write to robert mugabe

Case ZWE 121002.1. ESCRC / 121002.1
ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RIGHTS CONCERN
Follow-up to Case ZWE 121002 ESCRC
The International Secretariat of OMCT requests your URGENT
intervention in the following situation in Zimbabwe.

New Information

The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by the
International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU), a member of
the OMCT network, of the release of Raymond Majongwe, the secretary-
general of the Progressive Teachers' Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ).

According to the information received, Raymond Majongwe has been
arrested two times by the police. His first arrest on October 9 was
followed by a 48-hours in police custody during which he was
reportedly ill-treated. In this respect, it is reported that Mr.
Majongwe appeared before the court with a torn shirt and injuries to
one eye and an arm. After his release on bail on October 11, Mr.
Majongwe has been re-arrested by the police on October 16 2002 and
released on October 21, after the court found that the state had
failed to make its case against him. It is reported that he is
nevertheless due to appear in court again on October 25, after being
charged under the Public Order and Security Act (POSA), an act that
makes it an offence for "any person who, acting in concert with one
or more other persons, forcibly invades the rights of other people".

Brief reminder of the situation

According to the information received, Raymond Majongwe was a leader
of a strike launched by the PTUZ on October 8, and was arrested for
his picket action, allegedly for threatening teachers who were not
involved in the strike at two schools in the capital, Harare. Two
other leaders of the PTUZ, Innocent Moyo and Enock Paradzayi were
allegedly arrested as a result of the strike, and 627 teachers were
dismissed.

It is reported that the teachers went on strike to demand a 100% pay
rise that would compensate their loss of purchasing power following
the inflation of the Zimbabwean currency, the Zimbabwean dollar (Z$),
which is currently running at 135%. In this context, a high school
teacher in Zimbabwe allegedly earn 20'000 Z$ (US$364) a month, which
is much less than other civil servants.

Action Requested

Please write to the Zimbabwean authorities urging them to:

i. guarantee that Raymond Majongwe be given a fair trial before an
impartial and independent civil tribunal;

ii. guarantee an immediate investigation into the circumstances of
these events, identify those responsible, bring them before a
competent and impartial civil tribunal and apply the penal, civil
and/or administrative sanctions provided by law;

iii. call for the immediate reinstatement of the 627 dismissed
teachers;

iv. guarantee the respect for economic, social and cultural rights
and labour rights of the workers, including the right to work, the
right to fair wages guaranteeing a decent living for the workers and
their families, the right to form and join trade unions and the right
to strike.

Addresses

. President Robert Mugabe Fax: 263 4 79 03 16 / 263 4 73 46 44.

. Home Affairs Ministry Mr. Dumiso Dabenjwa Fax: 263 4 72 67 16.

Please also write to the embassies of Zimbabwe in your respective
country

Geneva, October 23rd, 2002

Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this
appeal in your reply
Organisation Mondiale Contre la Torture (OMCT)
World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT)
Organización Mundial Contra la Tortura (OMCT)
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Tel. : 0041 22 809 49 39
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