Zimbabwean Government Policies Impede Access to Food, Violate International Human Rights Law, Amnesty International Charges

(AANewswire)(New York) -- Policies and practices of the government of Zimbabwe are impeding access to food and violating Zimbabwe's obligations under international human rights law, Amnesty International charged today as it released a new report on the eve of World Food Day. The 69-page report, Zimbabwe: Power and Hunger, Violations of the Right to Food, examines how the implementation of the controversial "fast track land reform programme" and the operations of the government-controlled Grain Marketing Board (GMB) have resulted in human rights abuses.

"If properly planned and carefully executed, land reform can be a tool for realizing human rights," explained Dr. William F. Schulz, Executive Director of Amnesty International USA. "In Zimbabwe, it is as if the authorities looked at how to do land reform right and then decided to do the exact opposite. The 'fast track land reform programme' has been marred by violence, corruption and a blatant disregard for the rule of law."

Though the government has claimed that the 2004 harvest was a "bumper crop" and insisted it does not need international food aid, there is mounting evidence that people in Zimbabwe continue to suffer from hunger. The cessation of most international food aid distribution in mid-2004 is leaving millions of people dependent on grain distributed via the GMB, despite concerns it may not have sufficient resources to meet needs.

According to the report, the government has used the near-monopoly of the state-controlled GMB on trade in and distribution of maize-the staple food for millions of people in Zimbabwe-to control food supplies and to manipulate food for political purposes, including discriminating against supporters of the political opposition.

In numerous cases only those who can prove membership in the Zimbabwe African National Union Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) have been allowed to access maize distributed by the GMB. During election campaigns voters' access to food has been threatened unless they vote for ZANU-PF.

Farm workers have also been discriminated against by the GMB distribution system and allegedly have been forced to work on the newly resettled farms at low rates of pay. For example "CK," a 70-year old retiree, lives on a large commercial farm acquired for resettlement in 2003. Though CK has been permitted to stay in her home, the plot of land she had been using to cultivate food for herself and her twelve grandchildren-all of whom have been orphaned by AIDS-was allocated to a newly resettled farmer. She does not have land to grow her own food, was refused entry to the government "food for work" program and is not allowed an allocation of maize from the GMB. The new farmers offer CK and the children piecework, but at very low rates of pay.

While donors have sought to prevent manipulation of international food aid by the government and its supporters, they have been unwilling to provide food aid to newly resettled farms in need, reportedly to avoid legitimizing the land reform process.

"By allowing political motives to interfere with the provision of assistance to those in need, donors may also have undermined the efforts of those humanitarian actors who distribute assistance without discrimination, thus further denying the population of Zimbabwe badly needed help," Dr. Schulz said.

Given the GMB's history of discriminatory distribution of grain and the pattern of abuse of access to food at elections times in recent years, the potential for violations of the rights to adequate food and freedom from hunger as the 2005 elections approach is high.

Amnesty International is calling on the Zimbabwean government, as a party to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights and other international treaties under which it is obliged to uphold the right to food, to take immediate steps to fulfill its obligations without discrimination of any kind.

The organization also calls on international donors to ensure that both development and humanitarian aid policies are based on human rights principles, including ensuring non-discrimination.

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To receive a copy of the report Zimbabwe: Power and Hunger, Violations of the Right to Food,
please contact: wgozan@aiusa.org