Cosatu protests food prices
2008-05-17 14:37
Cape Town - About a hundred members of Cosatu and other organisations picketed the gates of Parliament on Saturday morning to protest food prices and call for freedom in Zimbabwe.
The event was to have been a march throughout the city, starting at Keizersgracht at 10:00.
However, shortly after 11:00 Cosatu Western Cape provincial secretary Tony Ehrenreich announced to the scattering of people gathered there that they would drive to Parliament and picket instead.
"We expected a bigger turnout given the centrality of the issues," he said.
Cosatu had commitments from the African National Congress, the SA Communist Party, the Treatment Action Campaign and other organisations, who were represented at the picket.
"But clearly we haven't been able to bring the masses of the people along with us," he said.
Announcing the march earlier this week, Cosatu had said it would be a significant event "because it will be the first time in years that the Alliance has marched together on the same issues and signifies the kind of unity and common purpose that has emerged from our people after Polokwane".
In a memorandum distributed at the picket, Cosatu and the SACP said they were demanding an end to "super profits" and massive salaries for executives, an immediate reduction in basic food prices and a freeze on future increases.
"We want that a state-owned enterprise or more of those, operating across the value chain of staple food products such as maize meal, bread, milk, some vegetables, etc. be set up within the next two years," the memorandum said.
The memo repeated Cosatu's demands for nationalisation of the mealie-meal, bread and milk value chains.
A memorandum on Zimbabwe called on the Southern African Development Community to deepen its diplomatic efforts to prevent a deterioration of the situation in that country.
The African Union should also intervene immediately, and send a high level delegation to Zimbabwe to halt the current escalation of violence.
"Progressive forces" worldwide should initiate discussions on an arms embargo.
- SAPA