Brussels, 13 March 2007: The headquarters of the Zimbabwe Trade Union Congress (ZCTU) were today raided by government security forces, as part of a "concerted effort to try and crush all civic organisations" according to ZCTU President Lovemore Matombo. Central Intelligence Organisation officials and police ransacked the premises at 09.30 this morning, assaulted three ZCTU staff members and detained the organisation’s Financial Administrator Galileo Chirebvu. While it is believed that Chirebvu was later released, campaign materials in support of a 2-day stay-away planned for 3 and 4 April were removed by police.
The ZCTU had been in discussions with the country’s Labour Minister, supported by ministers from other economic portfolios, in an effort to find solutions to the spiraling economic crisis besetting Zimbabwe, with inflation now running at some 1,700%. A preliminary meeting involving government, trade union and employer representatives took place on 12 March to formalise arrangements for a full tripartite meeting tomorrow, however the attack on the trade union offices has shattered prospects for constructive negotiations.
"The ZCTU has consistently shown its desire for dialogue and tripartite discussions to help find a pathway out of Zimbabwe’s catastrophic economic and social situation", said ITUC General Secretary Guy Ryder. "This latest attack by President Mugabe’s security forces shows a determination to try and control the situation by force, rather than to work with civil society to put an end to the suffering of millions upon millions of Zimbabweans", he added.

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