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Zim farmer pleads for justice
12/12/2007 08:33 - (SA)
Windhoek - A Zimbabwean farmer on Tuesday asked a regional tribunal to help block President Robert Mugabe's government from seizing his family's farm in a case that could draw the country's neighbours into its thorny land redistribution debate.
The Southern African Development Community (SADC) tribunal in the Namibian capital, Windhoek, must rule that it had jurisdiction over the matter if farmer Mike Campbell was to have any hope of saving the farm.
Adrian de Bourbon, Campbell's lawyer, said: "If this application is successful, it will raise the matter to an entirely new level within SADC that will put the Zimbabwean government at odds with the other member countries."
SADC, a regional grouping of 14 African nations that included Zimbabwe, was trying to mediate an end to a political and economic crisis in the southern African nation that threatened to destabilise the region.
Thousands of white-owned farms seized
The bloc had asked President Thabo Mbeki to help broker an agreement between Mugabe's ruling Zanu-PF party and the main opposition party ahead of general elections scheduled for 2008.
Mugabe's government, often accused of human rights abuses, stifling political dissent and running Zimbabwe's economy into the ground, had seized thousands of white-owned farms and redistributed the land to blacks since 2000.
Less than 600 white farmers were still on their land, compared to 4 500 seven years ago. Zimbabwean officials, however, were continuing with the seizures and were opposing Campbell's bid to have his farm exempted from confiscation.
Zimbabwe's government said Campbell had not exhausted legal remedies available to him in Zimbabwe, an argument rejected by his lawyer.
If successful in getting the SADC tribunal to declare jurisdiction, Campbell intended to file an application for urgent interim relief against the seizure of his farm in the same court.
A decision was expected later this week.
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