Harare - Police in Zimbabwe arrested 12
nurses protesting outside state hospitals on Monday demanding to
be paid in US dollars as inflation running at nearly 800% was
eroding their salaries, the country's nurses union said.
An economic crisis under President Emmerson Mnangagwa has
revived memories of the hardships of more than a decade ago when
hyperinflation wiped out savings and pensions and forced the
country to dump its currency in favour of the U.S. dollar.
The demonstrations, including at Zimbabwe's biggest hospital
in the capital Harare, come at a time COVID-19 cases are rising
in the southern African nation, which has recorded 716
infections and eight deaths so far.
Nurses holding placards reading "No US dollar no work" and
"#Nurses can't breath" said they had to protest because they
cannot survive on a monthly salary of 3,000 Zimbabwe dollars
($47).
Health workers carry placards as they protest against economic hardship and poor working conditions during the coronavirus disease outbreak in Harare. Picture: Philimon Bulawayo/Reuters
"The situation is bad and our cause is justified," Pretty
Gudza, a mother of four told Reuters during the protest in
Harare. "I cannot work for nothing, I have to eat and I have to
be mentally healthy so that I can assist the sick."
Nurses also gathered in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe's second biggest
city, to demand better pay, said Enock Dongo, president of the
Zimbabwe Nurses Union.
He said 12 demonstrators had been arrested in Harare, where
a Reuters witness saw police detaining nurses.
Police arrest a health worker during a protest against economic hardship and poor working conditions during the Covid-19) outbreak in Harare. Picture: Philimon Bulawayo/Reuters
Police national spokesman Paul Nyathi said he was unaware of
the arrests and would investigate.
Mnangagwa's government announced a 50% salary hike for state
employees last month and a $75 allowance for three months but
workers said the increase was not reflected in their June pay.
Zimbabwe reintroduced its local currency last year after a
decade of official use of the U.S. dollar but the local currency
rapidly lost value, sending prices rocketing and raising fears
of renewed hyperinflation.
A health worker carries a placard during a protest in Harare. Picture: Philimon Bulawayo/Reuters
Zimbabwe's inflation rate stands at 785%, one of the highest
in the world, while businesses charge in U.S. dollars and use
black market rates to calculate prices in the local currency,
making goods too expensive for many.
Health workers carry placards during a protest in Harare. Picture: Philimon Bulawayo/Reuters
Last month, Zimbabwe suspended trade on the stock exchange
and some mobile phone payments, which account for over 80% of
all transactions, as part of efforts to arrest the local
currency's slide.