PROPERTY: Land claims resurrected

On 30 June 2014, President Jacob Zuma announced the re-opening of the land restitution claims giving the people a five-year window period to lay such claims. This opportunity does not come without its problems.

The first phase of land claims faced a backlog of more than 8,000 claims and the expected number of claims to be lodged during this second phase is about 397,000 claims. Whether there are enough resources, human and economic, to deal with these claims is still to be proven. Minister Nkwinti has advised that backlogged claims and present claims will be processed simultaneously, electronically to avoid information being lost, with earlier claims to be given priority but payment to be made for any claim ready to be paid.

Another problem that the re-opening of the land claim faces is the conflict that may arise as a result of these claims. Several traditional leaders have announced their intention to take advantage of this re-opening of the land restitution claims. The claims are restricted to land dispossessions which took place after 1913 with a hint of flexibility. Land has changed hands over the past century and determining which people have a claim to a certain piece of land could result in animosity and even violence should the process not be managed properly with transparency and accountability.

Ownership of land is given a very high status and has been given priority from the beginning of time. And as such, the re-opening of the land restitution claims will result in a flood of claims that will inevitably result in frustration due to the backlog and potential violence due to conflicting claims. One has to ask, does the method of land restitution promote the values and principles enshrined in the Constitution and contribute towards building “a united and democratic South Africa” as envisioned by the preamble?

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