Zimbabwe court orders white farmer off land

A white Zimbabwean farmer has been ordered to vacate his farm after the Supreme Court dismissed his application to stop the government from acquiring it, a state daily reported Saturday.

Justice Luke Malaba dismissed the constitutional challenge by Michale Campbell, a former owner of Mount Camel in Chegutu, 100 kilometers (60 miles) southwest of the capital.

In his ruling, Malaba upheld the sections which Campbell claimed infringed his fundmental rights as enshrined in Zimbabwe's Bill of Rights for lack of merit.

"The application is accordingly dismissed," Malaba is quoted as saying by the Herald.

The ruling effectively means Campbell must vacate his farm to allow President Robert Mugabe's government to take it over.

Last month a southern African regional tribunal in Namibia ruled that Campbell could remain on his property pending proceedings from Zimbabwe's Supreme Court.

Campbell is currently facing criminal charges in Chegutu magistrates court for remaining on his farm and could be jailed for up to two years if convicted.

In October last year, a group of 11 remaining white farmers in Zimbabwe filed an appeal seeking a court order to stop their planned evictions.