Financial Gazette (Harare)
Kumbirai Mafunda
27 April 2006
Harare — THE Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) has finally taken delivery of a consignment of badly needed sanitary towels donated by well-wishers after paying $1.7 billion in import duty.
ZCTU secretary-general Wellington Chibebe said the labour body received the 19 tonnes of sanitary towels, which had been stuck in South Africa for over a month, last Saturday and would soon distribute them to the working women of Zimbabwe through its structures.
The delivery of the pads, which is part of the ZCTU's efforts to ease a crisis most Zimbabwean women are facing, came following an appeal by the Women's Advisory Council (WAC) to sympathisers in South Africa.
WAC had realised that sanitary pads were becoming scarce and that, where they could be found, they were being sold at exorbitant prices.
The government last month blocked the entry of the pads, refusing to exempt the ZCTU from paying duty on the consignment.
It said the labour union could not be considered for duty exemption because it was not a welfare organisation.
The labour union then appealed to well-wishers for funds to pay the duty.
With a packet of 10 tampons selling for $770 000 and the cheapest pack of low-quality cotton being priced at $500 000, many Zimbabwean women, a majority of whom are among the country's jobless 80 percent, cannot afford the critical sanitary wear.
"As long as we get some donations, the ZCTU will continue with the campaign. The world is prepared to assist despite frustration by the government," Chibebe said.
The ZCTU alleges that some women are now resorting to using pieces of cloth as sanitary towels, while school children are missing lessons during their menstrual periods.
Women's groups say the high prices of sanitary pads are attributable to the relocation of manufacturers from Zimbabwe to South Africa to escape the current economic crisis.
Apart from the sanitary wear, Zimbabwean authorities have in the past repeatedly refused to allow other donated goods into the country.
In 2005, the government blocked tonnes of food donated by South African churches for victims of a controversial clean-up exercise which left 700 000 families homeless and without means of survival.
Earlier in 2002, the government barred the opposition Movement for Democratic Change from importing grain to feed hungry Zimbabweans, saying only state monopoly GMB could market and buy grain in Zimbabwe.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2006 Financial Gazette. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
