A call by Zimbabwe’s leading civic rights body for a national stayaway in protest against President Robert Mugabe’s rule appeared to go unheeded on Tuesday, reports in Harare suggested.
Bus services and queues in the city’s townships, where most of its labour force lived, were reported to be normal. Residents reported that traffic into the city was unchanged.
There was also no sign of unusual police or military activity, despite a warning by police on radio on Tuesday morning that security forces would be ”out in full force to ensure that those bent on causing disharmony and civil disorder are checked”.
It described the stay-away call as ”illegal mass action.”
Over the last two days, the National Constitutional Assembly, an alliance of church, labour, student and human rights organisations, has been calling for a stayaway to demonstrate public dissent against Mugabe.
The call took place amid unprecedented economic hardship, marked by the unavailability of basic food stuffs, inflation of over 150% and critical fuel shortages that have severely hampered urban commuter transport services. – Sapa-AP