The MDC was formed in 1999 on the back of solid support from students, youths and the labour movement, which Tsvangirai himself led. But with ZANU PF Minister of Higher Education Stan Mudenge recently sworn in, doubts have begun to creep in over whether any meaningful reforms can be pushed through that will benefit students. ZINASU have welcomed the coalition government between ZANU PF and the MDC but stressed that it can only be considered a transitional government.
We emphasize that its role is, in the interim, to ensure that people’s lives are improved, the humanitarian crisis is addressed and that a new people driven democratic constitution is in place, and fresh elections are held thereafter,' a ZINASU statement read. Bere told Newsreel they wanted several reforms that would guarantee academic freedoms, autonomy for educational institutions, repealing of repressive university legislation, accessibility and affordability of education for everyone. He also called on all student leaders suspended or expelled from colleges, to be re-instated immediately.
The national student's body recently petitioned Chinese diplomats in Africa to get Robert Mugabe's daughter Bona deported from Hong Kong where she is studying. 20-year old Bona is an undergraduate student at the University of Hong Kong, but her presence there only came out in the open when her mother, Grace Mugabe, assaulted a photographer outside a plush hotel while visiting her daughter. The total cost of Bona's tuition fees to the Zimbabwean taxpayer is US$9000 per year and this is excluding boarding fees.
Bere told Newsreel the President's daughter had to come back and see for herself the poor educational standards created by her father. A letter from ZINASU to the Chinese Embassy in Harare, detailing their campaign to bring Bona back, was recently published by Hong Kong's Sunday Morning Post newspaper. The University of Hong Kong on Tuesday meanwhile denied reports that Bona was studying at their campus. We do not have a student by the name of Bona Mugabe on our student register, and we do not have any lady student from Zimbabwe who is reading for an undergraduate programme or is at the age of around 20, their statement read. It's thought however Bona is using a different name to protect her identity.
 SWRadio Africa