st1:place>
The government has been accused of violating the International Humanitarian Law (IHL) by taking control of food distribution programmes in rural areas by NGO’s amid the worsening food situation in the country.
According to the Famine Early Warning System Network (FEWSNET), over 1, 4 million rural households in
The National Association of Non-Governmental Associations (NANGO) says the situation has been further worsened by the looming polls next year as Zanu (PF) has already taken control of NGO food procurement, storage and distribution process along political lines thereby infringing the IHL.
“It is clear that we are facing a food crisis where over 3 million are in urgent need of food assistance while a significant number of people are in dire straits,” said Fambayi Ngirande, the NANGO spokesperson in an interview.
“But Zanu (PF) officials are forcibly taking NGO humanitarian food for political expedience and distributing it on political lines and violating the International Humanitarian Law (IHL) as humanitarian work (aid) should be done without any interference.”
Nicholas Goche, the Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare and his deputy Abednico Ncube, could not be reached for comment.
But Ngirande added: “What has happened as a result is that NGO’s have downscaled food aid distribution in politically hot areas as they cannot effectively carry out their work due to a high level of uncertainty.” – CAJ News