Examining the 100-year Anniversary of the Native Land Act

Kwazi Thabethe

@KwaziThabethe

South Africa, along with its "Rainbow Nation" mantra, is seen by many (particularly those living outside the country) as the world’s greatest fairytale because of the seemingly successful and peaceful transition from white minority rule to democracy that has occurred in the post-Apartheid era. But behind that rainbow and concealed by the politically correct "feel good" rhetoric is a country that is shamed by the failure to effectively address possibly the greatest question that faces a newly independent state; Land Reform!

The basis for any struggle for independence, any revolution, or any mass uprising against the might of a controlling (and sometimes foreign) power structure is almost always a need for a greater share of the riches produced by the land that the people work. This was the case in the French Revolution, the Russian Revolution, the Cuban Revolution, the Rhodesian War, and the Mau Mau uprising in Kenya, just to name a few examples that demonstrate this point. And now here in 2013 I, like many black South Africans, am feeling awkward and embarrassed to be living under the sort of ideals that were envisioned by the scribes of the Native Land Act 100 years go. Despite the myth about black freedom being attained 19 years ago when the right to vote was granted to us, we are still haunted by theft of the land of our forefathers having being codified into law 100 years ago, and that in itself branches off into numerous obstacles that stand in the way of attaining true freedom for us the indigenous of people of this continent.

So what did the Native Land Act of 1913 aim to accomplish? The eternal economic enslavement of black people by permanently isolating us from the fruits of our land of birth. After the ravages of colonialism, first at the hands of the Dutch and then at the hands of the British, the previously self-sufficient black Africans were already dispossessed of the bulk of the country’s land and what the Native Land Act of 1913 merely did was classify this humiliating injustice as a matter law. A further purpose of the Act was to regulate the areas where natives could own land within South Africa’s land mass. Originally, the Native Land Act designated 7% of South Africa as native reserves where blacks could own land, despite blacks being an overwhelming demographic majority. Solomon Plaatjie captured the truth of this era when he said "Awaking on Friday morning, June 20 1913, the African native found himself, not actually a slave, but a pariah in the land of his birth".

So 100 years later, what is the legacy of this despicable piece of legislation? Since then we’ve seen apartheid come & go and now find ourselves in a democratic South Africa but there’s been very little land reform to speak of, which means no meaningful transformation of the economy or reparations towards black people for centuries of exploitation and degradation. Yes, the ingredients’ needed to ensure that the black majority is forever trapped in their inferiority complex are all there. Frantz Fanon once wrote that "For a colonized people, the most essential value, because it is the most concrete, is first and foremost the land: the land which will bring them bread and, above all, dignity". When such a theory is applied in the South African context and with the 100-yar anniversary of the Native Land Act in mind, it becomes clear that we black South Africans have had our dignity trampled on for far too long. And to make matters worse, our government doesn’t seem to appreciate that this country’s status quo with regards to land ownership is an embarrassment to any self-respecting black person. The government rather chooses to betray the legacies of Chief Bhambhatha, King Cetshwayo and many others greats who stood up and fought for the native’s pride & and access to land, by constantly begging the white beneficiary’s of our oppression to BUY back the land that was STOLEN from our ancestors. Another unfortunate aspect about government’s participation in the land reform process is that they appear to be dragging their heels in ensuring that land is transferred from a white minority to the black landless majority. Stats currently indicate that only 8% of the country’s arable land has been redistributed to the people while the actual target set in 1996 was to have 30% redistributed by 2016. As long as the land reform process continues at such a snail’s pace, the notion that the native has attained any meaningful freedom will remain somewhat of a lie.

So what is it exactly that causes the government to take such a frustratingly diplomatic approach to providing land for the black proletariat? Do they fear that the Rainbow Nation will lose its innocence if they take a revolutionary stance on the land issue? Do they believe that far-reaching attempts at economic transformation are overly ambitious and would destabilise the economy? Do they fear that interference in the agrarian sector could jeopardise the country’s food supply? (That’s the latest excuse that’s being floated around) Or have they simply sold out and decided to pander to the whims of white monopoly capital and decided that South Africa’s land is best left privatised? The answers to these questions are unclear but what is clear is that the 100 year of anniversary of the Native Land Act is a much needed reminder to the natives that they’ve been detached from the most effective tool of economic liberation for far too long. The return of our land will restore our dignity and the fruits of our land will put us on the road towards economic freedom. It is with this reasoning in mind that we say "MAYIBUYE"!