The Zimbabwe government has seized the farm of late former white minority leader Ian Smith, listing it "for compulsory acquisition for resettlement."
Owen Jarman, manager at the cattle ranch Gwenoro in the central Zimbabwean district of Shurugwi said he was winding up affairs at the farm after being told by government officials in late September that it had been "listed for compulsory acquisition for resettlement."
Smith was prime minister of Rhodesia, as it was formerly known, from 1964 until 1978, defying international condemnation over his refusal to relinquish white rule.
A five-year guerilla war led by black nationalists ended in 1979 with a settlement which allowed Robert Mugabe to win elections. He has remained in power since.
In 2000, Mugabe launched a campaign to seize white-owned land and redistribute it to black farmers. While most white farmers lost almost everything they owned, the main section of Smith's farm had remained untouched.
"We understand that the farm was left alone out of (Mugabe's) respect for Mr Smith," said Jarman. "We have farmed here without interruption since 2000. But there seems to have been a change of heart and they have now decided to take it."
It was being handed to a local technical college, he said. No compensation is to be paid.
Smith bought the farm in 1948, lived on it throughout the pre-independence guerilla war but finally left in 2005 to go to South Africa as he became infirm with age. He died there in 2007 aged 88, the same age as Mugabe is now. His ashes were scattered at Gwenoro.
Jarman has been running the farm for Smith's step children since his death. "It'll take me perhaps the next couple of months to clear out," he said. "They are giving us time. They don't seem to be in a huge hurry to get us off."
The World Bank and other major international financial institutions have accused Mugabe of destroying what was once regarded as "the breadbasket of Africa" with the land seizures.
They say it led to the collapse of the rest of the economy in 2008. The World Food Programme says Zimbabwe is facing one of its worst "hunger periods" this year, with 1.7-million people facing starvation.
Source: Mail & Guardian
Showing posts with label Land Grabs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Land Grabs. Show all posts
Sunday, December 9, 2012
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
Africa: The Landgrabbers - the New Fight Over Who Owns the Earth
In his recent book, Fred Pearce examines the dynamics behind large-scale land acquisitions and their social, environmental and developmental effects.
"Buy land. They are not making it anymore."
This statement uttered more than one hundred years ago by Mark Twain still holds a sad and powerful truth and makes a telling start for Fred Pearce's account in The Landgrabbers: The New Fight Over Who Owns the Earth about the struggle over the Earth's most precious resources: land and water.
In the book, the reader is taken on a whirlwind tour around the globe to witness, through Pearce's eyes, a new kind of colonialism driven not by countries, but by powerful private capitalists.
We encounter figures such as George Soros and Richard Branson; we learn about the effects of the conflicts in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Liberia; we find out why President Robert Mugabe's land seizures in Zimbabwe were not so bad after all for small-scale farmers; and we see how the global financial crisis and the intricate mechanisms of stock market speculations in commodities exacerbate the problem.
Pearce's passion and outrage about the selling off of communal resources shines through the book.
Each chapter is dedicated to a certain country, where protagonists change, yet the storyline stays the same: governments around the globe grant large concessions to wily investors in the hope of advancing their economies but displace and disadvantage large parts of their own population in the process.
As Mike Ogg, an agriculture specialist from Swaziland, told Think Africa Press: "I fundamentally believe that agriculture can lead development in Africa. The quandary is: How do you create a win-win situation where investors and the community benefit?"
Pearce's dystopia
Pearce presents a bleak picture of increasingly prevalent 'land grabs' by corporations for agriculture or resource exploitation as well as by well-meaning environmentalists for so-called "green grabs".
This is, Pearce argues, encircling the last remaining habitats of indigenous peoples and the landless poor, destroying their past and forever altering their future.
Pearce mixes this narrative with historical references to imperialism and colonialism giving the impression of a continuous cycle of exploitation. But his greatest achievement in the book is to give those exploited a voice.
He recounts their stories in numerous interviews, as well as talking to those involved in the land acquisitions and a variety of experts.
Pearce concludes that the bulk of the blame rests with foreign buyers though it is crucial to recognise that most deals are also pursued by respective governments which may give out large land concessions, tax breaks and other incentives to draw foreign capital into their country in the first place. And politicians are not only accomplices, but often also carve out deals in return for money or land for themselves.
This is enabled by an environment in which laws are either non-existent or easily circumvented. As Graziano da Silva, director-general of the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organisation, notes: "It appears to be like the Wild West and we need a sheriff and law in place."
Proposing solutions
Although Pearce does not go so far as to propose possible solutions, there is a range of opinion and ideas as to how to begin to tackle the problem.
Olivier De Schutter, UN special rapporteur on the right to food, has suggested that when national governments are unable or unwilling to devise regulations, the international community should step in to monitor whether the rights of land users are being respected. Oxfam's recent report 'Our Land, Our Lives' highlights the pivotal role of the World Bank as an advisor to governments in reforming their laws.
But this is easier said than done. As a representative from USAID in Dar es Salaam admitted to Think Africa Press, "Land tenure, we know, is at the heart of many problems as it is difficult for poor people to feed themselves with limited and insecure access to land, but we are not touching this subject, because it's too contentious and complicated".
Another way the negative impacts of large-scale land acquisitions could be mitigated is through emerging sustainability standards.
The World Bank and its private sector funding arm, the International Finance Corporation, have strict regulations regarding social and environmental sustainability. These include standards on development-induced displacement and there are growing calls for wider implementation of such regulations.
An example of a private sector-driven initiative is Bonsucro, a certification scheme which aims to ensure companies involved in the production of sugar and ethanol from sugarcane meet environmental, social and business standards.
With consumers believed to be increasingly concerned about the impacts of the goods they buy, the Bonsucro certification is meant to reassure buyers that companies are acting in sustainable ways and taking account of human rights and pollution control.
Moving forwards
Pearce acknowledges these developments in his last chapter where he analyses some of the attempts at solutions though he does not put forward his own. Nevertheless, Pearce's book is a worthwhile read. His writing style is highly engaging and reveals the duplicity of investors and interest groups.
He not only presents complicated and contentious issues such as the correlation of Wall Street speculations and rising food prices in an accessible manner, but also masterfully interweaves stories and issues across countries and continents achieving a well-researched, logical and informative account.
Although Pearce's focus lies on the problems at hand rather than solutions, the book certainly contributes to a growing awareness about the issues and will hopefully inspire others to find suitable ways to move forwards.
Katharina Neureiter holds an MSc in History of International Relations from the London School of Economics specialising in African colonial history and war cultures. She is currently working as a consultant in East Africa and blogs at hearabout.wordpress.com.
Source: All Africa
"Buy land. They are not making it anymore."
This statement uttered more than one hundred years ago by Mark Twain still holds a sad and powerful truth and makes a telling start for Fred Pearce's account in The Landgrabbers: The New Fight Over Who Owns the Earth about the struggle over the Earth's most precious resources: land and water.
In the book, the reader is taken on a whirlwind tour around the globe to witness, through Pearce's eyes, a new kind of colonialism driven not by countries, but by powerful private capitalists.
We encounter figures such as George Soros and Richard Branson; we learn about the effects of the conflicts in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Liberia; we find out why President Robert Mugabe's land seizures in Zimbabwe were not so bad after all for small-scale farmers; and we see how the global financial crisis and the intricate mechanisms of stock market speculations in commodities exacerbate the problem.
Pearce's passion and outrage about the selling off of communal resources shines through the book.
Each chapter is dedicated to a certain country, where protagonists change, yet the storyline stays the same: governments around the globe grant large concessions to wily investors in the hope of advancing their economies but displace and disadvantage large parts of their own population in the process.
As Mike Ogg, an agriculture specialist from Swaziland, told Think Africa Press: "I fundamentally believe that agriculture can lead development in Africa. The quandary is: How do you create a win-win situation where investors and the community benefit?"
Pearce's dystopia
Pearce presents a bleak picture of increasingly prevalent 'land grabs' by corporations for agriculture or resource exploitation as well as by well-meaning environmentalists for so-called "green grabs".
This is, Pearce argues, encircling the last remaining habitats of indigenous peoples and the landless poor, destroying their past and forever altering their future.
Pearce mixes this narrative with historical references to imperialism and colonialism giving the impression of a continuous cycle of exploitation. But his greatest achievement in the book is to give those exploited a voice.
He recounts their stories in numerous interviews, as well as talking to those involved in the land acquisitions and a variety of experts.
Pearce concludes that the bulk of the blame rests with foreign buyers though it is crucial to recognise that most deals are also pursued by respective governments which may give out large land concessions, tax breaks and other incentives to draw foreign capital into their country in the first place. And politicians are not only accomplices, but often also carve out deals in return for money or land for themselves.
This is enabled by an environment in which laws are either non-existent or easily circumvented. As Graziano da Silva, director-general of the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organisation, notes: "It appears to be like the Wild West and we need a sheriff and law in place."
Proposing solutions
Although Pearce does not go so far as to propose possible solutions, there is a range of opinion and ideas as to how to begin to tackle the problem.
Olivier De Schutter, UN special rapporteur on the right to food, has suggested that when national governments are unable or unwilling to devise regulations, the international community should step in to monitor whether the rights of land users are being respected. Oxfam's recent report 'Our Land, Our Lives' highlights the pivotal role of the World Bank as an advisor to governments in reforming their laws.
But this is easier said than done. As a representative from USAID in Dar es Salaam admitted to Think Africa Press, "Land tenure, we know, is at the heart of many problems as it is difficult for poor people to feed themselves with limited and insecure access to land, but we are not touching this subject, because it's too contentious and complicated".
Another way the negative impacts of large-scale land acquisitions could be mitigated is through emerging sustainability standards.
The World Bank and its private sector funding arm, the International Finance Corporation, have strict regulations regarding social and environmental sustainability. These include standards on development-induced displacement and there are growing calls for wider implementation of such regulations.
An example of a private sector-driven initiative is Bonsucro, a certification scheme which aims to ensure companies involved in the production of sugar and ethanol from sugarcane meet environmental, social and business standards.
With consumers believed to be increasingly concerned about the impacts of the goods they buy, the Bonsucro certification is meant to reassure buyers that companies are acting in sustainable ways and taking account of human rights and pollution control.
Moving forwards
Pearce acknowledges these developments in his last chapter where he analyses some of the attempts at solutions though he does not put forward his own. Nevertheless, Pearce's book is a worthwhile read. His writing style is highly engaging and reveals the duplicity of investors and interest groups.
He not only presents complicated and contentious issues such as the correlation of Wall Street speculations and rising food prices in an accessible manner, but also masterfully interweaves stories and issues across countries and continents achieving a well-researched, logical and informative account.
Although Pearce's focus lies on the problems at hand rather than solutions, the book certainly contributes to a growing awareness about the issues and will hopefully inspire others to find suitable ways to move forwards.
Katharina Neureiter holds an MSc in History of International Relations from the London School of Economics specialising in African colonial history and war cultures. She is currently working as a consultant in East Africa and blogs at hearabout.wordpress.com.
Source: All Africa
Thursday, November 29, 2012
Uganda: Human Rights Defenders and Land Ownership
Northern Uganda is rising from the debris of a long conflict involving the rebel Lord's Resistance Movement. Many challenges remain especially on land issues. But human rights defenders are trying to help.
Lira Town, situated some 350km from Kampala to the north, is an area deeply affected by the Lord's Resistance Army conflict that wrecked Uganda from 1986 until the Juba talks (2006-2008), marking the beginning of the end for Joseph Kony and the rebels in Uganda.
It was the start of a peace process that ultimately led to the creation of South Sudan in 2011 and also marked the beginning of a decline of the LRA in northern Uganda, forcing them out of the bases they had been occupying in southern Sudan, last seen in the Eastern Congo or the Central African Republic.
These days there is a lot less urgency for those internally displaced who had fled rural villages to seek sanctuary in towns from the violence. Lira town now thrives with bustle of commercial trade in its compact town centre.
The most talked about issues I encountered focussed on one central problem that's on the rise right across Uganda: land ownership.
In discussion with the Deputy District Police Commander and the District Office of Prosecutions it emerged that land ownership or land disputes were behind nearly all of the criminal cases and violations of human rights in Lira district.
This may not come as a surprise when Uganda's population has risen tenfold to since independence in 1962. The issue has been exacerbated by the discovery of oil reserves in Hoima District and new cases of forced evictions and land grabbing are reported on an almost daily basis.
The throngs of men and women I witnessed seated outside the Lira courts pending hearings on land issues, particularly over ownership by people displaced during conflict, all seek to reclaim land they previously worked on.
The court system is simply unable to cope with the demands on it. The Officer of Prosecutions bemoaned the lack of human resources at his disposal.
The state is bound to provide lawyers to represent the deceased in any court case but its failure to pay lawyers for their work has led to many refusing to take up these positions, bringing the justice process to a grinding halt.
Faced with a flailing system, a number of individuals seek alternative solutions which are not always legal.
Mob justice - where citizens take the law into their own hands - is on the rise in Uganda and it may increase as land disputes keep happening and formal crime and punishment structures fail to address them.
Just as mob justice can never be a workable alternative, removing rights, such as the right to a fair trial in the process, the same could be said of a failing judicial system.
Lobbying for its reform and greater accountability from the authorities is where human rights defenders (HRDs) are concentrating their efforts in looking to overcome this huge challenge.
WHAT IS A HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDER? AND WHY DO THEY MATTER?
A Human Rights Defender (HRD) was formalised as a concept at the international level by the 1998 UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, which guarantees every individual's right to promote and to strive for the protection and realisation of human rights and fundamental freedoms at the national and international levels.
In practice HRDs extend from individuals, such as lawyers and social workers, to organisations that work on issues relating to human rights and even to instruments of the state.
In fact the chief HRDs in Ugandan society, at least in theory, are the police, prison service and judiciary, as they are mandated by the Constitution to protect and promote human rights. However they are often involved in abuses in the Ugandan case.
The key message for governments is that HRDs are legitimate actors, working in the interests of the state to promote and protect fundamental freedoms that all citizens should be entitled to.
The state should recognise this and create an enabling environment for their work, which includes protection where required and facilitation where it is mandated to so
The case studies that follow are based on interviews with men, women and persons with disabilities that I encountered, outlining just some of the challenges and success stories of HRDs in Lira.
CASE STUDY 1: LIVING WITH HIV AND AIDS
Semmy Apili, sharing her experience during a training workshop, said she won a court case and regained her land because of the will her late husband was able to write.
Even on issues such as HIV and AIDS the issue of land could not be avoided. Martin Ongune, Project Coordinator at the Lira Development Network for People Living with HIV Aids (LIDFOPHAN), remarked upon the need for support in 'will writing' in order to support the families of victims:
'There is a need here for legal advisers to assist the poorer members of society in writing wills. It will ensure a degree of security for families who may lose relatives because of HIV and AIDS.
We would also welcome training that would empower members of the community with these skills and enable a more sustainable solution.'
The organisation has, through its own networks, over 8,000 members and it works not only to provide support to victims of HIV and AIDS but also to the families of those victims. Ensuring that livelihoods can be guaranteed is an important part of this support process and while there is a need, the challenge of bringing about that change remains.
CASE STUDY 2: PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES
Uganda suffered both physical and mental trauma; issues that still need to be addressed. In meeting with Joseph Kasungo at the Freidis Rehabilitation and Disability Centre I encountered anger at the lack of support that directly targeted the issue of disability.
He remained frustrated that it continues to be something of a side issue, incorporated into other projects or initiatives but not given the priority that it should be. Social stigma remains attached to disability in Uganda and mental health issues are seen as human weakness rather than health issues that require treatment.
The Centre has the facilities to tackle these issues, with a fully equipped clinic and on-site psychologist, but its major challenge is reintegrating people back into society as equals.
CASE STUDY 3: EMPOWERING WOMEN
Diana Oroma of Women's Peace Initiative (WPI) passionately outlined the challenges facing women in Lira District but suggested that progress was being made.
Her organisation has played a key role in encouraging women to seek medical attention to be treated for victims of sexual abuse. In 2010 over 600 women were treated by a WPI initiative. Fifty of these women had such serious afflictions they required surgery.
There is no shortage of challenges facing the women who do come forward for treatment:
The stigma attached to being sexually violated or raped can often led to exclusion or people being ostracised from the community.
Cultural issues with regards to relationships between men and women are problematic. A lack of education about female sexual health, inclusive of men, means that cultural norms of women being the bearer of children remain strong and this can impact on recovery after treatment.
Women Peace Clubs have been set up by WPI in an effort to change the attitudes of the community. They have been successful in utilising women who have been treated talk to come and tell other women about their positive experiences.
Efforts have also been made to engage men in the education process. Progress, however, is slow as Diana outlined an example of a man coming to a workshop and agreeing that he would show more respect for his wife's sexual health. Yet a week later WPI learned that the woman had been heavily beaten by her husband for bringing shame upon him and their family.
This kind of example shows that changing (and challenging!) attitudes will be a gradual task, but initiatives being run by WPCs are the kind of projects best suited to bring about that change.
Where to from here for human rights defenders: some reflections on the local, national and international dimensions
At the local government level in Lira officials are working with civil society groups (such as the Lira NGO Forum) to enhance and protect human rights. Disputes over land and an ill-equipped judiciary for dealing with complaints being brought to its door, however, are challenges facing all Ugandan HRDs rather than just in Lira.
While some freedoms are being afforded to Ugandans there are still restrictions being placed on journalists in carrying out their work, women are still often regarded as second class citizens and rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Ugandans are almost non-existence.
In recent weeks a number of members of parliament have come out in support of the retrogressive Anti-Homosexuality Bill, touted by the Speaker of Parliament as a "Christmas gift" to Ugandans, which would make engaging in homosexual activities punishable by death. This is incredibly worrying for human rights standards and protections in Uganda.
Parliamentarians are voting on this bill in the coming days before 15th December, despite that Uganda holds a seat on the UN Human Rights Council until the end of 2013.
In her remarks addressing the UN Assembly in New York, the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights, Margaret Sekaggya, emphasized the constraints faced by defenders of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights due to criminalization of same-sex relations in over 75 countries worldwide, as well as recent legislative moves to purportedly curb promotion of homosexuality.
Although the recent decision of Malawi to suspend its anti-gay legislation is a small ray of hope it should be recognised and applauded as a step forward. www.developmenteducation.ie will be following these stories more closely in the months ahead.
Lastly, the creation of a Human Right Committee, made up of members of the Uganda parliament and tasked with the monitoring and evaluation of the government's compliance with human rights standards and protections is a very positive step. In theory, this should support the promotion and protection of those working to protect and stimulate human rights at the community level too.
Overall then, this is a refreshing turn for Ugandans struggling for a better life and looking to hold their politicians and public officials to a higher standard.
Throughout my field visits in Lira and elsewhere I have found the enthusiasm and commitment to such values remains undiminished. There are, of course, many challenges left but changes in attitudes at the community level are being observed.
This is welcome as the region gradually turns it focus away from a past ravaged by conflict to one embracing social and economic growth and development.
- Jamie Hitchen currently lives and works in Kampala, Uganda. Having obtained a Masters in African Politics from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) he now works for the Human Rights Centre Uganda (www.hrcug.org). This article was first published by Irish global education website www.developmentEducation.ie
Source: All Africa
Lira Town, situated some 350km from Kampala to the north, is an area deeply affected by the Lord's Resistance Army conflict that wrecked Uganda from 1986 until the Juba talks (2006-2008), marking the beginning of the end for Joseph Kony and the rebels in Uganda.
It was the start of a peace process that ultimately led to the creation of South Sudan in 2011 and also marked the beginning of a decline of the LRA in northern Uganda, forcing them out of the bases they had been occupying in southern Sudan, last seen in the Eastern Congo or the Central African Republic.
These days there is a lot less urgency for those internally displaced who had fled rural villages to seek sanctuary in towns from the violence. Lira town now thrives with bustle of commercial trade in its compact town centre.
The most talked about issues I encountered focussed on one central problem that's on the rise right across Uganda: land ownership.
In discussion with the Deputy District Police Commander and the District Office of Prosecutions it emerged that land ownership or land disputes were behind nearly all of the criminal cases and violations of human rights in Lira district.
This may not come as a surprise when Uganda's population has risen tenfold to since independence in 1962. The issue has been exacerbated by the discovery of oil reserves in Hoima District and new cases of forced evictions and land grabbing are reported on an almost daily basis.
The throngs of men and women I witnessed seated outside the Lira courts pending hearings on land issues, particularly over ownership by people displaced during conflict, all seek to reclaim land they previously worked on.
The court system is simply unable to cope with the demands on it. The Officer of Prosecutions bemoaned the lack of human resources at his disposal.
The state is bound to provide lawyers to represent the deceased in any court case but its failure to pay lawyers for their work has led to many refusing to take up these positions, bringing the justice process to a grinding halt.
Faced with a flailing system, a number of individuals seek alternative solutions which are not always legal.
Mob justice - where citizens take the law into their own hands - is on the rise in Uganda and it may increase as land disputes keep happening and formal crime and punishment structures fail to address them.
Just as mob justice can never be a workable alternative, removing rights, such as the right to a fair trial in the process, the same could be said of a failing judicial system.
Lobbying for its reform and greater accountability from the authorities is where human rights defenders (HRDs) are concentrating their efforts in looking to overcome this huge challenge.
WHAT IS A HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDER? AND WHY DO THEY MATTER?
A Human Rights Defender (HRD) was formalised as a concept at the international level by the 1998 UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, which guarantees every individual's right to promote and to strive for the protection and realisation of human rights and fundamental freedoms at the national and international levels.
In practice HRDs extend from individuals, such as lawyers and social workers, to organisations that work on issues relating to human rights and even to instruments of the state.
In fact the chief HRDs in Ugandan society, at least in theory, are the police, prison service and judiciary, as they are mandated by the Constitution to protect and promote human rights. However they are often involved in abuses in the Ugandan case.
The key message for governments is that HRDs are legitimate actors, working in the interests of the state to promote and protect fundamental freedoms that all citizens should be entitled to.
The state should recognise this and create an enabling environment for their work, which includes protection where required and facilitation where it is mandated to so
The case studies that follow are based on interviews with men, women and persons with disabilities that I encountered, outlining just some of the challenges and success stories of HRDs in Lira.
CASE STUDY 1: LIVING WITH HIV AND AIDS
Semmy Apili, sharing her experience during a training workshop, said she won a court case and regained her land because of the will her late husband was able to write.
Even on issues such as HIV and AIDS the issue of land could not be avoided. Martin Ongune, Project Coordinator at the Lira Development Network for People Living with HIV Aids (LIDFOPHAN), remarked upon the need for support in 'will writing' in order to support the families of victims:
'There is a need here for legal advisers to assist the poorer members of society in writing wills. It will ensure a degree of security for families who may lose relatives because of HIV and AIDS.
We would also welcome training that would empower members of the community with these skills and enable a more sustainable solution.'
The organisation has, through its own networks, over 8,000 members and it works not only to provide support to victims of HIV and AIDS but also to the families of those victims. Ensuring that livelihoods can be guaranteed is an important part of this support process and while there is a need, the challenge of bringing about that change remains.
CASE STUDY 2: PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES
Uganda suffered both physical and mental trauma; issues that still need to be addressed. In meeting with Joseph Kasungo at the Freidis Rehabilitation and Disability Centre I encountered anger at the lack of support that directly targeted the issue of disability.
He remained frustrated that it continues to be something of a side issue, incorporated into other projects or initiatives but not given the priority that it should be. Social stigma remains attached to disability in Uganda and mental health issues are seen as human weakness rather than health issues that require treatment.
The Centre has the facilities to tackle these issues, with a fully equipped clinic and on-site psychologist, but its major challenge is reintegrating people back into society as equals.
CASE STUDY 3: EMPOWERING WOMEN
Diana Oroma of Women's Peace Initiative (WPI) passionately outlined the challenges facing women in Lira District but suggested that progress was being made.
Her organisation has played a key role in encouraging women to seek medical attention to be treated for victims of sexual abuse. In 2010 over 600 women were treated by a WPI initiative. Fifty of these women had such serious afflictions they required surgery.
There is no shortage of challenges facing the women who do come forward for treatment:
The stigma attached to being sexually violated or raped can often led to exclusion or people being ostracised from the community.
Cultural issues with regards to relationships between men and women are problematic. A lack of education about female sexual health, inclusive of men, means that cultural norms of women being the bearer of children remain strong and this can impact on recovery after treatment.
Women Peace Clubs have been set up by WPI in an effort to change the attitudes of the community. They have been successful in utilising women who have been treated talk to come and tell other women about their positive experiences.
Efforts have also been made to engage men in the education process. Progress, however, is slow as Diana outlined an example of a man coming to a workshop and agreeing that he would show more respect for his wife's sexual health. Yet a week later WPI learned that the woman had been heavily beaten by her husband for bringing shame upon him and their family.
This kind of example shows that changing (and challenging!) attitudes will be a gradual task, but initiatives being run by WPCs are the kind of projects best suited to bring about that change.
Where to from here for human rights defenders: some reflections on the local, national and international dimensions
At the local government level in Lira officials are working with civil society groups (such as the Lira NGO Forum) to enhance and protect human rights. Disputes over land and an ill-equipped judiciary for dealing with complaints being brought to its door, however, are challenges facing all Ugandan HRDs rather than just in Lira.
While some freedoms are being afforded to Ugandans there are still restrictions being placed on journalists in carrying out their work, women are still often regarded as second class citizens and rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Ugandans are almost non-existence.
In recent weeks a number of members of parliament have come out in support of the retrogressive Anti-Homosexuality Bill, touted by the Speaker of Parliament as a "Christmas gift" to Ugandans, which would make engaging in homosexual activities punishable by death. This is incredibly worrying for human rights standards and protections in Uganda.
Parliamentarians are voting on this bill in the coming days before 15th December, despite that Uganda holds a seat on the UN Human Rights Council until the end of 2013.
In her remarks addressing the UN Assembly in New York, the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights, Margaret Sekaggya, emphasized the constraints faced by defenders of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights due to criminalization of same-sex relations in over 75 countries worldwide, as well as recent legislative moves to purportedly curb promotion of homosexuality.
Although the recent decision of Malawi to suspend its anti-gay legislation is a small ray of hope it should be recognised and applauded as a step forward. www.developmenteducation.ie will be following these stories more closely in the months ahead.
Lastly, the creation of a Human Right Committee, made up of members of the Uganda parliament and tasked with the monitoring and evaluation of the government's compliance with human rights standards and protections is a very positive step. In theory, this should support the promotion and protection of those working to protect and stimulate human rights at the community level too.
Overall then, this is a refreshing turn for Ugandans struggling for a better life and looking to hold their politicians and public officials to a higher standard.
Throughout my field visits in Lira and elsewhere I have found the enthusiasm and commitment to such values remains undiminished. There are, of course, many challenges left but changes in attitudes at the community level are being observed.
This is welcome as the region gradually turns it focus away from a past ravaged by conflict to one embracing social and economic growth and development.
- Jamie Hitchen currently lives and works in Kampala, Uganda. Having obtained a Masters in African Politics from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) he now works for the Human Rights Centre Uganda (www.hrcug.org). This article was first published by Irish global education website www.developmentEducation.ie
Source: All Africa
Friday, February 17, 2012
Minister: Land grabs 'out of touch with reality'
The idea of claiming land without compensation is "out of touch with reality", Land Reform Minister Gugile Nkwinti said on Friday. "Land grabs are not an option, there is no policy like that. By doing so you will have to change the Constitution," he said. "It is an option that is completely out of touch with reality."
Nkwinti was briefing reporters in Boksburg on the East Rand after a meeting on the progress of the land reform green paper. His deputy Lechesa Tsenoli, said six groups had brought feedback on what had emerged from different aspects of the green paper. "These timelines are a key thing. We need to devise new timeframes to bring forward those projects that were meant to be done at a later stage," Tsenoli said. "We must take stock of where we are at and in mid-March complete and merge with consolidated reports -- then be able to brief Cabinet."
He said the issue of land reform needed to be dealt with "sensitively". "For some it is an issue of life and death. For the state, doing it speedily will prevent that," he said. "The right thing to do is to establish policy and legislation to redistribute land in a fair manner."
He said several groups did not accept the historical statistic that 87% of the land was white owned. "They said that we must commission professors to research the statistics."
Source: Mail & Guardian
Nkwinti was briefing reporters in Boksburg on the East Rand after a meeting on the progress of the land reform green paper. His deputy Lechesa Tsenoli, said six groups had brought feedback on what had emerged from different aspects of the green paper. "These timelines are a key thing. We need to devise new timeframes to bring forward those projects that were meant to be done at a later stage," Tsenoli said. "We must take stock of where we are at and in mid-March complete and merge with consolidated reports -- then be able to brief Cabinet."
He said the issue of land reform needed to be dealt with "sensitively". "For some it is an issue of life and death. For the state, doing it speedily will prevent that," he said. "The right thing to do is to establish policy and legislation to redistribute land in a fair manner."
He said several groups did not accept the historical statistic that 87% of the land was white owned. "They said that we must commission professors to research the statistics."
Source: Mail & Guardian
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Criminal case against Malema, others for 'land grab'
Suspended ANC Youth League leader Julius Malema has been accused of stealing a prime piece of land in Polokwane, Limpopo in the suburb of Ster Park, police said on Sunday.
Brigadier Hangwani Mulaudzi said Polokwane police and the commercial crimes unit were investigating the case.
Businessman Matane Mphahlele has opened a criminal case against Malema, lawyer Maboku Mangena, Clifford Motsepe, the head of Limpopo's housing department, as well as senior municipal officers, City Press reported.
According to Mphahlele, Malema illegally transferred the plot into his own name in 2007 and resold it the following month for more than three times the price.
The newspaper further reported that Mangena and municipal officials allegedly helped Malema with the transfer. -- Sapa
Source: Mail & Guardian
Brigadier Hangwani Mulaudzi said Polokwane police and the commercial crimes unit were investigating the case.
Businessman Matane Mphahlele has opened a criminal case against Malema, lawyer Maboku Mangena, Clifford Motsepe, the head of Limpopo's housing department, as well as senior municipal officers, City Press reported.
According to Mphahlele, Malema illegally transferred the plot into his own name in 2007 and resold it the following month for more than three times the price.
The newspaper further reported that Mangena and municipal officials allegedly helped Malema with the transfer. -- Sapa
Source: Mail & Guardian
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Mugabe and allies own 40% of seized land
Zimbabwe's president, Robert Mugabe, and his allies have seized nearly half the country's commercial farms in a land grab widely blamed for economic collapse, an investigation claims today. Mugabe has bought the loyalty of Cabinet ministers, senior army and government officials and judges with nearly five million hectares of agricultural land, including wildlife conservancies and plantations, according to the national news agency ZimOnline.
The 86-year-old president and his wife, Grace, are said to own 14 farms spanning at least 16 000 hectares.
ZimOnline's investigation undermined the central claim behind Mugabe's land reforms: that they are give the majority of black Zimbabweans their rightful inheritance. "Even though Mugabe has consistently maintained that his land reform programme is meant to benefit the poor black masses, it is him and his cronies who have got the most out of it," it argued.
A "new, well-connected black elite" of about 2 200 people controls nearly 40% of the 14-million hectares seized from white farmers, ZimOnline found. These range in size from 250 to 4 000 hectares in "the most fertile farming regions in the country". The past decade of land invasions -- which reduced 4 000 white farmers to 400 by murders, beatings and forced evictions -- is held responsible by many for the demise of the "breadbasket of Africa". ZimOnline said government documents and audit reports showed the biggest beneficiaries of land reform were "Zanu-PF members and supporters, security service chiefs and officers and traditional chiefs who have openly sided with Mugabe and senior government officials and judges." It said all ministers and deputy ministers in Mugabe's Zanu-PF party were multiple farm owners. These include his deputy, Joice Mujuru, and her husband, the former army general Solomon Mujuru, and their relatives, who own at least 25 farms totalling 105 000 hectares. All Zanu-PF's 56 politburo members, 98 members of parliament and 35 elected and unelected senators were allegedly allocated farms, and all 10 provincial governors have seized them, with four being multiple owners. Sixteen supreme court and high court judges also own farms. The report said: "Of the nearly 200 officers from the rank of major to the lieutenant general in the Zimbabwe national army, 90% have farms in the most fertile parts of the country. This is replicated in the Zimbabwe republic police, Zimbabwe prisons service, air force of Zimbabwe and CIO [Central Intelligence Organisation].
"Constantine Chiwenga, the Zimbabwe defence forces commander, who is among a cabal of defence chiefs who have publicly declared that they will only serve Mugabe, has two farms near Harare, including the 1 200-hectare Chakoma Estates, which his wife seized at gunpoint, telling a terrified white farmer that she lusted for white blood and sought the slightest excuse to kill him."
Mugabe has billed the land reforms as a black empowerment corrective to the injustices of colonialism, which left Zimbabwe's land in the hands of a tiny white minority. A recent study challenged the prevailing view that the programme had been "all bad" for ordinary citizens. But ZimOnline said that while at least 150 000 people may have had access to farms, the majority owned between 10 and 50 hectares and were Zanu-PF members. "Critics who have consistently dismissed Zimbabwe's emotional land reforms as a political patronage programme by the octogenarian Mugabe to reward supporters who have kept him in power are right after all," it said.
ZimOnline noted that Zimbabwe's agricultural production had fallen by 60% since 2000 when the land invasions began. Exports from the sector fell from $1,4-billion in 2000 to nearly $700-million last year, after dipping below $500-million in 2007. ZimOnline said many farms were "lying fallow either because the new owners are not that keen on farming or they simply abandoned the properties for new farms".
Zanu-PF rejected the charge. Herbert Murerwa, the lands and rural resettlement minister, was quoted as saying: "The fact that a handful of people may have more than one farm does not detract from the overwhelming success of the land reform where the government has created 300 000 farmers over the last 10 years."
The Commercial Farmers' Union of Zimbabwe said today it was not surprised by the findings. Dean Theron, its president, said: "We are the ones it's been happening to. We know the colonial history and are not opposed to land reform, but we feel very sad at the way it has taken place. The beneficiaries are not the intended ones. The farms have been dished out to people with connections."
Eddie Cross, policy coordinator general for the Movement for Democratic Change and an agricultural economist, said: "It explains why Mugabe is so keen to avoid a land audit, and it certainly confirms everybody's feeling that there's a relatively small number of people in the land invasions and they're Zanu-PF acolytes. The only surprise is that it has taken so long to come out."
Source: Mail & Guardian
The 86-year-old president and his wife, Grace, are said to own 14 farms spanning at least 16 000 hectares.
ZimOnline's investigation undermined the central claim behind Mugabe's land reforms: that they are give the majority of black Zimbabweans their rightful inheritance. "Even though Mugabe has consistently maintained that his land reform programme is meant to benefit the poor black masses, it is him and his cronies who have got the most out of it," it argued.
A "new, well-connected black elite" of about 2 200 people controls nearly 40% of the 14-million hectares seized from white farmers, ZimOnline found. These range in size from 250 to 4 000 hectares in "the most fertile farming regions in the country". The past decade of land invasions -- which reduced 4 000 white farmers to 400 by murders, beatings and forced evictions -- is held responsible by many for the demise of the "breadbasket of Africa". ZimOnline said government documents and audit reports showed the biggest beneficiaries of land reform were "Zanu-PF members and supporters, security service chiefs and officers and traditional chiefs who have openly sided with Mugabe and senior government officials and judges." It said all ministers and deputy ministers in Mugabe's Zanu-PF party were multiple farm owners. These include his deputy, Joice Mujuru, and her husband, the former army general Solomon Mujuru, and their relatives, who own at least 25 farms totalling 105 000 hectares. All Zanu-PF's 56 politburo members, 98 members of parliament and 35 elected and unelected senators were allegedly allocated farms, and all 10 provincial governors have seized them, with four being multiple owners. Sixteen supreme court and high court judges also own farms. The report said: "Of the nearly 200 officers from the rank of major to the lieutenant general in the Zimbabwe national army, 90% have farms in the most fertile parts of the country. This is replicated in the Zimbabwe republic police, Zimbabwe prisons service, air force of Zimbabwe and CIO [Central Intelligence Organisation].
"Constantine Chiwenga, the Zimbabwe defence forces commander, who is among a cabal of defence chiefs who have publicly declared that they will only serve Mugabe, has two farms near Harare, including the 1 200-hectare Chakoma Estates, which his wife seized at gunpoint, telling a terrified white farmer that she lusted for white blood and sought the slightest excuse to kill him."
Mugabe has billed the land reforms as a black empowerment corrective to the injustices of colonialism, which left Zimbabwe's land in the hands of a tiny white minority. A recent study challenged the prevailing view that the programme had been "all bad" for ordinary citizens. But ZimOnline said that while at least 150 000 people may have had access to farms, the majority owned between 10 and 50 hectares and were Zanu-PF members. "Critics who have consistently dismissed Zimbabwe's emotional land reforms as a political patronage programme by the octogenarian Mugabe to reward supporters who have kept him in power are right after all," it said.
ZimOnline noted that Zimbabwe's agricultural production had fallen by 60% since 2000 when the land invasions began. Exports from the sector fell from $1,4-billion in 2000 to nearly $700-million last year, after dipping below $500-million in 2007. ZimOnline said many farms were "lying fallow either because the new owners are not that keen on farming or they simply abandoned the properties for new farms".
Zanu-PF rejected the charge. Herbert Murerwa, the lands and rural resettlement minister, was quoted as saying: "The fact that a handful of people may have more than one farm does not detract from the overwhelming success of the land reform where the government has created 300 000 farmers over the last 10 years."
The Commercial Farmers' Union of Zimbabwe said today it was not surprised by the findings. Dean Theron, its president, said: "We are the ones it's been happening to. We know the colonial history and are not opposed to land reform, but we feel very sad at the way it has taken place. The beneficiaries are not the intended ones. The farms have been dished out to people with connections."
Eddie Cross, policy coordinator general for the Movement for Democratic Change and an agricultural economist, said: "It explains why Mugabe is so keen to avoid a land audit, and it certainly confirms everybody's feeling that there's a relatively small number of people in the land invasions and they're Zanu-PF acolytes. The only surprise is that it has taken so long to come out."
Source: Mail & Guardian
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
SADC summit mulls Zim land-reform case
Zimbabwe's refusal to obey rulings by a regional court, which rejected President Robert Mugabe's land reforms in favour of a group of white farmers, looks set to win a pass as a summit wraps up Tuesday.
The tribunal of the Southern African Development Community, whose leaders are meeting in the Namibian capital, Windhoek, ruled in 2008 that a group of 78 white farmers could keep their land, saying they had been unfairly targeted because of their race.
Zimbabwe has refused to respect the ruling, even though Harare has signed the treaty creating the court, which has no power to enforce its decisions except through decisions of a summit. "There is no possibility of punitive measures like sanctions," said Dirk Kotze, a political analyst from the University of South Africa. "Expressing their disappointment is the furthest they can go," he said. "Anything further would be punitive and it has to be weighed against other political considerations such as maintaining unity in the government."
Mugabe, who at 86 is Africa's oldest leader with three decades in power, formed a unity government last year with former opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, now the prime minister. About 4000 white farmers have been forced off their land in a violent and politically charged campaign launched by Mugabe in 2000. About 400 white farmers remain in Zimbabwe, and the chaotic resettlement process slashed food production, making the nation chronically dependent on foreign handouts.
Zimbabwe insists that the SADC tribunal treaty was never ratified. Critics contend that the signature on the protocol was enough. The leaders are expected to simply punt the issue to their next summit in 2011. "To find a solution, SADC asked its justice ministers to make a report, but it wasn't completed. Any decision will simply be postponed indefinitely," said one official at the summit, speaking on condition of anonymity. "They may just ask the justice ministers to finish their report," another official said as the leaders began meeting.
The report was meant to be presented at the summit, but regional leaders fear the contentious issue could split the bloc, which has struggled to act with a united voice on Zimbabwe, even at the height of electoral violence in 2008. "The rule of law in the SADC countries depends on this," said Kallie Kriel of the South African rights group AfriForum, a mainly white organisation. "If the rulings of SADC institutions are not adhered to, the credibility of SADC itself is at risk."
South Africa's courts have registered the judgement, leading to the seizure of Zimbabwe government properties for auction to help cover the farmers' legal costs. In the summit's final declaration, expected late on Tuesday, the leaders will likely congratulate the progress made by the unity government in stabilising its economy while pushing Harare to end its bickering over key appointments. The political feud has delayed progress on electoral reforms. The power-sharing pact had called for a referendum on a new constitution for last month, but the process has barely gotten off the ground.
SADC has been much tougher on Madagascar, which was suspended from the bloc over the army-backed ouster of president Marc Ravalomanana by the former mayor of the capital, Andry Rajoelina, in March 2009. The leaders were also expected to be briefed on a new agreement signed last week.
Source: Mail & Guardian
The tribunal of the Southern African Development Community, whose leaders are meeting in the Namibian capital, Windhoek, ruled in 2008 that a group of 78 white farmers could keep their land, saying they had been unfairly targeted because of their race.
Zimbabwe has refused to respect the ruling, even though Harare has signed the treaty creating the court, which has no power to enforce its decisions except through decisions of a summit. "There is no possibility of punitive measures like sanctions," said Dirk Kotze, a political analyst from the University of South Africa. "Expressing their disappointment is the furthest they can go," he said. "Anything further would be punitive and it has to be weighed against other political considerations such as maintaining unity in the government."
Mugabe, who at 86 is Africa's oldest leader with three decades in power, formed a unity government last year with former opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, now the prime minister. About 4000 white farmers have been forced off their land in a violent and politically charged campaign launched by Mugabe in 2000. About 400 white farmers remain in Zimbabwe, and the chaotic resettlement process slashed food production, making the nation chronically dependent on foreign handouts.
Zimbabwe insists that the SADC tribunal treaty was never ratified. Critics contend that the signature on the protocol was enough. The leaders are expected to simply punt the issue to their next summit in 2011. "To find a solution, SADC asked its justice ministers to make a report, but it wasn't completed. Any decision will simply be postponed indefinitely," said one official at the summit, speaking on condition of anonymity. "They may just ask the justice ministers to finish their report," another official said as the leaders began meeting.
The report was meant to be presented at the summit, but regional leaders fear the contentious issue could split the bloc, which has struggled to act with a united voice on Zimbabwe, even at the height of electoral violence in 2008. "The rule of law in the SADC countries depends on this," said Kallie Kriel of the South African rights group AfriForum, a mainly white organisation. "If the rulings of SADC institutions are not adhered to, the credibility of SADC itself is at risk."
South Africa's courts have registered the judgement, leading to the seizure of Zimbabwe government properties for auction to help cover the farmers' legal costs. In the summit's final declaration, expected late on Tuesday, the leaders will likely congratulate the progress made by the unity government in stabilising its economy while pushing Harare to end its bickering over key appointments. The political feud has delayed progress on electoral reforms. The power-sharing pact had called for a referendum on a new constitution for last month, but the process has barely gotten off the ground.
SADC has been much tougher on Madagascar, which was suspended from the bloc over the army-backed ouster of president Marc Ravalomanana by the former mayor of the capital, Andry Rajoelina, in March 2009. The leaders were also expected to be briefed on a new agreement signed last week.
Source: Mail & Guardian
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Kenya: Landmark Ruling on Indigenous Land Rights
A ruling by the African Commission on Human and People's Rights condemning the expulsion of the Endorois people from their land in Kenya is a major victory for indigenous peoples across Africa, Human Rights Watch, WITNESS, and the Endorois' lawyers said today. The Commission ruled on February 4, 2010 that the Endorois' eviction from their traditional land for tourism development violated their human rights.
The Kenyan government evicted the Endorois people, a traditional pastoralist community, from their homes at Lake Bogoria in central Kenya in the 1970s, to make way for a national reserve and tourist facilities. In the first ruling of an international tribunal to find a violation of the right to development, the Commission found that this eviction, with minimal compensation, violated the Endorois' right as an indigenous people to property, health, culture, religion, and natural resources. It ordered Kenya to restore the Endorois to their historic land and to compensate them. It is the first ruling to determine who are indigenous peoples in Africa, and what are their rights to land. The case was brought on behalf of the Endorois by CEMIRIDE and Minority Rights Group International.
"The Endorois decision, the first of its kind, can help many others across Africa who have been forced from their homes," said Clive Baldwin, senior legal adviser at Human Rights Watch, who was co-counsel for the Endorois in the case while employed with Minority Rights Group International. "The African Commission is clear: the land where the Endorois historically lived is their property and must be returned to them."
Lake Bogoria is considered to have great tourism potential due to its hot springs and abundant wildlife, including one of Africa's largest populations of flamingos. The African Commission accepted the Endorois' evidence that they have lived there since "time immemorial" and the lake was the center of their religion and culture, with their ancestors buried nearby. After being evicted from the fertile land around the lake, the Endorois were forced to congregate on arid land, where many of their cattle died.
They tried unsuccessfully to persuade the Kenyan government, the local authorities, and the Kenyan Wildlife Service to reverse their policy of evicting everyone, including traditional inhabitants, from areas the government designated national parks and reserves. They were also rebuffed when they sought an adequate share of the tourism and revenues generated by the reserve. After Kenyan courts refused to address their case, they brought their case to the African Commission in 2003. As a component of the case, WITNESS and CEMIRIDE collaborated on a landmark use of video as evidence, demonstrating how conditions on the ground breached articles of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights, and bringing voices of the Endorois to the Commission.
Violations of land rights, including the rights of the generations of Kenyans displaced through historic and recent evictions, are one of the key unresolved issues in Kenya, which former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan acknowledged in the aftermath of Kenya's electoral violence in 2007-2008. The African Commission found that the Kenyan government has continued to rely on a colonial law that prevented certain communities from holding land outright, and allowed others, such as local authorities, effectively to own their traditional land on "trust" for these Communities. The local authority in Lake Bogoria was able to end the Endorois trust at will and to seize the land.
In the last decade there have been several attempts at comprehensive land reform that would allow for final and fair determination of land ownership and create a system to restore land to those unlawfully evicted or to compensate them. None of these reforms has been completed. While the adoption by the government of a new land policy in August 2009 marks a significant step forward, it still needs to be translated into effective protection on the ground for Kenya's most marginalized. "This ruling is good for every Kenyan," said Korir Singo'ei, who represented the Endorois while director of CEMIRIDE. "The law that treats some communities as children, unable to own their own land, is a colonial relic that needs to be changed."
The African Commission determined that the Endorois, having a clear historic attachment to particular land, are a distinct indigenous people, a term contested by some African governments who claimed all Africans are indigenous. It also found that the Endorois had property rights over the land they traditionally occupied and used, even though the British and Kenyan authorities had denied them a formal title. In finding a violation of the right to development for the first time the Commission relied on the failure of the Kenyan authorities to respect the right of the Endorois to consent to development, and the failure to provide them adequate compensation for the loss they had suffered, or any benefit from the tourism.
The African Commission had ruled in 2006 against the Kenyan government for allowing a ruby mining company to start illegal mining on another part of the Endorois' land, severely affecting their remaining access to water. Following that ruling, the mining company abandoned its activities. "The African Commission's ruling makes clear to governments that they must treat indigenous peoples as active stakeholders rather than passive beneficiaries," said Cynthia Morel, who was co-counsel for the Endorois as senior legal adviser with Minority Rights Groups International. "That recognition is a victory for all indigenous peoples across Africa whose existence was largely ignored - both in law and in fact - until today. The ruling spells the beginning of a brighter future."
The Commission requires Kenya to take steps to return the Endorois land and compensate them within three months. Comprehensive reform to bring Kenya's land laws to the standards set by the Commission is vital before the 2012 elections, Human Rights Watch, WITNESS, and the Endorois' lawyers said.
Source: Human Rights Watch
The Kenyan government evicted the Endorois people, a traditional pastoralist community, from their homes at Lake Bogoria in central Kenya in the 1970s, to make way for a national reserve and tourist facilities. In the first ruling of an international tribunal to find a violation of the right to development, the Commission found that this eviction, with minimal compensation, violated the Endorois' right as an indigenous people to property, health, culture, religion, and natural resources. It ordered Kenya to restore the Endorois to their historic land and to compensate them. It is the first ruling to determine who are indigenous peoples in Africa, and what are their rights to land. The case was brought on behalf of the Endorois by CEMIRIDE and Minority Rights Group International.
"The Endorois decision, the first of its kind, can help many others across Africa who have been forced from their homes," said Clive Baldwin, senior legal adviser at Human Rights Watch, who was co-counsel for the Endorois in the case while employed with Minority Rights Group International. "The African Commission is clear: the land where the Endorois historically lived is their property and must be returned to them."
Lake Bogoria is considered to have great tourism potential due to its hot springs and abundant wildlife, including one of Africa's largest populations of flamingos. The African Commission accepted the Endorois' evidence that they have lived there since "time immemorial" and the lake was the center of their religion and culture, with their ancestors buried nearby. After being evicted from the fertile land around the lake, the Endorois were forced to congregate on arid land, where many of their cattle died.
They tried unsuccessfully to persuade the Kenyan government, the local authorities, and the Kenyan Wildlife Service to reverse their policy of evicting everyone, including traditional inhabitants, from areas the government designated national parks and reserves. They were also rebuffed when they sought an adequate share of the tourism and revenues generated by the reserve. After Kenyan courts refused to address their case, they brought their case to the African Commission in 2003. As a component of the case, WITNESS and CEMIRIDE collaborated on a landmark use of video as evidence, demonstrating how conditions on the ground breached articles of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights, and bringing voices of the Endorois to the Commission.
Violations of land rights, including the rights of the generations of Kenyans displaced through historic and recent evictions, are one of the key unresolved issues in Kenya, which former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan acknowledged in the aftermath of Kenya's electoral violence in 2007-2008. The African Commission found that the Kenyan government has continued to rely on a colonial law that prevented certain communities from holding land outright, and allowed others, such as local authorities, effectively to own their traditional land on "trust" for these Communities. The local authority in Lake Bogoria was able to end the Endorois trust at will and to seize the land.
In the last decade there have been several attempts at comprehensive land reform that would allow for final and fair determination of land ownership and create a system to restore land to those unlawfully evicted or to compensate them. None of these reforms has been completed. While the adoption by the government of a new land policy in August 2009 marks a significant step forward, it still needs to be translated into effective protection on the ground for Kenya's most marginalized. "This ruling is good for every Kenyan," said Korir Singo'ei, who represented the Endorois while director of CEMIRIDE. "The law that treats some communities as children, unable to own their own land, is a colonial relic that needs to be changed."
The African Commission determined that the Endorois, having a clear historic attachment to particular land, are a distinct indigenous people, a term contested by some African governments who claimed all Africans are indigenous. It also found that the Endorois had property rights over the land they traditionally occupied and used, even though the British and Kenyan authorities had denied them a formal title. In finding a violation of the right to development for the first time the Commission relied on the failure of the Kenyan authorities to respect the right of the Endorois to consent to development, and the failure to provide them adequate compensation for the loss they had suffered, or any benefit from the tourism.
The African Commission had ruled in 2006 against the Kenyan government for allowing a ruby mining company to start illegal mining on another part of the Endorois' land, severely affecting their remaining access to water. Following that ruling, the mining company abandoned its activities. "The African Commission's ruling makes clear to governments that they must treat indigenous peoples as active stakeholders rather than passive beneficiaries," said Cynthia Morel, who was co-counsel for the Endorois as senior legal adviser with Minority Rights Groups International. "That recognition is a victory for all indigenous peoples across Africa whose existence was largely ignored - both in law and in fact - until today. The ruling spells the beginning of a brighter future."
The Commission requires Kenya to take steps to return the Endorois land and compensate them within three months. Comprehensive reform to bring Kenya's land laws to the standards set by the Commission is vital before the 2012 elections, Human Rights Watch, WITNESS, and the Endorois' lawyers said.
Source: Human Rights Watch
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Zimbabwe: Farm Seizures Assailed
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai called on Friday for the two ministers who share control over the police — one from his party, one from President Robert Mugabe’s ZANU-PF party — to ensure the arrests of all the people illegally seizing white-owned commercial farms. Apparently in a challenge to Mr. Mugabe, who endorsed the seizures in his birthday speech last month, Mr. Tsvangirai contended that most of them since he joined the government in February were “actually acts of theft.” Mr. Tsvangirai has been insisting on a halt to the renewed farm invasions for weeks, but he never so specifically exerted his authority to order arrests of the lawbreakers. The test will be whether the police do as he says.
Source: New York Times
Source: New York Times
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
South Africa: Rural Poor Bear The Brunt of Dysfunctional Land Reform
One major blight on the last three terms of the ANC-led government is service provision to the rural poor, and in particular the provision of land and the requisite agricultural support. In general, the ANC government’s relationship with rural South Africa has been rather nebulous, and the land question has made this even more starkly so.
For the vast majority of the country’s rural households, land is no longer the primary lifeline, as it was the case before colonial, and subsequently, apartheid land dispossession. Neither is subsistence farming, nor agriculture. With the increasing dependence on social grants these traditional modes of survival are wilting away, along with the once cherished ideals of hard work and self-determination.
The previous ANC leadership fixated on being careful not to frighten investors and other big players by any radical government intervention in the land market, and the corollary has been inadequate public investment in the rural economy, and consequently poor access to agricultural land, finance and infrastructure.
As the country approaches the fourth national democratic elections, the marginalisation of rural South Africa is emerging as a key campaign issue, with the new ANC leadership going as far as labelling it government’s single greatest failure. While the causes of this failure are varied and complex, they are not unrelated to certain deficiencies in government’s land administration practices.
Then there is the question of unscrupulous landowners who have seized the land restitution process as an opportunity to grow fat profits from grossly inflated land prices. Land officials themselves have been suspected of conniving with these landowners, in return for a share of the spoils. And to some extent the Land Affairs department has been complicit in these shady acts, namely by failing to verify whether the sellers are in fact owners of the properties sold to government. The purchase of food-producing land for golf courses and game farms has also emerged as a major issue.
Source: Institute for Security Studies
For the vast majority of the country’s rural households, land is no longer the primary lifeline, as it was the case before colonial, and subsequently, apartheid land dispossession. Neither is subsistence farming, nor agriculture. With the increasing dependence on social grants these traditional modes of survival are wilting away, along with the once cherished ideals of hard work and self-determination.
The previous ANC leadership fixated on being careful not to frighten investors and other big players by any radical government intervention in the land market, and the corollary has been inadequate public investment in the rural economy, and consequently poor access to agricultural land, finance and infrastructure.
As the country approaches the fourth national democratic elections, the marginalisation of rural South Africa is emerging as a key campaign issue, with the new ANC leadership going as far as labelling it government’s single greatest failure. While the causes of this failure are varied and complex, they are not unrelated to certain deficiencies in government’s land administration practices.
Then there is the question of unscrupulous landowners who have seized the land restitution process as an opportunity to grow fat profits from grossly inflated land prices. Land officials themselves have been suspected of conniving with these landowners, in return for a share of the spoils. And to some extent the Land Affairs department has been complicit in these shady acts, namely by failing to verify whether the sellers are in fact owners of the properties sold to government. The purchase of food-producing land for golf courses and game farms has also emerged as a major issue.
Source: Institute for Security Studies
Friday, November 28, 2008
Zimbabwe Land SADC Tribunal
On Nov. 28, the farmers gathered in Windhoek, Namibia, to hear the final ruling of five judges of the S.A.D.C. tribunal. As Justice Luis Antonio Mondlane of Mozambique read the full 60-page decision aloud, it dawned on the farmers that they had won.
The tribunal found that the government had breached its obligations under the trade bloc’s treaty, which committed it to respecting human rights, democracy and the rule of law, by denying the farmers compensation for their farms and court review of the government’s confiscation of them.
More broadly, it rejected the government’s claim that the land redistribution program was meant to right the wrongs of a colonial era when a white minority ruled what was then Rhodesia. Instead, the court found that the government had itself racially discriminated against the white farmers.
In a stinging rebuke, the tribunal, citing an earlier legal case, said it would have reached a different conclusion had the government not awarded “the spoils of expropriation primarily to ruling party adherents.”
Source: New York Times
The tribunal found that the government had breached its obligations under the trade bloc’s treaty, which committed it to respecting human rights, democracy and the rule of law, by denying the farmers compensation for their farms and court review of the government’s confiscation of them.
More broadly, it rejected the government’s claim that the land redistribution program was meant to right the wrongs of a colonial era when a white minority ruled what was then Rhodesia. Instead, the court found that the government had itself racially discriminated against the white farmers.
In a stinging rebuke, the tribunal, citing an earlier legal case, said it would have reached a different conclusion had the government not awarded “the spoils of expropriation primarily to ruling party adherents.”
Source: New York Times
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