Mass action on course – MDC

ect to rural areas. What we have found out is that people in the rural areas are calling for change. The food shortages are getting worse by the day. The crippling fuel shortage is also biting hard, with people having to walk long distances to catch buses in order to travel anywhere,” said party spokesman Nelson Chamisa. As part of this phase to explain the party’s Congress resolutions to the grassroots and to mobilise them ahead of planned mass action against the Mugabe regime, Tsvangirai has arranged to visit every rural constituency in the country before the end of June.
The first phase of the campaign saw him addressing well-attended rallies in the urban areas during April and early May. He also managed to fit in a brief trip to Europe where he met top government leaders and Zimbabweans in the diaspora.
This diplomatic offensive will see him visiting several African states in the next few weeks to explain the MDC’s current position and the direction it is taking to resolve the crisis.
The MDC’s clearly enunciated goal is to force Mugabe to relinquish power to a government of national unity, which will be tasked with writing a new, democratic constitution and ensuring free and fair elections held under international supervision.
“It is now clear that everyone in Zimbabwe, including Zanu (PF) members, are calling for change,” said Chamisa. “The nation is now ready for mass action. The general mood is very encouraging. People have overcome their fear of the oppressors.”
Responding to news reports that the party had got cold feet as it had not yet announced concrete plans for mass action as resolved at the March Congress, Chamisa said the people would know when to rise up.
“Obviously, we are not going to alert the oppressors by making a public announcement in advance of the event,” he said. Chamisa was upbeat about the party’s re-structuring process underway at provincial, district and branch level. “The calibre of people being elected is excellent. It is a mixture of experience and brains,” he said.