<div dir="ltr"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height:
normal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal"><span style="font-size:14.0pt;
font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"">COSATU
campaigns for democracy in Zimbabwe and Swaziland</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
line-height:normal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-font-weight:bold">@ <a href="http://www.afrol.com/articles/31098">http://www.afrol.com/articles/31098</a>
</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
line-height:normal"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman""><a href="http://www.afrol.com/">afrol
News</a>, 3 October </span></b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"">- In a bid to build on momentum
generated by recent congress of Southern African Trade Unions (COSATU), the
body along with unions and progressive organisations of civil society from
South Africa, Zimbabwe and Swaziland, have agreed to develop a new strategy to
take forward campaign for democracy in Zimbabwe and Swaziland.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
line-height:normal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"">Agreement was made with ultimate
goal of building a southern African people's movement for justice and
democracy.<br>
<br>
Meeting held in Sandton in South Africa early this week agreed among other
things to convene a civil society conference on 'Zimbabwe-post-the-deal and
where to from here?' to be held inside Zimbabwe and involve whole SADC region
to assess situation and develop a common response on strengthening of democracy
and on-going transformation based on fundamental interests of people.<br>
<br>
Meeting agreed to intensify campaign for a 'Week of global action on
Swaziland', including non-handling of goods to Swaziland, to be held on 27
October to 1 November, 2008, in which trade unions should play a leading role.<br>
<br>
A statement issued by COSATU today shows that meeting also agreed to establish
a joint task team from Swazi and SA unions who will be at centre of boycott,
owing to their strategic location in economy.<br>
<br>
Statement shows that meeting agreed to actively participate in Southern African
Social Forum in Swaziland from 16 to 18 October, to strengthen regional
people's initiatives and in solidarity with struggling people of Swaziland,
using forum as a space for raising international profile of Swazi struggle and
as an opportunity to build and strengthen their capacity to wage a sustainable
struggle for democracy and economic justice.<br>
<br>
"It agreed to develop a code of leadership by civil society as a model for
exemplary, ethical and democratic leadership in region, particularly at state
level, to ensure credibility in political and institutional processes of
region, so they can enjoy confidence of people," it says.<br>
<br>
Meeting further agreed to initiate a SADC transformation project to help civil
society to participate in formulation of new-look, vibrant, dynamic and
inclusive SADC structures.<br>
<br>
"This should allow citizens of region full participation, satisfactory
representation and regular and meaningful influence in affairs of this
important regional body. It will also be a way to challenge appointment of
undemocratic leaders at helm of strategic institutions such as SADC Organ Troika,
failure of SADC to enforce compliance amongst member states on existing
agreements and protocols, and double standards, such as seen in monitoring of
elections in Swaziland recently, where the SADC observer mission accepted an
electoral outcome conducted in an environment of banned political parties and
arrests of political activists," it says.<br>
<br>
It adds that this goes together with indecisiveness around Zimbabwe and
Swaziland for such a long time.<br>
<br>
In summary, this project is about renewal of SADC to reflect new challenges of
regional social, political and economic configuration, statement says.<br>
<br>
Meeting further agreed to initiate a loose network of regional activists to
build a regional movement for mass mobilisation, in form of a 'SADC People's
Justice Campaign', to develop structured and sustained solidarity focus and
support for democracy, workers' struggles, landless people's struggles,
economic justice and human rights throughout region.<br>
<br>
This movement according to statement should be properly discussed at coming
Southern African Social Forum in Swaziland, so as to give it meaning and
clarify its purpose in more concrete terms.<br>
<br>
Coming congress of Southern African Trade Union Co-ordination Council in
Botswana next week should be able to strengthen these initiatives, given
centrality of trade union movement in success of this very determined regional
civil society programme, statement concludes.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
line-height:normal"><b><i><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"">By staff writer</span></i></b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";mso-fareast-font-family:
"Times New Roman""></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
line-height:normal"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"">©</span></b><span style="font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"">
afrol News</span></p>
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