ARAC UPDATE No 30……..01/10/10
Dear Farmer,
This week has been a busy one for us and has also ended on a sad note with the death of Shayne Wells’ father, Tim Field. Tim was a fine man and friend to many of us, as well as a farmer all too familiar with the trauma we have gone through these past ten years. We at ARAC and CFU extend our sincere condolences to Shayne and all the family at this time of sadness.
On Thursday we hosted a meeting for the Applicants in the Mike Campbell case which has been heard at the SADC tribunal. I am sure most farmers are aware of the case and the relief sought , as well as the judgment. The failure on behalf of the Government of Zimbabwe to comply with the ruling has resulted in considerable losses to the applicants.
The legal team who are driving the case are anxious to proceed and ARAC has agreed to support the applicants to prepare standardised loss claims which can be used in court .We believe that there is much to be gained and we will learn a considerable amount to further the process of seeking compensation for all farmers who have suffered loss as a result of the fast tract resettlement process.
Wynand Hart took us through a presentation on the essentials for compensation. It is a process with a number of steps which must answer three questions, namely: WHY, HOW, and WHAT?
Sequentially, the process involves the following:
1. The loss,
2. The documentation,
3. The valuation,
4. The litigation,
5. The negotiation,
6. The agreement and finally,
7. The implementation.
ARAC will assist the applicants to compile a document that contains: proof of ownership, right to claim, date of effect, and lists of losses that can be claimed based on the principles laid down in international law and the value of the above. At the meeting we were able to take an initial group of farmers through the process of claim preparation and aim to have standardised loss claim documents available to the legal team by the end of November. This work will be done in full collaboration with the Valuation consortium or other professional valuer as require by the individual farmer. Thereafter the documents will be used by the legal team to present the case in court; as the legal process is already well advanced we believe that valuable lessons and information can be gained that will assist in obtaining compensation for all farmers.
Best regards,
Ben Giplin