H.Res. 409: Condemning the Government of Zimbabwe's "Operation Murambatsvina" under which homes, businesses, religious structures, and other buildings and facilities were demolished in an effort characterized by the Government of Zimbabwe as an operation to "restore order" to the country.

H.Res. 409: Condemning the Government of Zimbabwe's "Operation Murambatsvina" under which homes, businesses, religious structures, and other buildings and facilities were demolished in an effort characterized by the Government of Zimbabwe as an operation to "restore order" to the country.

109th Congress · introduced 2005-07-28 · International Affairs · Latest: Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.

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Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2005-07-28 · official record
Who proposed it: Rep. Lantos, Tom [D-CA-12] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: 1 recorded vote in our records. Latest: House roll call 649 (2005): On Motion to Suspend the Rules and Agree, as Amended, HRES409 (2005-12-16), Passed. See all
Where it stands now: Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Condemning the Government of Zimbabwe's "Operation Murambatsvina" under which homes, businesses, religious structures, and other buildings and facilities were demolished in an effort characterized by the Government of Zimbabwe as an operation to "restore order" to the country.

Plain summary

Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the government of Zimbabwe: (1) has, through Operation Murambatsvina, created a humanitarian disaster that has compounded the country's humanitarian food and economic crises; (2) has a duty to protect its citizens' economic, social, and political rights; and (3) is subject to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights with respect to forced evictions. Condemns Operation Murambatsvina as a major humanitarian catastrophe caused by the government of Zimbabwe's callousness toward its own people, disregard for the rule of law, and lack of planning to move families and businesses to more desirable locations. Calls on the United Nations, the African Commission for Peoples' and Human Rights, and the African Union to investigate the impact of the demolition of housing structures and premises from which informal businesses operated and to provide the international community with a strategy to address the problems. Calls on the government of Zimbabwe with respect to Operation Murambatsvina to: (1) allow access to international humanitarian organizations; (2) hold accountable those responsible; and (3) implement policies to promote the private sector and create jobs and build housing. Calls on the Secretary of the Treasury to use U.S. influence to continue to advocate for further action at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) should the Government of Zimbabwe continue to fail to meet its obligations to the IMF. Condemns President Mugabe's harassment of U.S. Ambassador to Zimbabwe. Calls upon him to recognize that absent corrective actions on his part his legacy will be defined by his ruinous policies and draconian laws that have brought untold suffering to his people and the near collapse of Zimbabwe as a nation.

Congressional Research Service summary (Passed House amended), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

A Yea supports adopting this resolution.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Condemning the Government of Zimbabwe's "Operation Murambatsvina" under which homes, businesses, religious structures, and other buildings and facilities were demolished in an effort characterized by the Government of Zimbabwe as an operation to "restore order" to the country.

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Passed House amended)

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. Lantos, Tom [D-CA-12] · 43 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Christopher H. Smith (R-NJ), Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. (D-GA), James P. McGovern (D-MA), Adam B. Schiff (D-CA), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Linda T. Sánchez (D-CA), Stephen F. Lynch (D-MA)

Recorded votes

House roll call 649 (2005): On Motion to Suspend the Rules and Agree, as Amended, HRES409 (2005-12-16): Passed

Words on this page, explained (4)

Obligation: A binding promise by a government agency to pay money, for example by signing a contract or awarding a grant. Spending data such as USAspending.gov counts money when it is obligated, which can be before it is actually paid out.
Resolution: A formal statement or decision by a legislative body. Simple resolutions often only express an opinion or set rules for one chamber; they do not become law.
Roll-call vote: A vote where each member's position is recorded by name, so the public can see how every member voted. "Yea" means yes, "Nay" means no, "Present" means the member was there but did not take a side.
Rulemaking: The process agencies use to write regulations that carry out laws passed by Congress or a legislature. Usually an agency publishes a proposed rule, takes public comments, then publishes a final rule.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Passed House amended)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-109hres409.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/109/hres>

Record fed-us-cong109-hres409 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong109 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong109