Zimbabwe: The Blame Game

ZIMBABWE

The Blame Game

Zimbabwean civil servants took to the streets of the capital on Wednesday to demand higher wages from the government as the country continues to see severe hyperinflation, the New York Times reported.

This is the first time that government workers were allowed to strike against their employer, and it comes amid other strikes including an almost two-month long strike by Zimbabwean doctors.

The nation’s inflation rate is about 300 percent, according to recent figures by the International Monetary Fund.

The government has tried to alleviate discontent among civil servants by providing subsidies to help meet the increased living costs, but protesters complain that their earnings continue to devalue in the face of skyrocketing prices.

President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government has tried to attract investors, but its poor human rights record has been criticized internationally, including by the United States, which imposed sanctions on several Zimbabwean government officials last month.

Since his reelection last year, Mnangagwa has crushed several anti-government protests and has recently blamed American and European sanctions for Zimbabwe’s collapsing economy.