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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 HARARE 000752 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
AF/S FOR B. WALCH 
DRL FOR N. WILETT 
ADDIS ABABA FOR USAU 
ADDIS ABABA FOR ACSS 
NSC FOR SENIOR AFRICA DIRECTOR M. GAVIN 
STATE PASS TO USAID FOR L.DOBBINS AND E.LOKEN 
STATE PASS TO DOL FOR S. HALEY 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM EAID ELAB ASEC PGOV PREL ZI
SUBJECT: ZANU-PF YOUTH BEAT TEACHER FOR FAILING TO STRIKE 
 
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SUMMARY 
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¶1. (U) On September 11, ZANU-PF youth beat up an elementary school 
teacher in a rural area in eastern Zimbabwe for not going on strike 
with the historically ZANU-PF-aligned Zimbabwe Teachers' Association 
(ZIMTA) union.  The aggressors had warned the teacher that he should 
stop teaching "until Tsvangirai removes sanctions."  According to 
the rival Progressive Teachers' Union (PTUZ), headmasters in some 
areas have locked their doors in order to prevent teachers from 
reaching their classrooms.  This appears to be an attempt by ZIMTA 
and ZANU-PF to undermine progress the inclusive government has made 
in re-opening schools that were shuttered throughout most of 2008. 
END SUMMARY. 
 
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Teacher beaten by ZANU-PF Youth 
------------------------------- 
 
¶2. (U) On September 11, Duncan Mapasure, a teacher at Mtasa Primary 
School in Mtasa district, Manicaland, was beaten by ZANU-PF youth 
militia members outside his classroom. PTUZ Secretary General 
Raymond Majongwe confirmed the incident.  Mapasure was severely 
assaulted for failing to heed the call by ZIMTA to embark on a 
strike action in which the ZANU-PF backed union is calling for a 
salary of at least USD 540 per month.  Mr Mapasure sustained serious 
head injuries and a broken right hand. 
 
¶3. (U) Mapasure told the press, "I was attending classes on Thursday 
when they came in a white Mahindra and demanded that all teachers 
should stop teaching and stay home until Tsvangirai removes 
sanctions.  All teachers then left as the situation was tense.  The 
following day I went to school to give my pupils a test and it was 
while I was invigilating that test that they came and pulled me 
outside the classroom and took turns beating me up accusing me of 
being a sellout and a puppet of the West." 
 
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Teachers Threatened, Locked Out Elsewhere 
----------------------------------------- 
 
¶4. (U) Majongwe told us that Mapasure is the only teacher who has 
been physically assaulted for not joining the ZIMTA strike, but in 
other areas teachers have been threatened by ZANU-PF youth.  In 
Mashonaland East, teachers have been threatened and ordered to 
leave.  In Murehwa, the orders were given by menacing ZANU-PF youth; 
o the north in Rushinga, a war vet known as Kasoro ordered teachers 
out of school.  Majongwe also reported that some headmasters in 
schools near Bulawayo have locked the school premises in order to 
force teachers to follow the ZIMTA-led strike.  Majongwe, who has a 
good working relationship with Education Minister David Coltart 
(MDC-M), told us he gave Coltart the list of closed schools in 
Bulawayo earlier this week.  Unfortunately, Coltart is hamstrung by 
QBulawayo earlier this week.  Unfortunately, Coltart is hamstrung by 
the longtime civil servants who work for him, including his deputy 
minister, permanent secretary and regional education officers, who 
drag their feet in implementing his policies. 
 
¶5. (SBU) According to Majongwe, these ZANU-PF aligned civil servants 
have influenced ZIMTA to undermine the progress MDC has made in the 
last year -- principally in re-opening schools and hospitals. 
Although ZIMTA has called on teachers to strike for a higher salary, 
PTUZ has only called on teachers to strike for two days per week. 
Majongwe says that one year was already lost in 2008, and neither 
 
HARARE 00000752  002 OF 002 
 
 
teachers nor students stand to gain by losing another year through 
an extended strike. PTUZ is encouraging teachers to ensure students 
are prepared to write their end-of-year national exams, without 
which they cannot advance to the next level of schooling, and 
promises to postpone various industrial actions until the new 2010 
academic year. Some teachers, still anxious for salaries above the 
current standard of USD 150 per month, are angry that PTUZ has not 
called for a strike, but Majongwe and the PTUZ leadership remain 
steadfast in their desire to keep teachers in school to finish the 
current academic year. 
 
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American Union Seeks to Bridge Gap 
---------------------------------- 
 
¶6. (SBU) This weekend representatives of the executive committees of 
PTUZ and ZIMTA will convene in South Africa at a retreat organized 
by the American Federation of Teachers in an effort to bridge the 
growing gap between the two unions.  Although the unions were 
historically rivals, earlier this year they united in their efforts 
to garner higher teacher wages.  In recent months however, the 
tensions have increased dramatically between the two, and Majongwe 
told us he has stopped speaking to the leaders of ZIMTA. 
 
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Donors Helping Revive Education 
------------------------------- 
 
¶7. (U) In recent weeks, the government has made some progress in 
improving public education.  Significantly on Monday, Coltart, 
UNICEF, and Western donors launched a major initiative, the 
Education Transition Fund (ETF), which will bring a significant 
number of school books to primary schools across Zimbabwe while also 
funding school fees for orphans and vulnerable children.  So far 
Western donors have pledged USD 70 million to UNICEF for the Fund. 
This new funding, which is not being routed through the government, 
marks a major international donation that will help the people of 
Zimbabwe in a tangible way visible in rural communities.  (COMMENT: 
While the ETF is an important commitment to education, major 
investments in personnel and infrastructure will be necessary to 
begin to return Zimbabwean education to the high standard it once 
enjoyed.  END COMMENT.) 
 
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COMMENT 
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¶8. (SBU) Education under Minister Coltart has been a bright spot for 
the new government.  Many in ZANU-PF want the inclusive government 
to fail, and undermining education may be an attempt to achieve that 
goal.  END COMMENT. 
 
PETTERSON