Chief Magistrate says SADC ruling on Zimbabwe farms should be ignored

By Violet Gonda
26 February 2009

Last year Zimbabwean commercial farmers were left with no choice but to take the Zimbabwean government to a SADC tribunal to try to stop the illegal evictions.

They won their case and a SADC Tribunal in Namibia granted scores of white farmers permission to remain on their land. However the Zimbabwean authorities continue to disrupt and harass the farmers, in total violation of the ruling by the regional bloc.

This is also in total disregard of the power sharing government. It has emerged that the Attorney General Johannes Tomana was one of the officials who recently took part in a one day workshop for magistrates in the Chegutu area – the heartland of the SADC applicants - at which it was decided that the SADC ruling would be ignored. This is despite the fact that Zimbabwe is a signatory of the SADC tribunal.

Officials from the Ministry of Lands, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, plus the police participated in this workshop on the 6th February at the Rukawo Motel, to find out ways of handling quicker prosecutions of commercial farmers who have been refusing to vacate gazetted land.

Guest speakers included the notorious and controversial AG, the Chief Magistrate Herbert Mandeya and David Mangota, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Justice. The AG criticised what he termed “unnecessary delays" in the farmers' trials. Tomana himself is a beneficiary of land in the Banket area.

It was at this workshop that magistrates were told to disregard the SADC Tribunal ruling, and were told it does not form part of Zimbabwean law. Mandeya said treaties entered into by the government cannot form part of Zimbabwe’s laws, unless they go through Parliament. He urged the magistrates to refer these cases to the Supreme Court. It is there that eviction challenges are usually dropped.

The participants agreed that the SADC Tribunal ruling should not have any bearing in Zimbabwe’s courts and that the lands officers, together with law enforcement agencies, “must do everything in their power to assist in the eviction of former commercial farmers who are refusing to vacate gazetted farms and whose cut-off dates have elapsed.”

A statement from the Commercial Farmers Union said Mandeya advised his fellow Magistrates to be guided by the recent Supreme Court Judgement in the case between Mike Campbell and the Ministry of Lands, where the Judge ruled in favour of the latter. Campbell is the farmer currently facing eviction by ZANU PF official Nathan Shamuyarira’s nephew, Peter Chamada.

Responding to Chief Magistrate Mandeya’s assertion that treaties entered into by Zimbabwe cannot form part of law, Campbell’s son-in-law, Ben Freeth, said the SADC Treaty became part of domestic law in 1992 when it was signed by Mugabe. “It was only in 1993 that Parliament brought in Section III [b], which required that future treaties be endorsed by Parliament. If we follow the Zimbabwean government’s logic and the SADC Treaty is not part of domestic law, then is Zimbabwe part of SADC? Or has Zimbabwe been attending SADC meetings and summits under false pretences?” he asked.

Freeth told SW Radio Africa the Mugabe regime selectively chooses when to abide by SADC agreements and when it comes to the land issue it chooses to go against the highest human rights court within SADC.

Since the Chegutu ‘workshop’ numerous court summons have been issued to the remaining white commercial farmers and most farmers in the Chiredzi, Lowveld area have been forced into hiding after warrants of arrest were issued against them.

It’s reported there have been at least 100 farms invasions countrywide since the inclusive government was formed.

On Wednesday Prime Minister Tsvangirai said the disruptions on the farms were a huge infringement of the power sharing deal. He denounced the violence on the farms and warned the disruptions “are undermining our ability to revive our agricultural sector and restore investor confidence."

The disruptions are continuing at a time when Zimbabwe should be producing food to feed the starving population. The Commercial Farmers Union estimates the value of the crops in the ground under threat is about £70 million.