Commuters were
stranded in Zimbabwe’s two main cities Monday as angry protesters reacting to
the weekend more than doubling of fuel prices, burned tyres and used rocks to
barricade roads and blocked buses from carrying passengers.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa on Saturday announced a more
than 100 percent rise in the price of petrol and diesel in a move to improve
supplies as the country struggles with its worst fuel shortages in a decade.
Residents in Epworth, a poor suburb east of the capital
Harare, on Monday woke up to find boulders blocking roads leading to the city
centre.
"It’s tense since early morning," Nhamo Tembo, a
resident told AFP.
"Roads are blocked with huge stones and there are
angry people preventing commuter buses from carrying passengers. People are
just stranded," he said.
n the city of Bulawayo, demonstrators attacked minibuses
heading to the city centre and used burning tyres and stones to block the main
routes into town while some schools were turning away pupils fearing for their
safety.
"We want Mnangagwa to know our displeasure in his
failure," said an angry Mthandazo Moyo, aged 22.
"Mugabe was evil but he listened," he added,
referring to former autocratic and longtime ruler Robert Mugabe who was ousted
in November 2017.
After years in international isolation, Zimbabwe's economy
has been on a downturn for more than a decade with cash shortages, high
unemployment and recently a scarcity of staples such as bread and cooking oil.
In a televised address late Saturday, Mnangagwa said prices
of petrol and diesel would more than double to tackle a shortfall caused by
increased fuel usage and "rampant" illegal trading.
Petrol prices rose from $1.24 a litre to $3.31 (2.89
euros), with diesel up from $1.36 a litre to $3.11 starting Sunday.
The main labour alliance, the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade
Unions (ZCTU) said the government had shown a clear lack of empathy for the
already overburdened poor.
Opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader
Nelson Chamisa said: "We have a national crisis which is descending into a
humanitarian crisis".
Mnangagwa, who took over from Mugabe and won a disputed
election in July, also announced a package of measures to help state workers
after strikes by doctors and teachers over poor pay.
Doctors in state hospitals went on a 40-day strike
beginning early December demanding salaries be paid in US dollars and improved
work conditions.
Teachers unions called a strike last week for better pay
but their calls went largely unheeded.
Mnangagwa announced "a package of measures to cushion
government workers."
He warned government would come down hard on "elements
bent on taking advantage of the current fuel shortages to cause and sponsor
unrest and instability in the country."
When he took over from Mugabe, Mnangagwa pledged to revive
the moribund economy and end the country's international isolation.
AFP
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