Zimbabwe's biggest strike continues

Shops and industries in Zimbabwe's main cities remain closed for a second day of an opposition called strike.

Security is tight ahead of a march into central Harare, planned for Wednesday afternoon.

The BBC's Lewis Machipisa in Harare says that police have fired live ammunition to disperse opposition activists who were throwing stones at cars in the suburb of Glen View.

It was called by the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), with the aim of paralysing the economy and forcing President Robert Mugabe to step down.

MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai has been accused by some party activists of not doing enough to make life difficult for Mr Mugabe since his controversial re-election a year ago.

The government has not yet commented on the strike but the police described it as illegal and a total failure, saying that more than 60 arrests were made after clashes with protesters.

Police spokesman Wayne Bvudzijena said detectives were investigating what he described as "ringleaders who are paying youths to participate in illegal activities."

Government offices and banks are open but many workers are unable to get to work because of the lack of public transport.

Our correspondent says that the police have set up roadblocks on major routes into central Harare and are searching cars.

"People are sick and tired of this regime and this is their message," said MDC spokesman Paul Themba Nyathi.

Inflation is running at more than 200% and many factories have closed down, leading to massive unemployment.

Mr Mugabe blames the problems on sabotage by foreign enemies opposed to his land reform programme.

National strike cripples economy for second day in Zimbabwe [Full text] HARARE, Zimbabwe - A national strike called to protest the increasingly authoritarian Zimbabwean government shut down businesses and disrupted transportation services across the country for a second day Wednesday.

Police reinforcements were deployed in Bulawayo, the second largest city in the country, where shops and banks were closed, state radio reported.

Major supermarkets and many other stores in Bulawayo did not open Wednesday because people did not show up for work, store owners said.

Factory owners in Harare reported fewer workers showing up at their jobs Wednesday.

"Those who have made it say the buses are harder to get today. Some have walked to work," said Amos Chimedza, a furniture factory supervisor in the Southerton industrial district.

He said with about 60 percent absenteeism, many businesses sent workers home and closed their gates.

"We can't operate like this. It's as quiet as a Sunday round here," said Chimedza.

The government has yet to comment on the strike action.

The two-day strike which began Tuesday and a series of demonstrations in outlying townships were called by the main opposition Movement for Democratic Change to protest alleged government repression and acute shortages of food and gasoline.

In clandestinely distributed fliers, the opposition called for peaceful protests carried out with "utmost discipline".

"People must demand change through action if we are to survive in these trying times," the fliers said.

Police said 53 people were arrested in sporadic violence Tuesday in impoverished townships surrounding Harare, the capital.

Two buses and a truck were torched by rioters Tuesday, police said. They fired tear gas in eastern Harare where they said gangs of youths hurled stones at passing cars and attempted to block streets surrounding a bus station.

A van of the state Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corp. was damaged in a stoning attack and a bakery truck was intercepted and looted.

Police spokesman Wayne Bvudzijena said detectives were investigating what he described as "ringleaders who are paying youths to participate in illegal activities."

Army units were deployed in some neighborhoods of Harare and imposed an informal curfew in one district, telling people to keep off the streets.

Despite the violence, there were no immediate reports of widespread injuries. Police said one man received serious head injuries in clashes in western Harare.

The response to the call for "mass action" was the largest since President Robert Mugabe was re-elected last year. The election was denounced by the opposition after international observers said it was swayed by intimidation and rigging.

The opposition hoped the action would paralyze the economy and force Mugabe to step down ahead of new internationally supervised elections, said spokesman, Paul Themba Nyathi

Zimbabwe began to destabilize three years ago when the government launched an often violent campaign to confiscate 95 percent of white-owned farmland as part of its land reform program. [End]

(as-sv-dk-scl)

The problem is simple...

Most Americans naively think that Mugabe is seizing the commercial farmers land, and causing starvation of his population, based on settling old scores with England, and that it is the oppressed black man, getting revenge on the colonialist white man. This is NOT true.

He has taken the land, and given it to his cronies, and no one is planting crops, and all of the people are starving.

Now, to discuss this, is highly controversial, because even though we are an enlightened country, in many respects we refuse to even delve into racial issues in other countries.

Because of our history, many racial issues are never addressed appropriately in America, most people are too cowardly to stand up to the truth. Mugabe is murdering his citizens, because he is evil. Do you think Jesse Jackson will repudiate Mugabe? Now, if Mugabe was a white man... and apartheid was visited upon Zimbabwe, Jackson would be all over the news.

And, we do help Zimbabwe with food, but Mugabe uses it as a tool of oppression, and an political tool. Huge stores of food were given to his party's supporters, during their last presidential election... the starving people of the opposition party, be damned.

We cannot enter into his country, and kill him. You cannot equate Mugabe with Iraq. And, even sadder still, it serves no national interest for us to do so. I am not saying that this tyrannt shouldn't suffer and be removed by assassination, if necessary. It's just that there isn't much we can do, right now.

The other good news is the AIDS package for Africa... don't forget the president's support on that issue. He hasn't forgotten Africa.

I encourage you to read up on Zimbabwe.
www.zimbabwesituation.com
is an excellent news resource, much like FR, but pertains only to Zimbabwe, and only has articles, isn't for posting. You will learn a lot. Write your congressman, and your president. These are good things to do, I do them!

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