SW Radio Africa (London)
Alex Bell
10 July 2009
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai on Thursday admitted the government cannot compensate any farmers for farms acquired in the land 'reform' programme, echoing Robert Mugabe's sentiments that the British need to foot the bill.
Tsvangirai and Mugabe were both speaking at the opening of the Investment Conference in Harare on Thursday, where the land issue and property rights dominated talks. Mugabe passionately defended his land resettlement scheme, which, since it began in 2000, has resulted in the destruction of the once prosperous agricultural sector. He was speaking in response to a question on farmers' compensation posed by the President of the Commercial Farmers Union (CFU), Trevor Gifford.
With agriculture as the key to getting Zimbabwe's economy working again, the unity government hoped the investment conference would persuade potential investors to put their money into agriculture, as well as into other sectors such as mining, manufacturing and tourism. But Mugabe did not raise investor confidence by telling Gifford that 'not necessarily' every white farm will be seized under his ongoing land 'reform' programme. He also insisted that compensation for land was not the government's responsibility.
"The responsibility of compensation rests on the shoulders of the British government and its allies," Mugabe said. "We pay compensation for developments and improvements. That's our obligation and we have honoured that."
But the fact is that full compensation has not been paid at all and only about 5% of farmers have received anything at all. No compensation has been paid for land. The CFU President told SW Radio Africa on Friday that although he wasn't surprised by Mugabe's comments, he felt disheartened that there's been so little change in attitude within the unity government. He explained that critical reform is still a long way off in Zimbabwe, and said investors at the conference will be disillusioned by this visible lack of change.
"The reality is that the investors were shocked to hear the truth," Gifford said. "This government has a lot of work to do to restore property rights and the rule of law before any investment is forthcoming."
Mugabe has openly supported the ongoing offensive to remove the remaining commercial farmers off their land, saying in a speech earlier this year that white farmers were 'not welcome' in Zimbabwe. Despite his clear animosity towards the white farming community, which has directly resulted in intensified farm attacks and seizures this year, Mugabe still told the conference delegates on Thursday; "Above all Zimbabwe upholds the sanctity of property rights."
His comments come as at least three farmers in Nyamandlovu are set to lose their farms under the pretence of the land resettlement scheme. SW Radio Africa understands that war veterans loyal to Minister of Mines Obert Mpofu, have invaded farms in the area this week. Mpofu was last year also implicated in land attacks in the area, after more than a hundred war veterans attacked a farm belong to Wayne Munro. Munro was assaulted in the attack.
Tsvangirai meanwhile echoed Mugabe's comments, telling delegates that the government could not compensate farmers for lost land, because of a lack of funds. He said that while there may be disagreement on the way the land reform was carried out, there was agreement on the need for it. Tsvangirai himself has also dismissed the ongoing land attacks as a handful of incidents that have been 'blown out of proportion'.
Discord in the so-called 'unity' formation was further exposed on Thursday when Arthur Mutambara, the Deputy Prime Minister, contradicted Mugabe on the land issue. He told the would-be investors that Zimbabwe needed property rights and security of tenure to be restored and said the "country can't keep pushing the blame" for its failures on to former colonial powers. He also called for a moratorium on the ongoing farm attacks, which, despite bearing witness to, he has done nothing about.
Mutambara, who is already at loggerheads with Tsvangirai over how to deal with the unilateral appointment of Gideon Gono and Johannes Tomana, on Thursday also openly differed with Mugabe on other fundamental issues. Mutambara spoke strongly against the stalling of the implementation of the Global Political Agreement, attempts to force the Kariba draft constitution on the people, and the state's failure to halt the breakdown of the rule of law. In a clear response to Mugabe's recent declaration during his ZANU PF Central Committee meetings that the Kariba draft would be the only reference document during the constitution-making process, Mutambara said Zimbabweans were yearning for a people-driven constitution.
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Juhlman, Yes Britain is responsible for most of the payments to white farmers. In addition they are largely responsible for land distribution that favored white tiny...tiny...tin.. minority. Agreements were made and UK should have kept their word. Maybe it is true that you cannot trust an anglo white person. That is the impression they left.
White Rhodesian farmers are a liability to every Zimbabwean political leader. If you support them, you lose the elections. They also are to blame for seeking publicity abroad when they disagree with the black majority. They are a bad apple in our midst. That is… [Read Full Text]
I see Phiri you are back to your old racist ways.
Why stop at farms, rush to homes and businesses, why not evict every white person from the country. You sure are not the solution to Zimbabwes problems. It is the mentalities like yours that are the problem in the world today. Your hate rehetorict should and needs to be consigned to the past.
Phiri, we often disagree but I would not go so far as to call you racist.
I, for one, actually do recognize the political liability that white farmers in Zimbabwe carry to ANYONE who would defend their cause. But the reality of it does NOT make it right! I agree they they might not even be popular, yet even you MUST agree that those farmers DID actually employ thousands, if not millions, of "black" Zimbabweans. Those farmers DID actually produce a surplus of agriculture that fed the nation and provided for export income.
And THAT was probably… [Read Full Text]
Julhmann ... l am glad and thankful for showing all posters that you are a reasonable and rational person. You are capable of contributing positive aspects to the debate to the way forward though you are limited by your failure to point out the lack of remorse for the racism and discriminatory practices of the British settlers (not the West ... lets be more specific as to who we are talking about). The rhodesians cannot pretend that they were killing their fellow country men and basically, in 1980, the lot of them were Soldiers of the losing side ..… [Read Full Text]
AK:
I have no time for remorse, I am not Rhodesian, I am not British, none of my family have ever owned slaves, we did not participate in Africa's colonial period or profit by it. I'm not a "party" to any of that............
However, if the people of Zimbabwe did not suffer as they do under ZANU-PF I wouldn't be so angry, in fact, I probably wouldn't have been drawn to the situation in Zimbabwe at all! Although I understand why certain groups still harbor anger towards the British for the legacy of the colonial period, what does… [Read Full Text]
Julhman, my boy ... firstly l must thank you for your post, an eye opening post, indeed. Instead of calling each other names etc we are now discusing matters in a constructive mode. Now about the ongoing important matter about what Zimbabwe has to do with the Rhodesians and all those who fought very hard to stop the birth of Zimbabwe, (lots of Africans were in this group). What is their place in Zimbabwe? The Rhodies remained aloof and refused to mix and mingle with the new polititical leaders. That was their main mistake. There was no remorse or sorriness… [Read Full Text]
Akapfunde - you say that the 'rhodies remained aloof and refused to mix with the new leaders'. It is very difficult to be able to verify this, but it does occur to me that had the 'rhodies' not been seen to be mixing with the MDC leaders things may have gone better for them.
Most successful ethnic minorities around the world tend to keep a low profile; I'm not sure whether this is a good thing or a bad thing, but I am sure that it is too one dimensional to simply say that the 'rhodies' brought it on themselves… [Read Full Text]
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I didn't think the British agree to by ALL the white commercial farms in Zimbabwe under the Lancaster Agreement! So out of almost 4200 white-owned commecial farms there will a dozen or two left? Mugabe expects the UK o buy ALL the farms? At least MT admitted it was because the Government of Zimbabwe has no money!
The money to compensate those farmers isn't coming from the "West"! Maybe claims should be filed with the AU Tribunal by the farmers who have been dispossessed? Maybe claims should be brought against the Government of Zimbabwe in… [Read Full Text]