<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;margin-bottom:3.75pt;
line-height:normal"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black">Civic groups to stage
marches on Wednesday</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top:3.75pt;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:
7.5pt;margin-left:0in;line-height:normal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;
font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
color:black">Posted By</span><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:
11.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
color:black"> </span><u><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black">admin</span></u><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black"> </span><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:
"Times New Roman";color:black">On December 2, 2008 @ 5:23 pm In</span><span style="font-size:9.0pt;
mso-bidi-font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:
"Times New Roman";color:black"> </span><u><span style="font-size:9.0pt;
font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
color:black">Other News</span></u><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:
11.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
color:black"> </span><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
line-height:normal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black">By Our Correspondent</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
line-height:normal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black">URL to article:</span><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black"> <b><a href="http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com/?p=8161">http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com/?p=8161</a></b></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:
"Times New Roman";color:black"></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
line-height:normal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black">HARARE - A group of
Zimbabwean civil society groups will Wednesday stage protest marches throughout
the country to protest the deteriorating economic, political and humanitarian
conditions in the country.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
line-height:normal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black">The groups will converge
under the Zimbabwe Social Forum (ZSF) banner to try and organise citizens to
come together in protest to show their displeasure at the manner in which the
country is being governed.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
line-height:normal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black">The protests will be
supported by the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) and National
Constitutional Assembly (NCA) which had already lined up protests demanding a
new people driven constitution and the removal of bank cash limits.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
line-height:normal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black">"It has been resolved
that the only way to resolve the unprecedented economic and political crisis in
Zimbabwe is united direct mass action," reads a statement issued by the ZSF
secretariat in Harare.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
line-height:normal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black">"The hour has now
arrived in Zimbabwe. None but us shall free ourselves. We shall from December 3
gather and march from bank premises in our thousands as AIDS/HIV activists,
traders, students, youths, women, the disabled, workers, residents, artists,
socialists and social, constitutional and economic justice activists,
regardless of whatever the regime throws at us. The hour of freedom is near."</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
line-height:normal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black">The Zimbabwe Social
Forum is made up of over forty organizations and movements from the several
interests such as Labour and Trade Unions; Youth organisations; residents'
associations; gender organisations, informal traders, Human Rights
organisations, faith-based organisations and those representing those affected
by AIDS/HIV as well as the disabled;.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
line-height:normal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black">Apart from the
deteriorating humanitarian conditions which have so far led to a devastating
cholera epidemic which has claimed the lives of 425 people in recent weeks, the
ZSF wants to see the abolishment of foreign currency shops, the declaration of
the cholera epidemic as a national disaster, the provision of free ARV drugs,
the re-opening of hospitals and the payment of living wages to nurses and
doctors.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
line-height:normal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black">They are also demanding
the re-opening of schools and an improvement in the working and living
conditions of school teachers, the provision of affordable quality state
subsidized public transport for all, an end to harassment of informal and cross
border traders and the provision of every citizen with a passport.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
line-height:normal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black">They say they also want
to see the restoration of full, affordable and quality state subsidized social
services such as water, electricity, refuse collection, housing and sewerage
facilities.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
line-height:normal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black">Zimbabwe which was
remarkable for its excellent governance at independence in 1980, boasting of a
vibrant agricultural base, industry and sound educational system has been
reduced to a basket case due to years of destructive populist policies on the
part of President Robert Mugabe's government.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
line-height:normal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black">With an inflation rate
of 231 million percent - believed to be much higher by independent economists -
Zimbabwe's moribund economy is tottering on the brink of collapse. An acute
cash crisis is now threatening to destabilise the country. Members of the
Zimbabwean army have in recent days engaged in mutinous behaviour going on a
rampage while assaulting civilians and breaking into and looting shops in
Harare.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
line-height:normal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black">Zimbabwe is currently in
the throes of a devastating cholera outbreak. Some UN groups say cholera has
the potential to wipe out thousands if not properly dealt with.</span></p>
<div class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-align:center;line-height:normal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:
11.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
color:black">
<hr size="1" width="80%" noshade style="color:black" align="center">
</span></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
line-height:normal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black">Article printed from The
Zimbabwe Times:</span><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
color:black"> <b><a href="http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com">http://www.thezimbabwetimes.com</a></b></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";mso-fareast-font-family:
"Times New Roman""></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>