Zimbabwe Shattered Lives - the case of Porta Farm The Committee recommends that appropriate measures be taken in order more effectively to guarantee the right to housing and, in particular, to ensure that no forced evictions are carried out without alternative housing being offered, in accordance with the Committee's General Comment No. 4. Concluding observations of the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights: Zimbabwe. 20/05/97. E/C.12/1/Add.12, 20 May 1997 1 Introduction In May 2005 the government of Zimbabwe embarked on Operation Murambatsvina (Restore Order), a programme of mass forced evictions and the demolition of homes and informal businesses. The operation, which was carried out in winter and against a backdrop of severe food shortages, targeted poor urban and peri-urban areas countrywide. In a critical report released on 22 July 2005 the United Nations (UN) estimated that in the space of approximately six weeks some 700,000 people lost their homes, their livelihoods, or both. 1 The communities affected by Operation Murambatsvina were amongst the poorest and most vulnerable in Zimbabwe. In several cases they had been the victims of previous forced evictions carried out by the authorities.2 They were given almost no notice before their homes were demolished and no alternative accommodation was provided. 3 The government stated publicly that the evictees should go back to the rural areas.4 Forced evictions – a term used internationally to describe evictions that are carried out without due process of law – are a gross violation of human rights, particularly the right to adequate housing. Forced evictions almost always involve other human rights violations as well, including violations of the right to health, the right to education, the right to an effective remedy and the right to privacy. Operation Murambatsvina has led to a serious humanitarian crisis. As a direct consequence of the operation hundreds of thousands of people were arbitrarily displaced; they are now living as internally displaced persons (IDPs), scattered across the country, in many cases without access to adequate shelter, food, water or sanitation. Despite compelling evidence of human suffering presented by the UN, churches and non-governmental organisations, the government of Zimbabwe has repeatedly denied the scale of the crisis and obstructed the delivery of humanitarian aid to victims.5 1 Report of the Fact-Finding Mission to Zimbabwe to assess the Scope and Impact of Operation Murambatsvina by the UN Special Envoy on Human Settlement Issues in Zimbabwe, 22 July 2005, page 33. 2 Ibid, pages 26 and 61 (cases of Churu Farm, Porta Farm). 3 Operation Murambatsvina was announced in Harare by the Chairperson of the government-appointed Harare Commission on 19 May 2005. On 26 May the Harare Commission published a notice in The Herald newspaper which gave people in Harare until 20 June 2005 to demolish illegal structures. However, evictions and demolitions were already underway by the time it was published. Harare appears to have been the only area where a notice was published. In most case people were given a few days or in some cases just a few hours notice by police officers before being evicted and having their homes or businesses demolished. 4 The admonition to return to the rural areas was made directly by police to those evicted and reported to human rights organisations by victims. Government officials and police officers were also quoted in the media. For examples see Media Log of the Report of the Fact-Finding Mission to Zimbabwe to assess the Scope and Impact of Operation Murambatsvina by the UN Special Envoy on Human Settlement Issues in Zimbabwe, 22 July 2005, page 90. 5 For further details see: Amnesty International, “Amnesty International's concerns at the 56th session of the Executive Committee of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees”, AI Index: IOR 41/060/2005, 3 October 2005.