Send back Chinese weapons

  1. Posted on Friday 18 April 2008 - 08:57
    Nxumalo
    Image of Nxumalo
    Frank Nxumalo
    By Frank Nxumalo
    South Africa’s giant transport industry union, the South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (Satawu) representing nearly 300 000 transport workers has demanded that the South African government send back a Chinese vessels carrying weapons for the Zimbabwe government which has docked at the southern port of Durban.
    “This vessel must return to China with the arms on board as South Africa cannot be seen to be facilitating the flow of weapons into Zimbabwe at a time where there is a political dispute and a volatile situation between the ZANU-PF and the MDC (Movement for Democratic Change)”, says Randall Howard, the general secretary of Satawu.
    “Our members employed at Durban Container Terminal will not unload this cargo neither will any of our members in the truck driving sector move this cargo by road.”
    Howard said Satawu will campaign for the vessel to be returned to China as this was the only way through which a peaceful solution could be found in Zimbabwe.
    The union demanded that the Zimbabwean Electoral Commission respect the will of the people by immediately releasing the results of that country’s presidential election held on the 29 th March 2008.
    Satawu said it will formally raise the matter with the Congress of South African Trade Unions, its mother body to ensure the return of the weapons vessel to China to ensure that no mlitary force is used against ordinary Zimbabweans.

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