By Own Correspondent

The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) recently threw its full weight behind the need for the urgent release of the Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (ARTUZ) official, Robson Chere.

Almost 200 rights activists were arrested in the lead up to the SADC heads of state summit which took place in Harare recently.

In a statement, the South Africa labour federation  said it fully supported  the call for the immediate end to the arbitrary arrests and torture of trade union and civil society activists in Zimbabwe.

"The Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) indicated  that the General Secretary of the ARTUZ, Robson Chere and three others were ejected from a plane as they were preparing to leave the Robert Mugabe International Airport destined for Bulawayo, to attend a conference.

"Reports further indicate that he was arrested and heavily tortured with gruesome photos of him in a very bad state, circulating on social media. This is completely unacceptable and should never be tolerated.

"COSATU emphasises the point made by our sister federation, ZCTU, for a transparent investigation and to hold those responsible to account, with serious consequences," the federation said.

Finally, COSATU called on SADC heads of States to take seriously the conditions facing workers and the people of the region and commit to building a truly democratic and inclusive SADC based on the aspirations of the people of this region.

"We shall remain seized with the situation and call on the government of Zimbabwe to respond to the calls for action on this matter," COSATU added.