The Portfolio Committee on Rural Development and Land Reform has embarked on a countrywide public consultation process on the Restitution of Land Rights Amendment Bill.
This long-awaited process will lead to the second phase of land claims and restitution to allow all people and communities that were dispossessed of their land, as a result of 19th June 1913 Natives’ Land Act, to lodge their claims through the Land Claims Commission. This includes those who missed the deadline of the first lodgement phase, 31 December 1998.
The hearings will be in KwaZulu-Natal on Thursday and Friday (14 and 15 November 2013), and the following week they will move to Limpopo, subsequent to that they will move to Gauteng, North West and other remaining provinces in the beginning of 2014.
The bill amends the Restitution of Land Rights Act (1994) to extend the date for lodging claims for restitution until 31 December 2018. The amendment also provides for restitution claims in terms of land lost due to a wider spectrum of polices including the betterment planning and homeland consolidation polices that also affected whites.
The bill will provide for the criminalisation of lodging fraudulent claims; the simplification of the appointment process for judges to the Land Claims Court and the amendment of provisions aimed at promoting the effective implementation of the act.
The bill was published for public comment in Gazette 36477 on 23 May 2013 and was approved by cabinet for submission to parliament in early September.
Enquiries:
Mr Mtobeli Mxotwa
Tel: 021 461 1684
Cell: 083 578 9023
