LAND AND AGRARIAN REFORM
Resolving the land issue once and for all
The MDC has always recognized the need for land reform and has, since its inception,
called for reform and equity in land occupation and use. However, the party rejects
completely the manner in which ZANU(PF) has pursued the land reform issue since
2000. In fact, it is the view of the MDC that this exercise has compounded rather
than resolved the land issue, and at the same time it has destroyed the core of the
national economy and its food system.
When the MDC forms the next government in Zimbabwe, it will accept neither the
status quo that existed prior to 2000 nor the position it will inherit after eight years
of mayhem and destruction by a criminal elite.
The MDC is fully committed to righting the historical imbalance in land distribution.
An MDC government will bring the land crisis to closure through a democratic
and participatory process that achieves equitable, transparent, just, lawful and
economically efficient distribution and use of land, both for agricultural and other
purposes. This policy statement lays out how an MDC government will attain these
objectives.
The MDC will establish a Land Commission under an Act of Parliament that will
create an independent, autonomous and professional body to oversee the land-reform
process in a new Zimbabwe. This Commission will conduct a comprehensive physical
and legal audit of land occupation and ownership in Zimbabwe as its first task.
On the basis of the outcome of this audit, the Commission will determine the status
and future of all existing settlement, the status of those holding title, and a method
of regularizing the situation without further dislocating farm output or disturbing
those in productive occupation of farm land.
The Commission will review all land-tenure arrangements so as to secure the rights
of those in productive occupation of farm land and of those who hold title at present
and wish to resume farming. New farmers in productive occupation of land who
currently do not have security of tenure will be offered leasehold occupation with
the option to purchase the land.
The MDC will also establish a system of compensation for displaced farmers that
will address their rights, make restitution for their losses, and ensure justice for
those whose basic rights, including the right to safety and security and life, were
violated. Those farmers who have been displaced and who no longer wish to resume
production will be dealt with fairly and within the same framework as all other
landowners. It must be noted that this is an extremely serious issue for any new
government that takes over after the next elections. Potential total claims for losses
by displaced farmers are thought to exceed US$8 billion and will, by the time the
transition takes place, be backed by several local and international court cases.
The MDC further recognizes that the dual economy, created in part by the existence
of separate land-tenure arrangements for commercial and communally occupied land,
must be addressed. The Land Commission will be required to examine the situation
in the Communal Lands and, in consultation with all stakeholders, address the need
for greater security of tenure of individual peasant farmers and communities.
Once these preliminary exercises are complete, the Land Commission will draw up
land-settlement plans for all farming districts in consultation with local stakeholders,
and will thereafter supervise their implementation with State assistance. These plans
will take full account of the need to provide security for new settlers, the restoration
of agricultural production and productivity, and a rapid reduction in rural poverty
and insecurity in all districts.
RESOLVING THE LAND ISSUE
Land involves social, legal and economic relationships. That being the case, there
should never be any ambiguity about land as a legal expression. Any future democratic
constitution must thus recognize property rights (private and State) and must
recognize land and its ownership as a basic ground norm, which will be consistent
with international conventions such as Universal Declaration of Human Rights and
the African Charter on Human and People's Rights. These basic rights and norms
in respect to title rights in agriculture have been consistently and violently violated
over the past eight years.
If land is a constitutionally protected human right, then its acquisition and distribution
must also be a constitutional issue. This means that the distribution of land for the
public good must be totally de-politicized and must not be subject to the whims of an
executive driven by political concerns. The task of redistribution and acquisition must
be entrusted to the Land Commission, duly set up by an act of Parliament, whose
majority members must be experts of integrity with guaranteed security of tenure.
The Commitment of the MDC
While respecting the historical, constitutional and legal rights of commercial
farmers, the MDC will not return to the pre-2000 land-ownership patterns, neither
will it condone the inequitable and aberrant land distribution that has resulted from
ZANU(PF)'s ‘fast-track land reform' process.
The MDC has always supported redressing the historical imbalance in the distribution of land, but is unreservedly committed to bring Zimbabwe's land crisis to closure through an inclusive,
participatory and professional process that seeks to achieve the equitable, transparent,
just and efficient distribution of land.
The MDC will insist that a sustainable land-reform and settlement programme is
administered effectively under the rule of law, and that the programme alleviates
poverty without compromising national agricultural production. The MDC's
land-reform programme will be based on need and ability, and will revitalize
the economy, empower farmers, including women, enable the social recovery of
farming communities, and facilitate sustained productivity and growth in agricultural
production.
Land Tenure
Land will be held under one law for all the existing forms of ownership – private,
State and communal. Such law will be fully expressed in the new constitution in
order to give investors confidence and security. The MDC will ensure that there is
comprehensive land legislation in place that allows both for the private ownership of
land secured through title deeds and for community ownership of land, which may
be expressed in various forms, including registered rights. Married women will be
allowed to hold title deeds in their own right.
The MDC believes that the communal system should not be expected to be a
permanent feature of land tenure in the long term. The new system of land tenure
will be progressively transformed so as to break the dual economy that exists in
Zimbabwe. In the first instance the MDC will maintain freehold tenure where it
exists, and offer resettlement and small-scale farmers long-term leases with options
to secure title through purchase. Resettlement schemes operating with communal
grazing will be given the option of being replanned and demarcated into individual,
self-contained family farms. In the communal areas, rights over land and resources
will pass from the State to village or ward assemblies. In villages, land may be
surveyed and households issued with land registration certificates for residential and
arable land. All such reforms will be planned and executed by the Land Commission
with the participation and consent of local farmers and leaders.
Principles of Land Reform
The MDC's land-reform programme is based on the following principles:
* The historical imbalance in the pattern of land distribution must be
addressed urgently in a fair, lawful and transparent manner in order to bring
Zimbabwe's land question to closure.
* The State has the authority to acquire land in the interest of the public good,
and to resolve Zimbabwe's land crisis by distributing land on the basis of
need and ability.
* Constitutionality and the rule of law are the basis on which a democratic
government will resolve the land crisis. Accordingly, citizens share the
fundamental right to the protection of their person and property and to be
selected for settlement regardless of their gender, race, ethnic origin, religion
or political opinions.
* An inclusive consultative process that builds trust and confidence between
stakeholders and policy-makers is required to reach broad consensus on
the means to achieve the reform programme's policy objectives. Special
measures will be put in place to ensure the full participation of women in
this consultative process. All those affected by acquisition and settlement
decisions must be consulted and disputes settled in a court of law.
* The success of the programme is premised on sound land administration:
transparent and cost-effective land-acquisition, farmer-selection, landallocation
and compensation processes; the provision of basic infrastructure
and facilities; and adequate loans, training and services for settlers to farm
productively.
source; [media]http://www.mdc.co.zw/downloads/POLICIES%202008.pdf[/media]