Zim property auction in SA postponed after government intervenes
By Alex Bell
27 July 2010
The auction of several Zimbabwe government owned properties in South Africa,
seized to pay back South African farmers and a German bank, has been
postponed, after the government challenged the legality of the sale.
The auction was meant to get underway on Tuesday, but the government’s legal
representatives over the weekend filed an urgent application to halt the
sale. The North Gauteng High Court on Monday postponed the auction, saying
more time was needed by all respondents in the case, which has been set down
for September.
Seven properties in the Western Cape and Gauteng were seized by German
development bank KFW Bankengruppe in May, over the government’s failure to
settle a multi-million dollar loan. The government, through the Zimbabwe
Iron and Steel Co Ltd (Zisco), entered into the loan agreement with the
German bank in January 1998. Repayment of the loan was then meant to be done
in 16 instalments starting from May 2000. But after only four payments, the
last being in 2002, Zisco stopped paying, leaving the German bank with no
other option than seek other means of repayment.
Civil rights group AfriForum is locked in a similar court battle with the
Zimbabwean government, representing a group of farmers who lost land as a
result of Robert Mugabe’s land seizures. Four other Cape Town properties
were seized as part of the legal battle, and identified as Zimbabwean assets
that could be auctioned off as possible compensation for the farmers. A 2008
regional ruling, declaring the land ‘reform’ program as ‘unlawful’ has been
ignored and legally dismissed in Zimbabwe, leaving farmers with no choice
but to seek justice elsewhere. Farmers approached AfriForum to have that
same ruling, made by the human rights court of the Southern African
Development Community (SADC), registered in South Africa.
Judge Garth Rabie in February ruled in favour of the farmers, stating that
the SADC Tribunal ruling, including a later order to pay costs to the
farmers, should be honoured. AfriForum has since been seeking what
Zimbabwean assets can be attached to settle these costs and they identified
four properties in Cape Town.
AfriForum’s legal representative, Willie Spies, explained that the court’s
decision on Monday to postpone the sale of the Zimbabwean properties,
affects their case too. He explained that the Zimbabwe government is arguing
that all the properties are protected by diplomatic immunity and cannot be
auctioned.
“Many of the properties are being used for commercial purposes and are not
therefore protected by diplomatic immunity,” Spies said. “The Zimbabwe
government is abusing court proceedings and it means Zimbabwe has developed
into a rogue state.”