The Commercial Farmers Union (CFU), which represents the interests of the besieged Zimbabwean white farmers, said some of its members were being invited to a provincial centre where they are informed of the decision to allow them to continue farming.
The week before last we had picked up information that some farmers were being called in to a provincial centre to be formally advised
that they were to be one of the ten farmers who were allegedly to
remain and continue farming in each district of that particular
province, a union spokesperson said last week.
Sources said the province in question was Mashonaland Central which
has seen some of the worst cases of violence linked to the seizure of
white-owned farms.
This news was of course received with some relief by some and with
some scepticism by others, particularly as we are aiming towards a
moratorium being declared on evictions and prosecutions as part of the
land audit which will hopefully be taking place in the not too distant
future, the spokesperson said.
The CFU has a pending Supreme Court application in which it is seeking
an order calling for a moratorium on the ongoing prosecutions and
evictions of white farmers by Mugabes supporters.
The union wants an order suspending ongoing prosecutions and criminal
proceedings against several of its members accused of allegedly
contravening Section 3(3) of the Gazetted Land Act.
The union contends that the prosecutions are invalid and of no force
and violate the constitutional rights of the farmers.
The Attorney Generals Office has in recent months stepped up
prosecution of white farmers it claims are refusing to vacate land
acquired by the government for purposes of redistribution to land less
blacks.
This is despite the fact that the Southern African Development (SADC)
Tribunal ruled in 2008 that the governments land reform programme is
discriminatory and illegal under the SADC Treaty to which Zimbabwe is
signatory.
Hordes of Zanu (PF) supporters, so-called war veterans and members of
the army and police stepped up farm invasions almost immediately after
the formation of the inclusive government in February 2009.
Commercial farmers organisations say invaders have since raided at
least 150 of the about 300 remaining white-owned commercial farms, a
development that has intensified doubts over whether the unity
government will withstand attempts by Zanu (PF) hardliners to sabotage
it.
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai has ordered the arrest and
prosecution of the farm invaders but his word is largely ignored with
farmers reporting continuing invasions of their properties and
disruption of farming activities.
The International Monetary Fund and Western countries have on top of
other conditions made it clear that they would not consider giving
aid to the Harare government while farm invasion continue.
Zimbabwe has since 2000, when land reforms began, relied on food
imports and handouts from international food agencies mainly due to
failure by resettled black peasants to maintain production on former
white farms.
Post published in: News