Namibian PM defends land bids
2004-05-19 20:37
Windhoek - Namibia's Prime Minister Theo-Ben Gurirab on Wednesday defended his government's move to expropriate white farms, saying it was "doing the right thing" to redress an imbalance in land ownership.
"There is no crisis, nor any land grab in Namibia... the government is doing the right thing," said Guribab at a regional meeting on land management in southern Africa.
Namibian land minister Hifikepunye Pohamba last week sent letters to about 10 white farm owners telling them to "make an offer to sell your property to the state and to enter into further negotiations in this regard".
The farmers were given 14 days to respond.
The move raised concerns that Namibia may be heading down the same path as Zimbabwe where President Robert Mugabe has forced thousands of white farm owners to give up their land to blacks.
Could appeal to the courts
The prime minister's reassurances followed those issued by Namibia's ambassador to Germany, who sought to dispel concerns after some of the farmers targeted were German nationals or speakers. Namibia is a former German colony.
Gurirab said the farmers, who were told to sell their land, were not without recourse and had the right to appeal before a court if they were dissatisfied with the compensation offered.
He emphasised, however, that the crux of the issue was that the bulk of suitable land for agriculture in Namibia "is in the hands of white commercial farmers".
"That is the rub," said the prime minister.
The Namibian government has bought 130 farms under its "willing seller, willing buyer" policy and about 700 others have changed hands from white to black owners through special bank loans, said Gurirab.
'Fair and just compensation'
Later this year, a land tax will be introduced to generate more funds to buy additional land, he added.
Leaders of the mainly-white commercial farmers organisation were to release a response on Thursday to the orders sent out to the farm owners to enter into negotiations about selling their property.
Some of the farmers who received the letters were identified as Hilde Renate Wiese, a German-speaking Namibian, B Ruch, a German national who bought his farm in 1974, and a Belgian owner of a farm.
Namibia's ambassador to Germany, Hanno Rumpf, said on Tuesday that his government would ensure the land "seizures" would be legal, with "fair and just compensation" paid to the owners.