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Letter to the Security Council
Arnold Tsunga, Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) and Jean du Plessiss, Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions (COHRE)
May 25, 2007

View the Operation Murambatsvina Index of Articles

Re: Mass Evictions in Zimbabwe and Crimes against Humanity

Between May and July 2005, Operation Murambatsvina resulted in 700,000 people being forcibly evicted from homes and businesses in Zimbabwe. A Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General, Mrs. Anna Tibaijuka, conducted a mission to Zimbabwe in July of that year to investigate the matter and found that the majority of the victims were made homeless, many lost their livelihoods, a number of people died while large numbers of children and those living with HIV/AIDS were acutely affected.

The Special Envoy made extensive recommendations but a recent report for UN-HABITAT indicates they have not been implemented, including lack of resettlement and national prosecutions of those responsible have not commenced.

The Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions and Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, independent human rights organizations, commissioned an independent legal opinion on whether the evictions constituted a crime against humanity. The opinion, which was launched on 23 May 2007 in the Hague and is attached to this letter, concludes that:

[T]he available evidence does disclose grounds to believe that a crime against humanity may have been committed under . . . The result is that a prosecution could be commenced before the International Criminal Court subject to a reference being made by the United Nations Security Council..

On the same day, Zimbabwe Watch also released an independent legal report which reached similar conclusions.

We therefore believe it is incumbent upon the Security Council to take action. The magnitude of the crimes against humanity committed during Operation Murambatsvina, demand an adequate and proportionate response and the Security Council must send a message to the victims of Operation Murambatsvina that the crimes committed against them will not go unpunished.

We look forward to hearing from you and Claude Cahn, the Advocacy Director of COHRE's Geneva-based headquarters, will be happy to discuss the matter further with you.

Yours sincerely

Jean du Plessis
Executive Director
COHRE

Arnold Tsunga
Executive Director
ZLHR

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