Last week, as the National Assembly in South Africa agreed to set a date for whites to have their land taken away, proponents of the land grab exulted, with one politician gloating, “Your time is up, white people.”
A motion from African National Congress (ANC) chief whip Jackson Mthembu to require the legislature to ensure a constitutional amendment to allow land expropriation without compensation was adopted, with 183 yea votes and 77 nay votes. The amendment would change section 25 of the constitution, which states that a “just and equitable” payment which reflects “an equitable balance between the public interest and the interests of those affected” must be offered for land.
The motion forces a deadline of March 31, 2019, to complete the work of writing the legal change and presenting it.
Economic Freedom Fighters MP Hlengiwe Mkhaliphi argued land grabs should occur, declaring: “Your time is up, white people.” Themba Godi, from the African People’s Convention, echoed, “Land must be nationalized and socialized for the benefit of the people, especially the working class and women … those who oppose want the perpetuation of wrongs of past.”
Freedom Front Plus’ Anton Albert countered by addressing the ANC benches, saying, “When the blood flows it will be on your hands.” IFP MP Mkhuleko Hlengwa added, “To achieve real and effective land reform is (possible) under the existing constitution, not your (ANC) populist agenda. You should be ashamed of yourself.”
In February 2018, the National Assembly ruled that white South African farmers would be removed from their land. The vote, prompted by a motion brought by radical Marxist opposition leader Julius Malema, was not even close; 241 legislators voted for it with only 83 voting against it. Malema told his supporters in 2016 he was “not calling for the slaughter of white people — at least for now.”
News24 reported Malema saying before the vote was taken, “The time for reconciliation is over. Now is the time for justice.” Gugile Nkwinti, minister of water affairs, echoed, “The ANC (African National Congress) unequivocally supports the principle of land expropriation without compensation. There is no doubt about it, land shall be expropriated without compensation.”
In August, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that the African National Congress would move forward in amending the constitution to permit the seizure of white farmers’ lands without compensation. Later that month, it was reported that a record number of farms were for sale because white farmers tried to offload land and leave the country before the government confiscated their farms.
As The Daily Wire reported in August, “South Africans — both black and white — aren’t thrilled with the idea since a major re-appropropration and re-division of land would severely harm South Africa’s farming industry, destroying jobs and opportunities for both black and white workers. Others, with knowledge of history — particularly what happened after the government grabbed land from white farmers in neighboring Zimbabwe — say they’re terrified the government has no real plan for its seizure and could send the country tumbling into economic ruin.”