Land Court Bill has long road ahead

THE Minister of Justice, Constitutional Development and Correctional Services, together with the Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development and Land Reform announced on March 1 that the Land Court Bill had been approved by the Cabinet for submission to Parliament.

Although the bill has not been published, the announcement made reference to several important provisions in the bill in as far as it could affect the effective determination of disputes around land in our country.

Should the proposed provisions be properly implemented, this may prove an important step towards increasing the effectiveness of land reform and the alleviation of socio-economic challenges linked to the unequal distribution of land and land resources.

The bill originates from the recommendations of the Presidential Advisory Panel on Land Reform and Agriculture. The panel delivered a thought-provoking, sometimes scathing report on the state of land reform. It recommended that the Land Claims Court should become the Land Court, with added powers and functions.

An inter-ministerial committee was consequently tasked to oversee the implementation of the recommendations of the advisory panel, which has culminated in the proposed bill.

The bill seeks to address the backlog of land claims to be heard by the Land Claims Court and to accelerate the land reform programme as a whole.

Although the land reform process showed a promising start, only modest progress has been made. It is therefore evident the role and effective functioning of the proposed Land Court and Land Court of Appeal, as set out in the bill, could be central to the future success of the land reform programme.

The bill has been approved by only the Cabinet and must follow the usual parliamentary process for the processing and adoption of draft legislation. It is to be tabled before Parliament by the executive, represented by the Minister of Justice, Constitutional Development and Correctional Services, Ronald Lamola, and the Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development and Land Reform, Thoko Didiza, as the bill affects both ministries.

Parliamentary portfolio committees will have the opportunity to be briefed on the bill by the ministers, and will advertise the bill for public comments, followed by the first round of public participation, which ordinarily includes oral representations. The relevant government departments must then respond to the public representations made.

The bill will then be amended as required by the committee/s and adopted. This is called the B version of the bill. It will serve before the National Assembly for voting. If approved by the National Assembly, it will then be submitted to the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) and possibly be subjected to a second round of public participation at provincial level.

If the NCOP makes further amendments, it will be referred back to the National Assembly, which may either approve or reject it.

If the bill is approved by Parliament, it will be sent to the president, who is expected to sign (assent to) the bill in approval of its enactment, and indicate a date on which it is to come into operation. The president, however, may also refer the bill back to Parliament if he deems it to be partially or wholly unconstitutional.

Therefore, although announced by the ministers in the beginning of last month, the bill has a long road ahead before it comes into operation.