Tsvangirai 'breaking MDC constitution left, right and centre'

Tsvangirai 'breaking MDC constitution left, right and centre'

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THE head of the women's wing of Zimbabwe's opposition Movement for Democratic Change is launching a bid to stop MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai from closing her organisation, a statement said on Monday.

Lucia Matibenga said the decision to dissolve the Women's Assembly was illegal as Tsvangirai had failed to properly consult its members and she planned to present her case before Zimbabwe's high court on Tuesday.

"The MDC leadership is breaking the constitution left, right and centre," Matibenga, a founder member of the party said.

"My application is an attempt to force the MDC to follow its constitution."

The decision to dissolve the assembly was taken by the MDC leadership earlier this month as part of "a restructuring process" to strengthen the party in the run-up to joint parliamentary and presidential elections early 2008.

The MDC has been riven by divisions in the last couple of years with half of its members of parliament disavowing former union leader Tsvangirai and joining a splinter faction led by one-time academic Arthur Mutambara.

After MDC supporters were assaulted by members of Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe's security forces earlier this year, the MDC pledged to bury their differences but their truce only held for a few months.

Matibenga said the decision to dissolve the women's wing was symptomatic of the contempt the party leadership showed towards its female members.

"The MDC leadership is showing it is allergic to strong women. They want women they can manipulate," Matibenga said.

"The leadership had the audacity to say to me the women's section is not performing, yet they have given us no resources.

"We have no fax machine, only one telephone, no chairs, no desk. I have to travel by public transport to meetings whereas the male leadership all have one, two or even three vehicles each."

Some of the MDC's local and international supporters have launched the 'Friends of Lucia' campaign to raise awareness of what they say is an abuse of power by Tsvangirai.

No one from the MDC leadership was immediately available for comment. - AFP
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