News / National
Thousands face eviction from farms
01 Sep 2016 at 09:29hrs | Views
THE Ministry of Lands and Rural Resettlement has issued a statement directing all people illegally settled on farms to move off immediately or face eviction.
In the warning, publicised last week in both the print and electronic media, Lands and Rural Resettlement Minister, Douglas Mombeshora said people in these illegal settlements should return to their original homes by Tuesday next week, September 6, or face prosecution.
Mombeshora said because the country's land allocation and settler emplacement was carried out in an orderly manner and on the basis of farm lay out maps, for all the resettlement models, that is the old resettlement schemes embarked on immediately after independence, and the A1 schemes implemented during the fast track phase, people and communities should respect these lay out maps that clearly demarcate residential areas, arable and grazing areas.
"Given the elaborate carefully considered planning undertaken in resettlement areas that took into account ecological aspects, such as natural resource management and conservation, as well as issues of viability, government will not tolerate illegal settlements that have mushroomed in undesignated areas including grazing and catchment areas of dams and rivers. Any person occupying rural land without an official temporary permit issued by the District Land Committee, an offer letter or permission of the Ministry of Lands and Rural Resettlement is deemed an illegal settler.
"This notice therefore serves to inform all illegally settled people to immediately vacate rural State land that is resettled farms and return to their original homes by September 6, 2016. Failure to do so will result in immediate eviction and prosecution," reads the statement, which further indicated that in terms of the gazetted Lands (Consequential Provisions) Act Chapter 20:28, "it is an offence to occupy rural State land without the authority of the Minister of Lands and Rural Resettlement".
There are, however, serious concerns that the operation scheduled to start next week could further rattle a nation presently thrown off balance by endless public protests against worsening socio-economic challenges that include hunger, unemployment and cash shortages.
The planned evictions, coming two months before the onset of the country's summer cropping season, are set to trigger new chaos on the farms where farming activities have hardly been visible enough to help feed the nation.
Sixteen years after some 300 000 newly resettled farmers occupied the prime farmlands a lethal combination of incessant droughts, lack of financial resources, poor planning and lack of adequate government support have turned the countryside into dustbowls, resulting the country perpetually importing and begging for extra food handouts from the international donor community.
This week, Mombeshora refused to field questions from the Financial Gazette, which sought clarifications on whether government had contingent measures to avert a potentially grave humanitarian situation in the wake of the evictions.
"Talk to the permanent secretary," Mombeshora said.
But efforts to reach secretary for Lands and Rural Resettlement, Grace Mutandiro, were fruitless.
The Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Lands, Agriculture and Irrigation Development chairperson, Christopher Chitindi told the Financial Gazette that he was aware of the statement issued by the Ministry of Lands and Rural Resettlement and supported the eviction of the illegal settlers.
"… these people cannot continue living in these farms illegally especially on grazing lands, if they do, where will the commercial cattle graze?" said Chitindi, adding that the State has plenty of land to resettle the illegal occupiers.
The muted evictions could, however, activate a humanitarian crisis akin to the 2005 disaster when government decided to clean up the country's urban areas during the infamous Operation Murambatsvina.
According a United Nations Habitat report, the operation directly and indirectly affected some 2,4 million people.
The bulk of the illegally resettled people are believed to have fled biting hardships and unemployment in urban areas that have been largely caused by the country's de-industrialisation.
Opportunities have diminished in Zimbabwe's urban areas and chances of starting small businesses have been undermined by a shrinking market for commodities triggered by lack of disposable incomes.
Under the circumstances, government is likely to face resistance, leading to running battles switching from the current ones in urban areas to farms and rural communities.
Some of the targeted settlements would be illegal gold mining areas were citizens have turned farms upside down digging for gold.
Last week police torched a thriving gold panning enterprise in Mashonaland Central's Mount Darwin area in a move that unsettled Local Government, Public Works and National Housing Minister, Saviour Kasukuwere, who appealed for restraint.
Social commentator, Luxon Zembe expressed wariness over the effect of the proposed evictions would have on farm workers who were never resettled under the country's 2000 land reform programme, but were left to roam around the acquired farms.
"We must ensure that farm workers are properly rested on identified land and given a dignified life. These are people who produced for this country under white farmers and are not illegal settlers. Any action must ensure that we do not create a diplomatic row with the countries where some of these farm workers came from, like Malawi. They had established themselves on the farms for generations," said Zembe.
Economic commentator, Kingston Khanyile, also suggested that farm workers should approach government requesting for resettlement land.
"They cannot live on the farms illegal because it then destroys the whole essence of investment into agriculture. So the best thing they can do is to organise themselves into groups and approach government. So instead of being confrontational, this is the best way to do it. They will definitely get land to farm," said Khanyile.
In the warning, publicised last week in both the print and electronic media, Lands and Rural Resettlement Minister, Douglas Mombeshora said people in these illegal settlements should return to their original homes by Tuesday next week, September 6, or face prosecution.
Mombeshora said because the country's land allocation and settler emplacement was carried out in an orderly manner and on the basis of farm lay out maps, for all the resettlement models, that is the old resettlement schemes embarked on immediately after independence, and the A1 schemes implemented during the fast track phase, people and communities should respect these lay out maps that clearly demarcate residential areas, arable and grazing areas.
"Given the elaborate carefully considered planning undertaken in resettlement areas that took into account ecological aspects, such as natural resource management and conservation, as well as issues of viability, government will not tolerate illegal settlements that have mushroomed in undesignated areas including grazing and catchment areas of dams and rivers. Any person occupying rural land without an official temporary permit issued by the District Land Committee, an offer letter or permission of the Ministry of Lands and Rural Resettlement is deemed an illegal settler.
"This notice therefore serves to inform all illegally settled people to immediately vacate rural State land that is resettled farms and return to their original homes by September 6, 2016. Failure to do so will result in immediate eviction and prosecution," reads the statement, which further indicated that in terms of the gazetted Lands (Consequential Provisions) Act Chapter 20:28, "it is an offence to occupy rural State land without the authority of the Minister of Lands and Rural Resettlement".
There are, however, serious concerns that the operation scheduled to start next week could further rattle a nation presently thrown off balance by endless public protests against worsening socio-economic challenges that include hunger, unemployment and cash shortages.
The planned evictions, coming two months before the onset of the country's summer cropping season, are set to trigger new chaos on the farms where farming activities have hardly been visible enough to help feed the nation.
Sixteen years after some 300 000 newly resettled farmers occupied the prime farmlands a lethal combination of incessant droughts, lack of financial resources, poor planning and lack of adequate government support have turned the countryside into dustbowls, resulting the country perpetually importing and begging for extra food handouts from the international donor community.
This week, Mombeshora refused to field questions from the Financial Gazette, which sought clarifications on whether government had contingent measures to avert a potentially grave humanitarian situation in the wake of the evictions.
"Talk to the permanent secretary," Mombeshora said.
But efforts to reach secretary for Lands and Rural Resettlement, Grace Mutandiro, were fruitless.
The Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Lands, Agriculture and Irrigation Development chairperson, Christopher Chitindi told the Financial Gazette that he was aware of the statement issued by the Ministry of Lands and Rural Resettlement and supported the eviction of the illegal settlers.
The muted evictions could, however, activate a humanitarian crisis akin to the 2005 disaster when government decided to clean up the country's urban areas during the infamous Operation Murambatsvina.
According a United Nations Habitat report, the operation directly and indirectly affected some 2,4 million people.
The bulk of the illegally resettled people are believed to have fled biting hardships and unemployment in urban areas that have been largely caused by the country's de-industrialisation.
Opportunities have diminished in Zimbabwe's urban areas and chances of starting small businesses have been undermined by a shrinking market for commodities triggered by lack of disposable incomes.
Under the circumstances, government is likely to face resistance, leading to running battles switching from the current ones in urban areas to farms and rural communities.
Some of the targeted settlements would be illegal gold mining areas were citizens have turned farms upside down digging for gold.
Last week police torched a thriving gold panning enterprise in Mashonaland Central's Mount Darwin area in a move that unsettled Local Government, Public Works and National Housing Minister, Saviour Kasukuwere, who appealed for restraint.
Social commentator, Luxon Zembe expressed wariness over the effect of the proposed evictions would have on farm workers who were never resettled under the country's 2000 land reform programme, but were left to roam around the acquired farms.
"We must ensure that farm workers are properly rested on identified land and given a dignified life. These are people who produced for this country under white farmers and are not illegal settlers. Any action must ensure that we do not create a diplomatic row with the countries where some of these farm workers came from, like Malawi. They had established themselves on the farms for generations," said Zembe.
Economic commentator, Kingston Khanyile, also suggested that farm workers should approach government requesting for resettlement land.
"They cannot live on the farms illegal because it then destroys the whole essence of investment into agriculture. So the best thing they can do is to organise themselves into groups and approach government. So instead of being confrontational, this is the best way to do it. They will definitely get land to farm," said Khanyile.
Source - fingaz
