/ 28 November 2008

Zimbabwe unions call for bank protest

Union leaders in Zimbabwe have called for mass action to force the government to raise the amount people can withdraw from bank accounts, which because of rampant hyperinflation is limited to R3 a day.

Runaway price rises mean that the current limit of Z$500 000 — equivalent to R3 at the widely used black market rate — cannot even buy a quarter loaf of bread, according to the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU). Relatives of sick people, including victims of a growing cholera epidemic, are being forced to queue for days at banks and ATMs to be able to buy basic medication.

”Hundreds, if not thousands, of us have died not because of anything other than the imposed cash withdrawal limits,” Lovemore Matombo, head of the ZCTU, told the Associated Press on Thursday.

The union is urging people to demand more than their Z$500 000 limit at banks on Wednesday to try to force the government’s hand. It is also calling for workers to be paid in US dollars if shops continue to price goods in foreign currency.

Inflation is running at more than 231-million percent. The central bank cut 10 zeros off the Zimbabwe dollar in August and may soon have to do the same again.

A guide in the government mouthpiece Herald newspaper explaining daily stock market activity showed transactions running into decillions — a number followed by 33 zeroes.

Most previous calls for mass action have failed due to harsh laws against public protests, strictly enforced by police. But Matombo said that no laws would be broken this time because ”you don’t need permission to claim your own money”.

In a statement, the ZCTU also highlighted the state of the once-proud education sector.

The United Nations said on Wednesday that school attendance levels had dropped from 90% to less than 20% due to a lack of money among teachers and pupils. – guardian.co.uk