A LIBERAL political deader was punched in the face yesterday when tempers were lost during a crippling one day general strike by the powerful Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) that brought major centres to a halt.
Cosatu officials and business leaders said the strike over constitutional demands was widely observed throughout the country, with 40 to 70 per cent of workers stopping work in various areas.
The South African Chamber of Business (Sacob) in Johannesburg said, however, that early reports showed the strike did not receive the same measure of support as those in the past.
The strike had less impact because employers either closed down their businesses for the day, gave workers a day's leave or engaged temporary labour, the Sacob labour affairs manager, Ms Janet Dickman, said.
The 1.3 million member Cosatu called the strike to prevent the inclusion in the country's definitive constitution of a clause allowing employers to lock out workers.
The Cosatu deputy general secretary, Mr Zwelinzima Vavi, described the protest as "an overwhelming success and warned that further industrial action would follow if the lockout clause remained in the constitution. "This will be our bleakest winter yet," he warned. Police said no major incidents were reported yesterday and all marches proceeded smoothly.
In Cape Town however, leaders of the mostly white liberal Democratic Party (DP) bore the brunt of angry workers who, led by the Cosatu president, Mr Sam Shilowa, marched on parliament.
A 3,000 strong crowd jeered the DP leader, Mr Tony Leon, and chanted "Down with Leon" as he climbed on to a Cosatu truck to receive a petition asking the DP to stop supporting the inclusion of a lockout clause.
Mr Leon tried to speak to the workers through a public address system mounted on the truck, but was not allowed to do so. He said later that as he climbed off the truck, "two fellows dressed in communist party T shirts" punched him in the face.
The strike has been condemned by business, industry and opposition parties, while President Nelson Mandela's ruling African National Congress (ANC), an ally of the labour federation, has drawn fire for supporting it.
Some 10,000 people were involved in several marches including some to the Johannesburg Stock Exchange and the Chamber of Mines that completely paralysed central Johannesburg.
The mining industry said 85 to 90 per cent of employees worked normally, despite support for the strike by the National Union of Mine workers. Businesses said they would apply the "no work, no pay" rule and warned the labour action would coat the country dear in terms of lost production and investor confidence.