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 HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) - Zimbabwe's government defended itself Friday in the face of a U.N. envoy's report denouncing a crackdown that has forced thousands of poor from their homes and jobs.
Anna Tibaijuka, head of the Nairobi based U.N. Habitat agency, wrote that Operation Murambatsvina — Drive Out Trash — is a "disastrous venture" that has left 700,000 people without homes or jobs, violated international law and created a grave humanitarian crisis. The countrywide campaign began with little warning on May 19 and has seen thousands of shantytowns, ramshackle markets and makeshift homes demolished.
Zimbabwean opposition and human rights activists said Friday they were "ecstatic" about Tibaijuka's report, but Foreign Minister Simbarashe Mumbengegwi called it "biased and wrong" at a news conference for state-controlled media.
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