Great land debate

DRAFT REPORT: WHETHER TO CHANGE CONSTITUTION

‘65% of submissions opposed to changing the constitution while 34% were in favour’.

Most of the submissions that made their way to parliament regarding land expropriation were against changing section 25 of the constitution.

The joint constitutional review committee (CRC) yesterday announced that it had begun to consider the draft report on whether a review of section 25 was necessary to allow government to expropriate land without compensation.

The committee said one of the outcomes of the report was that while most participants were not against land reform, only 34% felt it necessary to amend the constitution in order to expropriate land without compensation.

It held public hearings in all the nine provinces while oral presentations were held in parliament. Several observations from the hearings and written submissions were contained in a report about the process thus far.

The proceedings were sparked by a motion brought by the governing ANC and supported by the Economic Freedom Fighters to adopt a resolution to expropriate land without compensation, as a means to fast-track land reform.

The committee was instructed by both the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces to ascertain whether a review of section 25 and other clauses was necessary, to make it possible for government to expropriate land in the public interest, and also to propose constitutional amendments where necessary.

While the debate was the subject of heated rhetoric between political parties and interested groups such as AgriSA and AfriForum, it also put government in the spotlight with the international community. This was after minority interest groups managed to convince some American media houses that white farmers were being threatened, murdered and stripped of their land.

According to the report, there was overwhelming support for a constitutional amendment on expropriation of land without compensation. Those opposed argued that the rejection of expropriation didn’t mean that the proponents of this viewpoint didn’t support land reform.

“In terms of written submissions and oral presentations, the report indicates that 65% of valid submissions were opposed to changing the constitution whilst 34% were in favour. A further 1% was undecided on the matter.”

The committee is expected to sit again on November 8.

The CRC held public hearings in all the nine provinces.