Land grab: push-back campaign launched

THE SA Institute of Race Relations (SAIRR) has launched a pushback campaign against what it called the government’s plan to confiscate private property through expropriation without compensation.

This comes as the joint parliamentary committee on constitutional review of section 25 is currently compiling its report based on the outcomes of public hearings conducted throughout the country on whether the constitution should be amended to enable expropriation of land without compensation.

The report will be tabled in Parliament next month, but the SAIRR has vowed to oppose the proposal, even if the majority of South Africans wanted it.

Earlier this year, when public hearings started, the SAIRR responded to calls for written submissions by filing its own, with thousands of names from its online campaign.

SAIRR project manager Terence Corrigan said the organisation was launching another similar campaign in a bid to persuade President Cyril Ramaphosa to abandon plans to expropriate land.

“We are obviously opposed to the amendment and the idea of expropriation without compensation. We were trying to offer South Africans a channel through which they can voice their opposition,” Corrigan said.

SAIRR head of campaigns Marius Roodt said the move would be a disaster for the country’s economic prospects.

“We think expropriation of land without compensation will damage property rights dearly in South Africa and any country that wants to be prosperous can only do so if they (have) a secure regime of property rights.

“Just because the majority want something, it does not necessarily mean that the government should do that. If we had a referendum in South Africa, we would probably have the death penalty back and we would probably have no rights for gay people. In a liberal democracy, it is very important to protect the rights of individuals, sometimes even against the wishes of the majority,” Roodt said.