Video shows that ANC opened door for land grabs in South Africa

The ANC opened the door wide for land grabs to occur in South Africa and it will be of such great magnitude that the ANC will not be able to manage it.

The announcement by President Cyril Ramaphosa late Tuesday evening that the ANC will proceed with the process of amending Section 25 of the Constitution is now apparently creating the impression that land grabs are acceptable.

Yesterday morning (Wednesday), one day after President Ramaphosa’s announcement in the media, a farmer form Wesselsbron in the Free State was threatened with land grabs by members of the community.

The matter has already been reported to the police and the FF Plus will request the provincial police commissioner to ensure that the investigation is conducted efficiently. Should the charges not be investigated thoroughly, and should the offenders not be prosecuted, the incident will set a precedent that could lead to more land grabs.

In a video on social media, a threatening land occupant says that President Ramaphosa encouraged workers that want land to engage with farmers on the matter.

That is certainly less than ideal. The land debate in South Africa is highly volatile at present and negotiations between farmers and land occupants will obviously not be peaceful.

The FF Plus plans to ask President Ramaphosa and the Minister of Police, Bheki Cele, during the upcoming debates in Parliament, what they are going to do to ensure that these discussions do not lead to violence.

The ANC has sold out farmers and landowners to illegal land grabs. We are now exposed to danger and violence that may erupt as the majority of people in South Africa have the expectation that they can just take possession of land.

The ANC’s plan to speed up expropriation without compensation could lead to anarchy and land grabs, similar to what occurred in Zimbabwe.

In the interim, the FF Plus will proceed to lodge an official complaint with the Human Rights Commission of the United Nations (UN) regarding this violation of Article 17 of the UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which protects private ownership of property and prohibits expropriation without compensation.

Issued by Pieter Groenewald, FF Plus leader, 2 August 2018