'Review land policy'

2005-07-27 22:25

Johannesburg - The 'willing-buyer, willing-seller' principle dominated the first day of a land summit on Wednesday, with deputy president Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka saying it slowed down land reform.

She said, to much applause, the principle would have to be revisited as the state was the only buyer, and farmers often asked exorbitant prices for their land.

The government was concerned about high prices and would have to ensure the market did not lead the land-reform process.

Land Affairs Minister Thoko Didiza also raised concerns about the concept, saying there were many sellers, but only one buyer - the state.

She said the state should be allowed to influence how the markets worked, and the concept had to be mediated by the reality of a failure of land markets.

The government wants all land restitution claims settled within three years, and 30% of agricultural land to be delivered by 2014.

By December 2004, only 3% of commercial farm land had been redistributed.

'State must be able to set price'

The 'willing-buyer, willing-seller' concept was agreed to during South Africa's transition to democracy.

African National Congress secretary-general Kgalema Motlanthe also said the principle should be revisited.

"The developmental state must be able to set the price."

He said he spoke as member of a non-governmental organisation, and not the ruling party.

SA Communist Party general secretary Blaze Nzimande congratulated Didiza and Mlambo-Ngcuka, saying the principle was the key reason for the slow pace of land reform.

Most of the opposition political parties and bodies representing white farmers were against scrapping the principle.

AgriSA director Hans van der Merwe said it was reasonable for land owners to expect a market-related price for land with which they had to part, and this was best determined by the willing-buyer, willing-seller principle.

It was for the government to decide how much land should be redistributed, but this had to be underpinned by adequate financial support from the government.

The African Christian Democratic Party said if the government interfered with a free-market economy, the country would turn into another Zimbabwe.

An ANC alliance partner, the New National Party, said land reform had to happen as fast as possible - through the 'willing-buyer, willing-seller' concept.

Lanless People's Movement hold demo

The Freedom Front also warned the government against meddling with the principle.

Members of the Landless People's Movement, who held a small demonstration at the summit, also called for the scrapping of the principle.

Mlambo-Ngcuka said the summit would have to be groundbreaking if the country was going to speed up land reform.

She said the government had created economic space to allow growth and it needed to know from the meeting what trade-offs it would have to make to speed up land reform.

- SAPA