SA Ambassador to Zimbabwe criticises lawless farm invasions
By Lance Guma
14 October 2011
South Africa’s Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Vusi Mavimbela, has expressed concern
at the continued lawless invasions of farms owned by South African citizens
in the country. On Thursday Mavimbela met Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai
and reminded him the farm seizures violated a Bilateral Investment Promotion
and Protection Agreement (BIPPA) signed between the two countries in 2009.
“Some of the things seem to be happening not only to the South African
companies, but also to the farmers and this has got a possibility of
violating the agreement. We raised that concern,” Mavimbela said of the
meeting with the PM. “Some of the clauses in that agreement say that even if
farmers are evicted they need to be compensated for improvements made on the
farms,” he added.
Mavimbela narrated instances where farm invaders, “just walk in the farm and
tell the farmer that they are taking over the farm without producing any
documentation to show that they are entitled to the farm. We have talked to
the police to say can you intervene and these people have come into the
farm, with nothing as proof to show that they are entitled to it.” He said
the police claim they can’t intervene.
According to the Ambassador the situation is so serious that relations
between the two countries have worsened. Mavimbela admitted that as embassy
staff they were limited in what they could do and they have since asked
their government to intervene and engage in ‘state-to-state dialogue’.
Commentators however questioned the South African diplomats approach in
contacting Tsvangirai over the issue, when he would know fully that it is
Mugabe and his ZANU PF party who are driving the campaign of lawless farm
takeovers and that Tsvangirai has no power to change that.
Over 200 farmers from South Africa, who were forced to leave Zimbabwe, have
over the years battled to get their government to protect their interests
but without success. South Africa has avoided publicly condemning the
seizure of property owned by its citizens although such acts were in clear
contravention of the protection agreements signed by the two countries. The
farmers were forced to seek recourse in the courts.
In April South Africa’s Supreme Court of Appeal ruled that the government
was not liable in cases related to the unlawful land grab in Zimbabwe. It
said a High Court decision ordering the government to compensate a South
African farmer for land invasions in Zimbabwe was wrong in law.
The High Court had earlier ruled that the South African government did have
a constitutional obligation to provide protection.