The MEC for Agriculture, Land Reform and RuralDevelopment, Mr Norman Shushu said much still needs to be done to reverse the brutal acts of the 1913 Land Act. MEC Shushu was speaking at Cassel in the John Taolo Gaetsewe District Municipality on Saturday as part of commemorating the 1913 Natives Land Act Centanary.
This year mark the 100th year since the enactment of this brutal systematization of land alienation from the black indigenous majority.
The MEC highlighted that various chiefs of Batlhaping and Batlhoro like Kgosi Jantjie, Toto Mothibi, Galeshewe and others played a critical role in the fight against land dispossession. He highlighted that about 1.5 million hacters of land has been given back to various communities across the country through Land Reform.
MEC Shushuadded that about R350 million million will be needed to assist farmers in three districts, namely John Taolo Gaetsewe, Namakwa and Francis Baard.
This Act, Act /27/13, was the first of a number of discriminatory laws that reinforced the massive dispossession of land from Black South Africans.
This Natives Land Act contributed a lot in creating triple challenges of poverty, unemployment and equality confronting South Africa today. These challenges are felt by majority of our people particularly 12 million South Africans living in rural areas.
One of the victim of land dispossession, Mr Frakkie Motshabi highlighted that the system was so cruel as life was not good. He recalled the night the tractor was broken and tried to wake his manager and he woke his owner appealed to everyone .
Enquiries: Phemelo Manankong - External Communications Officer
Tel: 053 839 7881
Cell: 071 889 5112
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.