povo Yaramba' (the masses have refused) as our rallying call but to ensure that actions are mobilized for and led by a broad front. Mobilization must start right away for next week's actions and we believe that we can only achieve maximum effectiveness if the stay away is indefinite until the time that the Mugabe regime stops attacks on the suffering masses. As such we urge the ZCTU and everyone else not to limit the action to the suggested three days but to plan and engage in a series of indefinite actions until Mugabe stops the ongoing massacre of suffering poor people. We also see it as vital for all progressive forces to mobilize and build towards the WOZA initiated day of national action on the 18th of June and make this a decisive showdown with the Mugabe regime.

We demand an immediate end to the ongoing onslaught on defenseless people and the release of all informal traders who have been arrested who now number more than 20 000. We also demand that the government immediately return all confiscated goods from informal traders and all those whose properties where torched by the police must be fully compensated. We also demand immediate resignation of Chombo and Gideon Gono who must be identified named and shamed as the devil behind this vicious NAZI type, tyrannical, Hitler like attack on the poor people of the townships. By giving his full support to this massacre of innocent people and unleashing state dogs, police and soldiers on defenseless people, we take it that Mugabe has tendered in his resignations and in any case has proved unfit to lead this country. The monster no longer has any shred of legitimacy and must go.

In the mean time we urge communities to organize for self-defense. We are calling for the formation of resistance committees on every street, in every neighborhood. We are also calling for informal traders to organize themselves into collective vigilantes for self-defense and resist the actions of the police by any means necessary. In unity lies our strength and no amount of repression can defeat us. We are in the majority and those who terrorize us are few. Every neighborhood must immediately organize committees for the defense of the community to resist and repel attacks from the police.

To international cdes, the masses of Zimbabwe need your support in whatever way possible. We call for the condemnation of Mugabe's regime in the strongest of terms and picketing of Zimbabwe's embassies and ZANU interests. We also call upon you to pressure your governments to condemn Mugabe's actions.

To all soldiers out there: Secrecy is vital, Speed is crucial and Vision is irreplaceable

Shinga Murombo Shinga! Lets get free or die trying! Povo yaramba

Zimbabwe Social Forum - YOUTH COUNCIL