Police in riot gear raided the farms in Masvingo east commercial farming area this week and evicted dozens of people before arresting 10 villagers for illegally occupying black-owned properties. They were bundled into government trucks, dumped by the roadside and told that they should go back to their original homes.
The villagers said their future was bleak as government has told them it has no land to resettle them. They claim they are being punished as some of them had occupied farms owned by senior Zanu PF politicians or their relatives.
A spokesman for the group, Banarbas Museva, said the situation at the squatter camp is now unbearable as they are sharing water with wild and domestic animals.
“We are not the only ones who have invaded farms,” said Museva. “We do not know why we are being removed now – when we moved on to these farms during the invasions in 2005. It is clear that senior politicians are pushing us out in order to either accommodate themselves or their relatives.”
Masvingo provincial administrator Felix Chikovo confirmed the evictions saying: “As you know government policy stipulates that all black-owned farms should be spared from acquisition and those people invaded black-owned farms.
Post published in: News