This brief unpacks a judgement against the Ingonyama Trust handed down by the Pietermaritzburg High Court and suggests that it contains useful lessons for land reform across the board.
Land
This brief looks at the latest developments in the process to amend Section 25 of the Constitution, specifically regarding expropriation without compensation. Against the background of land reform requirements, it then goes on to reflect on the implications of insufficient institutional capacity within Government to implement large complex projects.
In this brief, Charles Simkins tracks developments made in the Sixth Parliament to the proposed amendment of section 25 of the Constitution and outlines emerging difficulties in the process.
In this brief, Charles Simkins tracks the land reform process both at the executive and legislative phases and offers insights into the challenges ahead.
This brief considers the potential effects of land expropriation without compensation on the financial institutions of South Africa.
This brief pulls together and summarizes the principles in our approach to the improved distribution and utilization of rural land.
The purpose of this brief is to set out the framework within which developments in relation to the potential amendment of Section 25 of the Constitution will unfold, in relation to expropriation without compensation.
This brief summarizes the findings of a recently completed HSF study on human settlements in urban areas.
As part of its public participation process, the Joint Constitutional Review Committee of Parliament called for submissions on the review of Section 25 of the Constitution (the Property Clause), following a motion passed by the National Assembly on 27 February 2018, relating to expropriation without compensation.
The first brief considered the framework established by the Act and implementation challenges. This brief describes a case study of a spatial development framework in a metropolitan municipality.
This brief is the first of two, and it discusses the framework established by the Act as well as implementation. The second will consider the Johannesburg Spatial Development Framework as a case study.
Much has been made about recent comments by the President on land reform, especially on the question of expropriation without compensation. We look at what this means in practice, within the context of land reform in general.
The final Brief in the series focuses on the interactions between the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries and the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform.
The third brief in the series deals with the State capacity requirements in the proposed framework.
The second Brief in this series sets out the massive information requirements of the proposed system.
The first brief, in this series, sets out the definitions of agricultural land and outlines the regulatory framework contained in the Preservation and Development of Agricultural Land Framework Bill.
Section 25 (7) of the Constitution established the right of individuals and communities who were deprived of property after 19 June 1913, as a result of past racial laws, to either restitution of their property or equitable redress. It is now being debated whether the cutoff date is appropriate or whether it was a compromise made in 1994 which should now be rescinded if sufficient support can be found in Parliament. At present, the ANC would need the co-operation of other parties to muster two thirds of the votes necessary for a constitutional amendment. The EFF has already promised to make its supporters available for such a move.
Historically, redistribution of assets has taken a number of forms. It may take place at the end of a war or as an outcome of a revolution. It may be the result of special action of greater or lesser legality under an authoritarian government. South Africa is developing an approach which differs from all the above. It has the following characteristics:
This brief presents some of the main points raised in the HSF roundtable ‘Title and Entitlement: The Land Question in South Africa’