PROGRESSIVE Teachers’ Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ) secretary-general Raymond Majongwe has threatened to petition President Robert Mugabe over government’s unyielding stance on protest marches after his organisation was yesterday barred from conducting a march to commemorate Global Action Day for the right to strike.
BY OUR CORRESPONDENTS
The planned march, which was supposed to be held in Harare, was in line with an initiative by the International Trade Union Confederation and the Workers’ Group at the International Labour Organisation.
Police blocked the march demanding the PTUZ to produce a clearance letter from the Public Service Commission, provide details of the marchers and registration numbers of vehicles to be used.
“We notified the police seven days prior to the day, but they called us 24 hours before the march notifying us that the march should not go on,” Majongwe said.
He added: “If the President is to be a true chairperson of the African Union, we expect no debate when we want to hand over a petition to government.
“The Day of Action on the right to strike is being commemorated the world over and it’s unfortunate that the government wants to be the bad boy of the world. We were simply seeking to remind the government that workers have the right to strike if their grievances are not addressed.”
He denied claims from some teacher organisations that the PTUZ was being funded by some Western nations to fight the Zanu PF government.
