Land reform concerns raised
2004-10-28 11:50
Hoedspruit - Concerns over land reform were raised repeatedly at the national People and Parks workshop held in Limpopo this week.
Livingstone Maluleke, representative of the Makuleke community bordering the Kruger National Park and also spokesperson for communities represented by the Cape Vidal Memorandum, said there was hardly any progress with land reform.
He proposed a full-time facilitator be appointed to assist each community with this process.
"Communities must attach themselves to NGOs (like the World Conservation Union) to gain information and help," he urged.
He spoke on behalf of the communities of the Richtersveld, Riemvasmaak, Makuleke, Mbila, Nibela, Mnqobokazi, KwaJobe, Banghazi, Sokhulu, Mabibi and Mabaso.
The Cape Vidal Memorandum contains the vision of these South African communities, who were removed or threatened with removal from protected areas.
The three-day workshop, organised by the department of environmental affairs and tourism (Deat), ended on Wednesday with a resolution to adopt a six-point action plan, which includes addressing land reform concerns.
Need for a bilateral meeting
Delegates at the People and Parks workshop acknowledged a pressing need for a bilateral meeting between Deat and the department of land affairs.
The workshop follows the World Parks Congress held in Durban last year and aimed to establish a forum where stakeholders, specifically communities, could raise issues that affect them regarding protected areas, land restitution, and specifically the Durban Accord, Durban Action Plan and Cape Vidal Memorandum.
The Durban Accord is a statement for the future of protected areas, while the Durban Action Plan is a set of 32 specific recommendations.
The Action Plan drawn up at this week's workshop will also address the implementation of the Protected Areas Act, conservation, access and benefit sharing, co-management between various stakeholders, community public private partnerships and strengthening and expanding the protected areas network.
A national People and Parks Committee will monitor the implementation of the plan and facilitate continued dialogue among the role players.
Lacking proper representation
About 38 communities from across the country were represented at the workshop.
Although the national and provincial government agencies were well represented, the lack of proper representation from the local government was a cause for concern.
Some delegates noted that local governments were key to the implementation of the various Integrated Development Plans (IDP) at district and local level.
They said local government input would ensure greater understanding of community needs and the implementation if integrated programmes and projects.
The delegation recognised the importance of communities and implementing agencies as equal partners with shared rights and responsibilities.
The group emphasised that access to natural and cultural resources within parks was a right and not a privilege.