Four Zimbabwean trade union officials were arrested for helping organise a strike to protest rocketing gasoline prices in the country, trade union leaders said on Tuesday.
The three-day strike was called to begin on Wednesday by Zimbabwe’s largest trade federation which is closely affiliated with the main opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC).
An opposition-backed national strike last month was met with a massive crackdown against dissent by the Zimbabwean government.
Hundreds were arrested and many were beaten.
Police spokesperson Wayne Bvudzijena said the planned strike would be illegal under Zimbabwe’s stringent security laws.
The four trade union officials were arrested over the last few days in the Western city of Bulawayo.
Chibebe said police were working from a list of federation activists and officials and more arrests were expected.
Strikers are planning to demand the reversal of last week’s tripling of the price of gasoline. The move has more than doubled commuter and bus fares making it difficult, labour leaders say, for workers to reach their jobs.
Zimbabwe is suffering its worst political and economic crisis since independence in 1980 with acute shortages of food, gasoline and medicine and essential imports.
Unemployment in the formal economy is at a record 70% and last month inflation reached a record 228%.
The state utility company recently began a programme of power outages that included shutting down industries for up to six hours a day.
Opposition spokesperson Paul Themba Nyathi said his party supported the labour federation’s call to strike.
”Let’s all brace for the final push in all-inclusive lawful mass action to demand the resolution to this national crisis,” he said. – Sapa-AP