Police have arrested members of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) who were en route to carry out nationwide protests against what they call an illegal tax on money transfers. The 2 % tax introduced by the Minister of Finance Mthuli Ncube last week saw prices soaring and basic commodities depleted as consumers went into panic buying mode.
Ncube has since reviewed the tax exempting transactions below $10 and capping the tax at $10 000. However, the labour federation decided to go ahead with the protests.
Several images of police surrounding ZCTU offices and of people dressed in ZCTU regalia detained are being continuously posted on twitter. The trade union federation says its President Peter Mutasa was arrested at his offices in Harare and 19 activists were arrested in Mutare and 13 in Masvingo
On its official twitter account ZCTU accuses President Emmerson Mnangagwa of curtailing freedoms even after he was conferred an honorary doctorate for allowing the same freedoms.
