By Violet Gonda
4th July 2005

Zimbabweans await with anticipation the outcome of the report to be compiled by a special envoy of UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, Anna Tibaijuka, who has been in the country for a week on an assessment mission. Observers have welcomed reports saying the envoy has extended her stay by five days. She was sent to Zimbabwe to investigate the government's programme of shack demolitions.
Mrs Tibaijuka, who has held meeting with government officials, civic groups, local authorities and members of the public has toured townships and squatter camps affected by the crackdown in Harare, Rusape and Mutare.
She also visited Porta Farm, an informal settlement, shortly after it was razed to the ground by riot police. The aftermath of the destruction left at least 3 people dead on Friday. Witnesses say the envoy was deeply moved by the plight of the residents there.
Lawyers for Human Rights said the envoy has travelled far and wide in terms of assessment of the situation and she has a technical team that has taken a thorough look at what is happening.
Mrs. Tibaijuka is due to travel to Bulawayo andVictoria Falls. The UN said in a statement, "The aim is to listen to as many people as possible with a view to understanding the situation without endorsing or discrediting their point of view."
International pressure is mounting and even the African Union has joined in the investigations. Observers say Mugabe and ZANU PF may have put themselves in a tight corner with no escape.
Last week, the United States and European nations raised Zimbabwe's housing demolitions in the UN Security Council for the first time, using a debate on extreme hunger in southern Africa to get the issue on the agenda.
Though the African Union had a slow start, it has now sent a rapporteur on refugees for the African Union's Commission on Human and People's Rights to Zimbabwe. However the mission has hit a snag as the Zimbabwean government has told Commissioner Tom Nyanduga, that he could not pursue his mission until he has government clearance.