Regional labour unions support Zimbabwe blockade

Labour unions in Zambia and Botswana have confirmed their support for a blockade of the borders with Zimbabwe, in protest over allegations of rights abuses in that country. Following the expulsion of a fact-finding mission to Zimbabwe last month, the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) announced a series of protest actions, including a blockade of border posts. On Thursday the secretary-general of Botswana's Federation of Trade Unions, Tebogo Makhale, told IRIN that the federation "would not hesitate" to show solidarity with COSATU. "It is important that we, as a trade union movement, display to the Zimbabwean government and the rest of SADC [Southern African Development Community] that we are concerned about what is happening. Zimbabwean workers have been under great pressure and need our support," Makhale declared. Deputy general secretary of the Zambia Congress of Trade Unions, Alfred Mudenda, said his organisation would support similar action "in principle", but warned that that further consultation was necessary to assess the effect it would have on ordinary Zimbabweans. "It is a good idea and, yes, we will go along with COSATU, but we need to take a careful look at who is likely to be disadvantaged by such action. It really will defeat the purpose if we find that workers are the ones who suffer from such a move," he said. COSATU spokesman Patrick Craven refused to be drawn on the exact date of the proposed blockade, saying the details "were still under discussion". The federation drew criticism from the South African government, which has been pursuing a policy of "quiet diplomacy" with its neighbour. At a meeting of its central executive committee last month, COSATU called for a regional response from labour unions. It is still unclear whether unions in Lesotho, Swaziland and Malawi, which do not share borders with Zimbabwe, have also agreed to give moral support for the blockade.