Unpacking the Impact of Land Dispossession for Effective Land Restitution Research in South Africa

By Phineas Khazamula Chauke

One critical legislation that was promulgated by the new, democratic, South African Government under the leadership of President Nelson Mandela, was the Restitution of Land Rights Act No 22 of 1994. This legislation required Black people (Africans, Coloureds and Indians) to lodge land claims with Commission on Restitution of Land Rights (CRLR) for a five-year period that ended on the 31st December 1998.

Some claims remain unresolved, mainly due to poorly crafted reports which largely emanated from externally sourced research outcomes. This book therefore will be sought after not only by institutions and individuals appointed to conduct research on land claims in South Africa, (and similar countries that faced the challenge of land dispossession to the disenfranchised) but also to students and researchers at tertiary institutions embarking on the same research themselves.

The author, Prof PK Chauke, is a seasoned researcher who has produced many high-quality results which have received accolades from both the CRLR and his peers. Prof PK, as he is commonly known, does consulting work related to land claims for both private and public institutions. He has also published several peer-reviewed journal articles on small scale and emerging farming in South Africa.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Phineas Khazamula Chauke
• Release date: Apr 22, 2021
• ISBN: 9781005791742

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Unpacking the Impact of Land Dispossession for an Effective Investigation of Land Restitution Claims in South Africa

Phineas Khazamula Chauke

(Main Content Editor and Author)

Copyright © 2021 Phineas Khazamula Chauke

Published by Phineas Khazamula Chauke Publishing at Smashwords

First edition 2021

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or any information storage or retrieval system without permission from the copyright holder.

The Author has made every effort to trace and acknowledge sources/resources/individuals. In the event that any images/information have been incorrectly attributed or credited, the Author will be pleased to rectify these omissions at the earliest opportunity.

Published by Phineas Khazamula Chauke

using Reach Publishers’ services,

P O Box 1384, Wandsbeck, South Africa, 3631

Edited by Keren Hoy for Reach Publishers

Cover designed by Reach Publishers

Website: www.reachpublishers.org

E-mail: [e-mail]

Peakay Chauke

[e-mail]

Table of Contents

Preface

Acknowledgements and Introductory Remarks

Abbreviations and Acronyms

CHAPTER 1

PK CHAUKE

Black South African Land Dispossession: A Brief Collective Historical Perspective

CHAPTER 2

PK CHAUKE

Precursors to and Some Consequences of the Natives Land Act

CHAPTER 3

PK CHAUKE

Support to the White Commercial Farming Sector and the Impact of the Great Depression

CHAPTER 4

PK CHAUKE

A Brief Outline of the South African Land Reform Programme

CHAPTER 5

PK CHAUKE, J MANENZHE, D MABALE, M TSHIKORORO AND TA NEFALE

Generalized Empirical Research Findings on Land Restitution Claims in South Africa

CHAPTER 6

PK CHAUKE, D MABALE AND LF MUNYAI

A FRAMEWORK FOR ACHIEVING SUCCESFULL LAND CLAIMS IN SOUTH AFRICA

REFERENCES

Preface

The literate world has often used written literature to hide information from indigenous inhabitants whom they colonized. Especially for Africans, the above sentiment could have been true, looking at their past orientation towards oral communication as inherited from their ancestors. There are several reasons for assuming this tendency, key amongst them being a desire to safeguard culture, coupled with illiteracy that left oral accounts as critical weapons to defend what Africans considered to be their own, especially the emotive issue of land ownership. Whereas oral accounts have continued to enrich the African culture beyond measure, the dynamic and evolving nature of culture has largely transformed it into the written form. The latter has presented opportunities to place African experiences into pen and paper that so effectively revealed lived perspectives.

What is so outstanding about this book is the fact that, unlike in the past when at times someone outside the African tradition attempted to present unlived experiences, the main author and his associates are not only grounded in the African tradition, but some have seen and experienced the devastating effects of the segregated policy especially entrenched on land as a critical resource for life on earth that was achieved though implementation of segregation policies such as the Native Land Act No 27 of 1913. I would therefore like to congratulate Professor Phineas Khazamula Chauke and his team for the writing of this book, suitably titled: "Unpacking the Impact of Land Dispossession for an Effective Investigation of Land Restitution Claims in South Africa’’. The writers were courageous enough to unpack their experiences in the book.

The book will enable different stakeholders and future generations to benefit from expositions of land ownership and occupation issues, imperatives that are so entrenched in the hearts of many previously disenfranchised citizens of South Africa, especially black Africans, Indians and Coloureds. Many communities that qualified for lodgement of land claims were not aware of salient steps to follow. Different chapters of this book are designed to assist them in this regard, especially background preparations and other critical issues that need to be taken into consideration. Today people are fighting for land yet the privileged few refuse to share this commodity we call land with others.

The book not only provides a brief historical background to land settlement in South Africa but also a snapshot of how black South Africans were dispossessed of their land. The consequences of the Natives Land Act No 27 of 1913 and the empirical evidence are clearly outlined. Land occupation and ownership have resulted in heightened emotions, both to the envisaged beneficiaries and those that unduly benefited from it. We should thank the main author, Professor P.K. Chauke, and his team, for approaching this subject with cool heads and sober minds for the benefit of those that are in one way or another affected by the new South African land reform policy,

It is backed up by authentic citations derived from archives and other reliable sources, inclusive of personal experiences of the contributors, factors that render its reading quite exciting. Going through the various chapters of this book, readers are empowered not only to gain insight that assists in repositioning their attitudes towards the land reform agenda generally, but also as regards its restitution arm. The book provides a great deal of lessons that can benefit both students, academics and other researchers in South Africa and other counties. The last chapter provide a clear framework that could assist researchers in fast tracking the process of researching land claims. I recommend anyone who is interested in land reformation to read the book.

Professor Elliot Mahlengule Zwane, University of Limpopo, South Africa

Acknowledgements and Introductory Remarks

This book could not have come to fruition had it not been for initial support by the management of the University of Venda. Special thanks to Professor Mbati and Dr Nthambeleni (University Vice Chancellors), Professor Ekkosse (Director Research and Innovation) and Advocate Lambani (Legal Advisor and Registrar). The opportunity for researching land claims provided by the Commission on Restitution of Land Rights under the Department of Agriculture, Rural Development and Land Reform is greatly appreciated. The knowledge gained from that engagement was instrumental in providing the necessary guidance that brought this book to fruition. Staff and students at the University of Venda that participated in research processes are also highly appreciated, especially Dr M. Tshikororo, Mr LF. Munyai, Mr TA. Nefale, Ms D Mabale and Ms H. Ngoepe. Their contribution is reflected in relevant chapters of the book. The immense experience gained from land claimants is highly appreciated and acknowledged. For ethical reasons, these cannot be identified in this book. The contribution of Mr J. Manenzhe (Social Sciences Curriculum Advisor for the Limpopo Department of Education) in alignment of historical content and conduct of oral research is greatly appreciated. Mr Manenzhe did not only take time to go through the entire manuscript, providing the necessary guidance and input into historical events that impacted on the land dispossession process, but also contributed substantially to lessons learnt from oral interviews and CPAs.

On the 19th of June 1913 the Colonial Union of South Africa government passed the Natives Land Act No 27 of 1913 that effectively dispossessed black South Africans (Africans, Indians and Coloureds) of the land that their ancestors had owned for many centuries. The ushering in of a democratic state in 1994 witnessed a major attempt at redressing past injustices through the promulgation of the Restitution of Land Rights Act (RLRA) No 22 of 1994 (as amended) that was consolidated by the adoption of the Constitution of South Africa in 1996. The RLRA opened up a window period for those that had lost their land through racial discriminatory practices to lodge claims from 1994 to 31 December 1998. The focus of this book is to provide a background that would lead to speedy resolution of outstanding land claims in South Africa, without a focus on the merits of the land claims process itself, i.e. confinement to the two Acts mentioned above. The cursory historic information provided is solely to reflect the extent of collective land dispossession rather than factual events and merits thereof.

This book is a culmination of experiences gained through research on land claims in six provinces of South Africa, i.e. KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga, Limpopo, Eastern Cape, Northern Cape and Gauteng. It would appeal to scholars conducting research on land claims especially in South Africa, but also in other countries whose land reform programmes originated from many years of oppression of its poorer inhabitants. It would also be of interest to students at tertiary and secondary education institutions requiring an understanding of the South African Land Reform Policy generally but also similar categories of interest in other countries interested in land reform issues. The book should in no way be considered as a presentation of arguments for or against land reformation. Its aim is to outline how the indigenous people of South Africa – Khoisan, Blacks, Indians/Asiatic and Coloureds - were dispossessed of their land and its associated resources over a period of time, for a better understanding of the land reform process that was initiated by the South African democratic state after assuming political power in 1994. Its fundamental base is the Restitution of Land Rights Act No 22 of 1994 as amended, the 1996 Constitution of the Republic of South Africa and various associated legislation. In a nutshell, Chapter 1 presents an exposé of those individuals that qualify as beneficiaries to the South African Land