'Land claim laws must change'

2003-06-30 09:31

Marietie Louw

Pretoria - The aim of land reform in South Africa is not continued development, but to change "the mistakes of the past."

This is the view of Tozi Gwanya, chief land claims commissioner, who was addressing an indaba of several interested parties abut the proposed Reform Act about Land Claims.

Gwanya's comment came after a question by Aditi Masheshwari, an economist at the national treasury, about how economically prosperous "upcoming farmers" were on expropriated land.

According to the proposed change in the legislation, the minister of agriculture and land affairs can expropriate land with or without a court order if it was in the interest of land reform. Gwanya says it's in the public interest that the law be changed.

Many farmers see the proposed change as a "call to arms". Both the Transvaal agriculture union and Agri SA have expressed their concern about the validity of land claims.

Willie Lewies, chairperson of the union's committee on proprietary rights, says not one farmer was consulted in more than 3 000 land claims they saw. The union says the proposed amendment is not in public interest, but in the interest of a political party.

Lourie Bosman of Agri SA says land claims are "not checked properly".

Gwanya says a major problem is the prices farmers are asking for agricultural land. The prices usually paid are between R400 and R4 000 per hectare. He says farmers in the Limpopo are asking between R24 000 and R45 000. "If prices remain so high, land reform is impossible."

- Beeld