July 22, 2005 (5 p.m. EDT)

No. 131

CANADA WELCOMES UN REPORT ON ZIMBABWE

Foreign Affairs Minister Pierre Pettigrew welcomed the report issued today by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s Special Envoy for Human Settlement Issues in Zimbabwe, Anna Tibaijuka. The report calls on the Government of Zimbabwe to stop the demolition of homes and markets, pay reparations to those who have lost homes and livelihoods and punish those who carried out the evictions of some 700,000 people.

“Canada shares the concerns of the Secretary-General’s Special Envoy and again urges the Government of Zimbabwe to definitively discontinue the Operation Murambatsvina campaign and to put in place measures to ensure alternative housing and employment,” stated Minister Pettigrew. “Canada will continue to work with Zimbabwean and Canadian civil society organizations and with like-minded nations and multilateral agencies to ensure that humanitarian assistance is provided to those victims of this campaign who are in the greatest need.”

“We are studying the report of the UN Special Envoy to determine how Canada can best assist the UN and work with other partners, including those in Africa, to protect the lives and livelihoods of the people of Zimbabwe,” added the Minister.

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