Tag: Interim Protection of Informal Land Rights Act

Government’s ‘consultation’ on communal land tenure just a tick-box exercise

By Katlego Ramantsima Developing land tenure legislation is a difficult job to get right — especially given the legacy of intractable problems inherited from apartheid. The Gauteng consultation did not seem genuine: it lasted only three hours.

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.customcontested.co.za/governments-consultation-on-communal-land-tenure-just-a-tick-box-exercise/

Communal land belongs to the people, not to the chiefs

It’s time the South African government made it clear that traditional leaders do not legally own the communal land that lies within the boundaries of our former homelands. The Minister of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA), Des van Rooyen, and the Director-General of Traditional Affairs, Professor Charles Nwaila, peddled this myth most recently on …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.customcontested.co.za/communal-land-belongs-people-not-chiefs/

New bill leaves communities at leaders’ mercy

Parliament is about to begin nationwide public hearings on a new law to regulate the roles of traditional and Khoi-San leaders. The debate, which is expected to kick off in mineral-rich North West next month, will pit rural communities against coalitions of elite power in an important battle over the right to make deals potentially …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.customcontested.co.za/new-bill-leaves-communities-at-leaders-mercy/

Advocacy for women’s land rights: Plotting the way forward

The story of Dudu Xaba from KwaZulu Natal shows vividly how land rights and livelihoods are intertwined. Xaba’s late father left her a farm in his will but her half-brother claimed it, arguing only a male heir could inherit the plot. The brother and the local chief threatened her with violence if she persisted with …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.customcontested.co.za/advocacy-womens-land-rights-plotting-way-forward/

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