Strongly condemning the mass forced evictions, the coalition of organizations urged Nigerian President Obasanjo, as Chair of the AU, to put the crisis in Zimbabwe on the agenda of the upcoming AU Assembly — scheduled to take place in Libya on 4 – 5 July.
The coalition also called on relevant bodies at the UN, including the Secretary-General, to publicly condemn the ongoing mass violations and take effective action to stop them.
“The appointment of a UN Special Envoy to investigate the mass violations taking place in Zimbabwe is welcome,” said a representative of the coalition. “But effective action must also be taken immediately to help those already sleeping on the streets, beside the rubble of their homes — and to ensure that the evictions and demolitions stop immediately.”
“The AU and UN simply cannot ignore such an unprecedented, wide-ranging appeal on behalf of the people of Zimbabwe, particularly from African civil society,” said a coalition representative. “African solidarity should be with the people of Africa — not their repressive leaders.”
Among the human rights and civic groups signing the Joint Appeal are Zimbabwean Lawyers for Human Rights, the Inter Africa Network for Human Rights (AFRONET), Amnesty International, the Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions (COHRE), Habitat International Coalition, the International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute, and the International Crisis Group.
For interview requests, please ring the following local coalition contact numbers:
UN: Tel: +1 212 867 8878 ext 4 or +44 (0)7778472 109
Lagos: Tel: +234 (01) 5550277 / 493560
Johannesburg: Tel: +27 (082) 4112946, +27 (011) 4037746; +27(082) 5487441
Windhoek: Tel: +264 (0)61 223 356
Cairo: Tel: +20 (0)2 347 4360 or +20 (0) 12 347 5203 or +41 (0)79 503 1485
Harare: Tel: +263 (0)11 209 468 or +263 4 708 118
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