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           Shipping Stevedoring Port Services Hydrocarbons Diving  Jul-Aug 2008        |
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SA/ITF arms ban gets international recognition29 April 2008By MUA news -
South African dockworkers successful blockade of arms shipment to Zimbabwe has won world acclaim, with MUA National Secretary Paddy Crumlin personally congratulating SATAWU Randall Howard
Members of the South African Transport and Allied Workers' Union refused to discharge the Chinese flag ship AnYue Jiang when it docked in Durban with a load of munitions bound for transhipment to Zimbabwe last week. The action came as reports of violence against those voting against the incumbent dictator Mugabe reached the outside world. "I want to assure you that this action has been widely recognised and praised by MUA members around the country," the National Secretary wrote. "We pass on our solidarity for the actions of the dockworkers in Durban and to the excellent leadership which SATAWU has shown in this matter. Your actions once again demonstrate that determined action by trade unions, with the support of comrades unions across the globe, can have powerful impacts, even on foreign policy." According to press reports the shipment included 3 million rounds of AK-47 ammunition, 1,500 rocket propelled grenades and more than 3,000 mortar rounds and mortar tubes. Faced with co-ordinated action by the International Transport Workers' Federation the ship also failed to dock in Mozambique. The ship was then reported to have docked in Angola where the government denied it permission to unload its cargo. Tradewinds reports Levy Mwanawasa, the president of Zambia and the head of a bloc of 14 southern African nations, called on leaders in the region not to allow the cargo to be delivered. The ship left South African waters on Friday after that country's High Court ruled the weapons could not be transported over South African roads to Zimbabwe. A day earlier Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said the ship would return to China without unloading its cargo. However the ITF reports the Chinese government had again deferred the final decision to Cosco, the ship's owners, who had not yet made a definite announcement that the arms mission was being aborted. Zimbabweans have been told they can expect the result of their presidential election to be revealed this week, a month after voters went to the polls. There are reports a recount of the presidential vote is expected to be completed later today. Morgan Tsvangirai, leader of the Opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC)says President Robert Mugabe's party has failed to secure control of Zimbabwe's Parliament in a partial recount of the March 29 election, results have showed, handing the ruling party its first defeat in 28 years. Tsvangirai said the Mugabe regime has been using the time since the election to intimidate and torture voters ahead of a possible run-off election. Meanwhile MUA National Secretary has asked the Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs, with the support of the President of the Australian Council of Trade Unions, Sharan Burrow, to issue a media release supporting the actions of SATAWU for the role they played in preventing a potential bloodbath in the wake of the election result.
For further information
Public News: You can view MUA's publicly available news in a variety of ways. Please select one of our public news indexes. |
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