Honourable Chairperson
Honourable Ministers, Deputy-Ministers, MECs and Members
Invited guests
Ladies and gentlemen
Introduction: The vision of the Freedom Charter
We meet here five days before the 56th anniversary of the adoption of the Freedom Charter by the Congress of the People on 26 June 1955. I therefore suggest we take this opportunity to look at what the Freedom Charter had to say about land issues. The relevant section is entitled: The land shall be shared among those who work it!
It includes the following demands:
- Restriction of land ownership on a racial basis shall be ended, and all the land re-divided amongst those who work it, to banish famine and land hunger
- The state shall help the peasants with implements, seed, tractors and dams to save the soil and assist the tillers
- Freedom of movement shall be guaranteed to all who work on the land
- All shall have the right to occupy land wherever they choose
- People shall not be robbed of their cattle, and forced labour and farm prisons shall be abolished.
A brief summary of where we are now in relation to these historic demands:
- Production discipline and food security are now prioritised by the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform.
- A number of the department’s programmes focus on providing concrete support to black farmers – eg seeds, implements, infrastructure, training and support
- In theory racial segregation is outlawed. In reality of course land ownership and social relations in the countryside still reflect the apartheid legacy.
We may have outlawed forced labour and farm prisons, but we still hear of cases where vulnerable farm dwellers have their cattle impounded. Farm evictions continue – often illegally. This is exactly why the Department has drafted the Land Tenure Security Bill to close the loopholes.
Evictions
The FF+ challenged us to present the statistics on farm evictions. I have returned.
1 .One background statistic which should make us all pause: between 1994 and 2003 approximately 940,000 farm dwellers were evicted – only 1% in accordance with the constitution through a court order. (Research by Cousins and Hall). That is why it is vital to tighten the legislation on security of tenure and to provide legal assistance to the 3 million farm dwellers left on white commercial farms.
2. Report of the Legal Service Project initiated by the DRD&LR (November 2010):
- This project was carried out by Cheadle Thompson and Haysom Attorneys under an Advisory Board chaired by Professor Kadar Asmal
- A national legal panel to assist vulnerable farm workers and dwellers was established
- Over 3 years the paneldealt with 1020 cases affecting 20,500 occupiers directly
- 433 of these cases were settled by November 2010 - with an 86% success rate in favour of occupiers
- The vast majority of cases related to evictions, with livestock and burial disputes also featuring
- Cheadle Thompson and Haysom conclude: the 1020 cases dealt with represent only a ‘snapshot of the state of tenure security in South Africa.’ Again the case for a review of policy and legislation regarding tenure is overwhelming.
3. Report of the Mediation and Transformation Practice/DRD&LR Land Rights Management Project (May 2011):
- In a three year period the project dealt with 670 land rights disputes, the majority related to evictions and grazing rights
- Mediators reported massive tensions as they tried to balance the rights of often illiterate occupiers with those of obstinate farmers who often did not understand the ESTA legislation. More positively, of the 599 closed cases, 77% were mediated – suggesting that progress is being made
- The overwhelming majority of disputes were between white land owners and black occupiers
- The MTP found an escalating trend towards illegal evictions and threats of evictions in an attempt to prevent occupiers form reaching long-term occupier status. Again the need for legislation to stop these loopholes is clear.
The land question
We are all aware of cases such as District Six – a symbol of apartheid’s inhumanity and the destruction visited upon vibrant communities in the name of racial supremacy. There are hundreds more such cases throughout South Africa. The point we are making is that the hurt and damage caused by apartheid is still with us – and this national democratic revolution of ours will not be complete until the land question is addressed.
Minister Nkwinti in his budget policy speech shared with us the challenges that face the land restitution programme: the complexities of dealing with competing interests and claims which often require careful research, facilitation and mediation, together with a lack of capacity and resources. With courage and integrity, the Minister has met with thousands of claimants and beneficiaries to hear their experiences and to engage them on how to take the process forward – and, in all humility to apologise for the delays in the process.
From our side, systems are now in place to fast-track claims. But the challenge of inadequate resources remains. I am particularly concerned at the implications of recent court decisions which call for compensation for old order mineral and land rights. There appears to be a tension at the heart of our constitution: whilst it recognises and seeks to promote the rights of the dispossessed, it simultaneously effectively entrenches the rights of vested and landed interests.
Assessing where we are now
Many of the farms transferred to black ownership failed. This should not have come as a surprise. Apartheid did two things: it dumped millions of black people in the countryside – those superfluous to the labour needs of the urban economy; but simultaneously it denied them any meaningful access to productive agricultural activity. Even basic subsistence agriculture declined. So when we gave people land after 1994 – without providing adequate follow-up training, credit and other support – we were setting people up for failure.
Going forward, all restitution and land reform projects are now accompanied by a viable business plan which includes training, mentorship, partnerships and other forms of support. All of this is guided by the three principles of land reform enunciated by Minister Nkwinti:
- De-racialisation of the rural economy for shared and sustainable growth
- Democratic and equitable land allocation and use across gender, race and class
- Strict production discipline for guaranteed national food security
As government, then our task is two-fold: to restore the land to the people – a political and moral imperative; but at the same time to restore people to a practical knowledge of the land – an economic and developmental necessity.
This reflects a crucial shift from the approach of handing out land willy-nilly with the inherent danger of failure - to a productive model of development which stresses empowering and skilling people to create their own employment opportunities – with the necessary support from government, of course.
In general the process of land claims is long and tedious, as is the process of post-settlement grants and support.
Unfortunately we also have to acknowledge that the land restitution process has suffered from corruption to the point where the Minister has invited the Special Investigations Unit in to investigate widespread allegations of wrong-doing. We want to send a clear message: that if you steal from the poor, the law will catch up with you.
But despite all the challenges of this complex process of restitution and land reform, stakeholder consultations over the last six months have all concluded with the call to proceed with renewed vigour and indeed to reopen the process of land claims to those – who through no fault of their own – missed out on the earlier process. The Minister has said that he will convey these sentiments to Cabinet for a decision.
But it requires from us clear focus on just how we intend to implement. This requires greatly enhanced capacity on the side of the Department, as well as a thorough-going debate on just how restitution and land reform would be financed given the high costs of the current regime of willing seller-willing buyer. Unless we address these issues in a calm and disciplined manner now, we will reap the whirlwind of rising social dissatisfaction in the future.
Focus on rural development
The establishment of the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform in 2009 to replace the old Land Affairs reflected government’s prioritisation of rural development. So we are a new Department established with the full understanding that rural areas remain extremely underdeveloped economically and socially – and with a clear focus on agrarian transformation. By this we mean a rapid and fundamental change in the relations, systems and patterns of ownership and control of land, livestock, cropping and community.
Our vision as a department is to create “vibrant, equitable, sustainable rural communities” - which means – in partnership with other departments and agencies –creating economic opportunities, jobs, reviving agricultural activities and the full range of services - which is the right of every citizen.
A crucial component of the Comprehensive Rural Development Programme (CRDP) is our National Rural Youth Service Corps (NARYSEC) youth skills development programme. NARYSEC recruits will receive skills training that directly prepare them for the job market – including entrepreneurship and construction-related skills which have been identified as of greatest need in rural areas. To this end, we are working with the FET colleges to provide training.
NARYSEC is a government programme open to all rural youth who meet the age and qualification criteria. The selection process is completely open and transparent.
The role of the state
If, as we believe, the land is central to national liberation and future development, a number of questions must be posed and debated:
- How do we unlock the economic opportunities both within agriculture and the non-farm rural economy for disadvantaged and emerging individuals and communities?
- Who should be the beneficiaries of the land reform?
As a minimum, as part of a broad strategy for rural development, we need to do the following:
- Secure the position of farm workers and farm dwellers against evictions and improve their lives
- Revitalise subsistence agriculture in the former ‘reserves’ (‘tribal homelands’)
- Rapidly promote black commercial agriculture; whilst mindful that white commercial agriculture will continue to play a crucial role in ensuring food security.
Clearly the role of the state is crucial here – for which we need not apologise. If we look to history the South African state has always played a central role in structuring property, race and class relations in the countryside – hitherto to promote white farmers as they competed with their black counter-parts for labour, land, water, grazing rights, other resources and markets. In the past white farmers looked to the state to solve their problems. Herein lie the origins of the Land Bank, the 1913 Land Act, various large-scale irrigation schemes etc. The interests of white farmers also heavily influenced transport planning (to get their produce to market) and tax and pricing policies.
Regulating land ownership by non-residents
Even as we seek to restore the land to the people, as government, we also need to guard against the danger that South African prime land – relatively cheap by international standards – will be snapped up by foreign buyers.
This has negative implications including:
- Inflating land prices
- The alienation of sensitive land with adverse security and environmental implications
- Undesirable land use changes as prime agricultural land is converted into game farms and golf estates. This is already happening in the Western and Eastern Capes.
These issues – together with broader questions of land use and spaial planning will be addressed in the forthcoming Green Papers and subsequent legislation. It is essential that these are fully debated within a context of our goals of sustainable rural development and agrarian and transformation. Vested interests and those in the real estate industry who reject any form of regulation which reduces their profits must not be allowed to prevail in this matter.
Government will continue to encourage foreign investment in land – where this is consistent with national interests. Let me cite the case of Australia where legislation seeks to control foreign purchase of existing real estate, whilst encouraging investment in building new housing, thus benefiting the local building industry.
Concluding remarks
In 2012 the ruling ANC will be celebrating its centenary. Historical accounts indicate that the imminent imposition of the 1913 Land Act that dispossessed the native Africans of their land and livelihoods was the trigger that led to the formation of the South African Native National Congress in 1912.
It is inconceivable that after a century of struggle, and after 17 years of democracy, social relations in the countryside can continue to mirror the values of segregation and apartheid. The broad mission remains to restore land, human dignity and respect to all South Africans.
