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afrol News, 6 March - At a time of rapidly increasing tension, an observer team from the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) African regional organisation (AFRO) has been sent to Zimbabwe ahead of the presidential elections which are due to take place on 9-10 March. The team, comprising of Andrew Kailembo, ICFTU/AFRO General Secretary, Kele Zidane, ICFTU/AFRO Trade Union Rights Director, Francis Atwoli, Secretary General of Kenyan COTU, Cunningham Ngcukan, General Secretary of South African NACTU, and a representative of the Nigerian NLC, arrived in Zimbabwe today, ICFTU reports. In the wake of the February 16 abduction of Ephraim Tapa (a member of the General Council of the ICFTU-affiliated ZCTU) and his wife by a group of so-called 'war-veterans,' their arrival was amid a general atmosphere of intimidation, and they may still face accreditation difficulties. Following the imposition of sanctions on President Mugabe and members of his ZANU-PF ruling party by the European Union and the United States, and with heightening international concern at the fairness of the election process, the ICFTU observers say they will lend support to efforts by the international community to "verify the fairness of the elections." In a further step, yesterday, the ICFTU sent a letter to Zimbabwean President Mugabe condemning the abduction of local trade unionist Ephraim Tapa and his wife, an action "which is clearly related to the violence surrounding the forthcoming elections." Led by the ICFTU/AFRO, the international trade union movement has been highly critical of the crisis in Zimbabwe. The ICFTU-affiliated South African trade union, COSATU, has been particularly outspoken against the Mugabe regime, especially against his attempts to de-register the ZCTU. COSATU maintains a political alliance to the ANC ruling party of South Africa, which has chosen a so-called "silent diplomacy" towards Mugabe's Zimbabwe, effectively blocking international sanctions. As ICFTU General Secretary Guy Ryder explained, "harassment and violence have been the defining features of the electoral campaign thus far. We have repeatedly called upon Robert Mugabe to stamp out the serious violations of trade union and human rights and to guarantee an unhindered democratic process, but as the recent kidnapping of Ephraim Tapa and his wife demonstrates, he seems intent on taking another course entirely."
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