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Farmers warn of Zim-style crisis
28/10/2002 22:23 - (SA)
Sue Thomas
Johannesburg - Farmers have warned that farm killings and legislation are threatening to tip the country's agricultural sector into a crisis similar to that of neighbouring Zimbabwe.
"There is growing concern among white South African farmers as regards their future, mainly as a result of events in Zimbabwe and Namibia, but also as a result of certain actions, or lack of action, in South Arica," leading trade magazine SA Grain said in an editorial in its latest edition.
"If this spirit of anxiety and negativism is not addressed vigorously and effectively, the long-term sustainability of agriculture in South Africa is in danger."
SA Grain accused President Thabo Mbeki of "marching down a road that must end in the destruction of the White South African".
The government has consistently said it will not tolerate Zimbabwe-style land grabs, emphasising that any land reform that takes place under it will be done in a market-friendly manner and within the rule of law.
SA Grain said South African farmers were "already experiencing Zimbabwe-style situations on their farms", citing one farmer who had been unable to evict about 40 000 people who had illegally occupied his land near Johannesburg.
"The question in everyone's mind...is: 'Will we have a Zimbabwe in South Africa? Or...How long will it be before we too are driven from our land?'"
- Reuters
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