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Zimbabwe Government & Marange Diamond Zone Residents in Liaison Committee


Sources said 44 families are resisting government efforts to move them from their ancestral lands to make way for diamond mining operations in the Marange field where in the past serious human rights abuses have been alleged

Families facing relocation from the Chiadzwa communal area of Zimbabwe's diamond-rich Marange district have formed a Iiaison committee with the government to examine the many issues facing them, in particular their controversial transfer to a government farm elsewhere in Manicaland province.

Sources said 44 families are resisting government efforts to move them from their ancestral lands to make way for diamond mining operations in the Marange fields. Twelve families have been relocated to Arda Transau Farm.

The remaining families are demanding compensation before agreeing to leave their homes. More than 4,000 families could be displaced by Marange diamond mining by companies in joint ventures with the Harare government.

The Marange diamond field has drawn international attention with human rights organizations alleging serious abuses in the military-controlled zone while others have charged that national resources are being diverted for private gain.

Mutare West Member of Parliament Shuah Mudiwa of the Movement for Democratic Change formation of Prime Tsvangirai told VOA Studio 7 reporter Jonga Kandemiiri that he was not informed about the creation of the liaison committee, explaining that his first information about it came from news reports.

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