The Sunday Mail
Harmony Agere
One of history’s finest journalists and author Margaret Mitchell once described land as the only thing worth dying for.
And in her contemplation, people should protect their homeland at all cost as it is the only lasting inheritance.
“The land is the only thing in the world worth working for, worth fighting for, worth dying for, because it’s the only thing that lasts,” she remarked.
As if inspired by these words, displaced men and women of Zimbabwe took up arms in the fight to reclaim their land from the colonialist. The protracted struggle subsequently brought independence and freedom in 1980.
Unfortunately, the attainment of independence did not immediately restore land to its rightful people. Because of this, there were disgruntlements in the growing population.
Government duly responded by giving land to the people through a fast-track land reform programme in 2000.
However, 16 years after correcting the imbalance created by the colonial regime, the land question is popping up again.
This time the strife appears to be among people of the same kin as some are settling and forcing themselves on land allocated to others.
“The people were displaced by the whites during colonisation and now they are being dispossessed again and this is being done by their own,” said Chief Chikwaka in apparent reference to Rural District Councils (RDCs).
The development is said to be a result of squabbles between traditional leaders and Rural District Councils over who has the control of land in the communal lands.
RDCs and traditional leaders, particularly chiefs, accuse each other of allocating land illegally, a situation which has created hostilities between local and resettled people.
Chiefs and headmen argue that they were given custody of land in the communal areas when traditional boundaries were re-pegged in 1980. They accuse RDCs of excluding them from the planning of councils, a situation which they say has led to people being settled in locals’ farming plots, pastures and culturally sacred places.
They say this has led to conflicts between resettled people and original owners of the land.
Chief Chikwaka said in his area council is not involving chiefs in planning and allocation of land.
“The problem we have with council is that they don’t involve us in the planning and in the allocation of land,” he said. “So because most of them are people who are not familiar with the boundaries that were established in 1980 when we got Independence they end up settling people in areas that are not fit.
“Local people then end up losing their farming plots while sacred places are also being disrespected. What they are clearly failing to see and understand here is that we chiefs are the overall custodians of the communal lands and should be consulted in every decision.”
Chief Chikwaka said a lot of problems are being caused by lack of communication between chiefs and RDCs.
“You then hear people are selling land when in fact it is they (RDCs) who know who the land barons are,” he said.
Zimbabwe Chiefs Council president, Chief Fortune Charumbira, said it was high time that the role of chiefs and RDC’s was clearly spelt out.
“Who is a DA (District Administrator) and who is a chief? That should be clarified in terms of their roles in the communities, neither of the two should eclipse the other,” said Chief Charumbira.
Chief Charumbira said this in light of a conflict between conservancy owners in the Save valley conservancy and communities where land was given to people illegally and it involved RDC’s.
According to Chief Charumbira, chiefs are the owners of the communities and the natural resources and when you talk of communities it is the Chief, the headman and the village head.
“The DA does not represent the chief, he or she is there to support the work done by the chief and we need that support.
“RDC’s are a central point where people can go and clarify on certain issues pertaining to policy but DA’s do not supervise the chiefs.
“We should not contest for any space between ourselves as chiefs and the DA, as chiefs we will fight in the spirit that the natural resources are ours and we will remain the custodians,” added Chief Charumbira.
Section 282 Subsection 1(d) of the Constitution states that traditional leaders have the jurisdiction, in accordance with an Act of Parliament, to administer communal land and protect the environment within their areas.
However, there is a conflict between the Communal Lands Act and the Constitution.
RDCs, however, accuse the chiefs of corruption and selling land to people. They say chiefs are using political power to settle people illegally. Sources in Government say the issue of illegal land allocation involving chiefs is known but authorities are not sure how to deal with it.
“It is a known issue that some chiefs are abusing their power and are allocating land illegally, this has created problems for RDCs,” said the source. “But the dilemma is that Government is not sure how to deal with the issue because both claim to be backed by legal instruments.”
Research expert, Nicholas Govo, and colleagues in a study of the politics of land allocation in communal lands found out that most problems were created by the colonial system.
“Land tenure systems were not given deserving attention and this has resulted in conflicts on matters relating to land ownership in communal and resettlement areas.
“Traditional leaders have shown that they could not be easily thrown out of rural politics, especially on matters relating to land which they continue to see as their source of power and legitimacy and rural communities are different from urban areas in that they still practice and believe in the hereditary powers of the traditional leaders.”
Efforts to get a comment from Lands Minister Douglas Mombeshora were fruitless as he was not reachable.
Land has caused many armed conflicts throughout the world and experts believe Government should immediately deal with the issue.
While the land reform has gone a long way to address some of the land issues, some people who were displaced by the settler regime are still displaced up to today.
