He was an eloquent and brave voice for the people against the former monolithic Zanu (PF) dictatorship, but he doesn't seem to realise that changed situations call for changed tactics.
Zanu (PF) no longer has a monopoly on power. It is no longer monolithic, but it is splitting east and west, top to bottom, right, left and centre. Some of its parts are still very dangerous. Some are preparing to fight among themselves and can be left to do that. We all need to be aware what each part of this disintegrating monolith wants and how it will try to achieve its aims.
A general indefinite teachers' strike may not hurt the enemy you should be tackling. It might do more damage to your potential allies. Remember the Chinese proverb that says “The wise man does not hit the fly off his friend's head with an axe”. If we are going into battle, we should be sure to check beforehand whether the appropriate weapon for this battle is an axe or a rapier.
The stiletto was a favourite weapon in Italy when Italy was “only a geographical expression”, a territory filled with city states perpetually at war with each other. To survive in that situation, citizens of each city had to be aware of their present enemy's strengths and weaknesses, but also of who he might draw into war with you on his side as an ally, not to mention many other factors.
They needed to know exactly where to strike and exactly when to do it. The stiletto, a long, thin dagger, was the ideal weapon. The Italians have not forgotten that lesson. During the 1960s and '70s they had several very effective railway strikes, but these were designed not to stop the whole railway system. That would make enemies of all the innocent passengers who wanted to get on with their business. The railway unions found the stiletto they needed to stab their target, the railway bosses, without hurting anybody else.
This was a strike where nobody except the ticket collectors stopped work. Workers going to their offices or factories could still go to work, families going on holiday could still go to the seaside or the mountains, a woman could still go to visit her sick mother – but none of them paid, because they couldn't get tickets and nobody stopped them from travelling without tickets.
The bosses, on the other hand, hand been dealt a vicious blow right where it hurt them most: in their pockets. A strike like that never lasted long, because the bosses were just as eager as the workers to come to an agreement and go back to business as usual.
That may not be a plan our unions could copy, but it could start them thinking whether the axe of a general, indefinite strike is the best weapon to use when your friend has a swarm of angry bees buzzing round his head.
Post published in: Opinions