US embassy cable - 05HARARE788

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 HARARE 000788 
 
SIPDIS 
 
AF FOR DAS T. WOODS 
AF/S FOR B. NEULING 
OVP FOR NULAND 
NSC FOR DNSA ABRAMS, SENIOR AFRICA DIRECTOR C. COURVILLE 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/31/2010 
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, PHUM, ZI, Other Political Parties, MDC, Economic Situation 
SUBJECT: STAY-AWAY PLANNED FOR JUNE 9 AND 10 
 
 
Classified By: Charge d'Affaires, a.i. Eric T. Schultz under Section 1. 
4 b/d 
 
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Summary 
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1. (C) The "Broad Alliance" of civil society and opposition 
groups, including the MDC, is organizing a mass work stoppage 
for June 9 and 10, as a first step toward possible later mass 
protests.  However, the National Constitutional Assembly's 
(NCA) Lovemore Madhuku appears to the stay-away's driving 
force, rather than the MDC.  End Summary. 
 
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First Large-Scale Mass-Action Planned 
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2. (C) Through the Broad Alliance, Madhuku is organizing a 
mass stay-away June 9 and 10, calling for citizens to stay 
home from work those days to protest Operation Restore Order. 
 Madhuku told emboffs that, depending on the response to the 
stay-away, the Broad Alliance would organize follow-on mass 
protests next week.  He said that the organizations under the 
Broad Alliance were trying their best to disseminate 
information about the stay-away, adding that those with 
Internet access would certainly receive the information but 
that he was worried that ordinary industrial workers would 
not get the message. 
 
3. (C) Madhuku said not all in the Broad Alliance were giving 
equal effort to getting the message out, which he attributed 
to a delay in forming a consensus as to the timing of the 
stay-away.  However, Madhuku expressed confidence that it 
would be successful and said the stay-away was just the first 
step, with follow-on street protests planned for next week. 
(N.B. In a positive development, the independent weekly The 
Standard reported the stay-away plans in a front-page article 
June 5, providing much needed publicity for the mass action.) 
 
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MDC Role 
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4.  (C) Gandhi Mudzingwa, MDC Director of Presidential 
Affairs, confirmed that Lovemore Madhuku was the impetus 
behind the stay-away.  He said that the party could not go 
against it and would thus support it but that he, personally, 
and many in the party felt that there should be more 
preparation before any mass action.  That said, although the 
MDC was not planning any particular activity as a party it 
was trying to spread word of the stay-away through the 
party,s structures.  He added that even if the stay-away did 
not fully succeed it could project a message that the 
opposition was still active, and might thereby give people 
hope. 
 
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Comment 
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5. (C) The success of the stay-away may be hard to measure. 
With economic activity at such a low level, even if most 
employed Zimbabweans stay away from work, the impact may not 
be very noticeable.  The opposition hopes to turn downtown 
Harare, as well as other major cities, into ghost towns, but 
Operation Restore Order has already accomplished that to some 
extent.  Moreover, the plan,s passivity fails to tap into 
the anger of the tens of thousands who have lost their homes 
and businesses through the GOZ's recent actions.  That said, 
the opposition had to start somewhere and the stay-away has 
the advantage of avoiding direct confrontation with the 
regime while potentially building momentum.  For its part, 
the MDC,s unwillingness to a leading role in this event will 
likely reinforce the perception of many Zimbabweans that the 
party remains paralyzed by the March parliamentary election 
results and is unable to respond effectively to the 
government. 
SCHULTZ