Teachers turn Nehanda statue into protest square, demand better pay

Members of the Amalgamated Rural Teachers' Union of Zimbabwe (ARTUZ) staged a flash protest at the towering Mbuya Nehanda statue in the capital on Wednesday, demanding better salaries and improved working conditions.

Dozens of picketers waved placards bearing a gamut of demands from "Give us a signal" to "Save our education." One appealed directly to the spirit medium: "Mbuya Nehanda we have come with the grievance of the teachers."

The rural teachers chanted slogans bemoaning that the fruits of freedom that Nehanda and other liberation icons fought for had not yet been achieved.

They also complained that some students in the countryside were dropping out of school because of lack of resources, a situation the union says leaves the rural learners behind their urban counterparts.

After initially ignoring two police officers who implored them to leave, the protesters fled the scene in a seemingly choreographed fashion after the law enforcement officers called for backup.

ARTUZ later tweeted: "We promised and we delivered. We were at Mbuya Nehanda statue drawing inspiration to save our education, a season of sustained protests to save our education is upon us."

Teachers across the country are currently on a go-slow, only going to class two days a week instead of five. They want the government to restore their salaries to US$540 or equivalent in local currency.