South African Property Owners Can Breathe Sigh of Relief

Land Reform Bill Put on Ice

There has been vigorous debate recently concerning the government’s proposed Land Bill aimed at speeding up the land reform program in South Africa. Farmers and citizens alike can breathe a huge sigh of relief at news that the parliamentary committee has shelved the legislation, citing lack of consultation as the reason behind the decision and has said that the Bill will be reintroduced at a later date.

The government has said that it wants to redistribute nearly a third of white-owned farm land by 2014. At the end of Apartheid, almost 90% of South African land was owned by whites, who made up just 10% of the overall population at the time. So far, the land reform program has only succeeded in transferring 4% of this land to blacks.

Critics of the proposed legislation have argued that it would be unconstitutional, as it would prevent people from going to court should their property be taken. In fact, there are those who have argued that the expropriation could extend beyond agricultural property to all types of property, be it intellectual, commercial or personal.

The Land Bill was introduced by the ANC government in April this year and aimed to give the government greater powers to transfer land and property from existing owners. A committee statement said: “The decision [to shelve the bill] was reached after consultation with various stakeholders both within and outside parliament and in the interest of broader consultation and effective public participation”.

The government’s land restitution program is focused on returning land seized by whites after 1913 to the disenfranchised black population. However, earlier this year it was determined that the program had failed in its mandate. Thousands of claims are still being processed across the country for land and property that was taken unlawfully from black owners during the Apartheid era and before.

Farmers and civil society may well be pleased with the government’s decision to put the legislation on hold, but the reality remains that land redistribution continues to be a problem that needs to be addressed in South Africa. The government may have been stalled at this point, but no doubt there will be new legislation to follow.

The information in this article is courtesy of BBC News (“S Africa land reform bill shelved”, 27 August 2008).

Property for sale in South Africa.