Durban - A group of third generation small scale commercial farmers, who have toiled the land for decades, are at their wits end in trying to stop “land grabbers” from destroying their cultivated land.
About 50 sugar cane and vegetable farmers, who own around 10 hectares of land, say they have been invaded and intimated from 2015 but, in recent weeks, the invasions have escalated.
Hectares of farming land have been burnt and bulldozed by people, who claim to have bought the land from the local induna.
But farmers say they have their title deeds and pay rates to the municipality but are still being targeted.
Despite taking the matter to the courts and tirelessly seeking the help of local police, the farmers in Inanda, north of Durban, hold their heads in their hands as destruction continues in every corner.
But Inanda is not the only area to suffer land grabs. Other areas include Tea Estate, Hazelmere, Redcliffe and New Glasgow, and, more recently, Eshowe in northern KZN.
A 61-year-old farmer, from the Tea Estate farming community, said two hectares of crops were burnt last week.
Ronnie Govender, of Buffelsdraai, said he called the police for help but nothing was seemingly done.
“We are so disappointed with our justice system. We keep laying complaints to what is happening but no arrests are being made. This is why the perpetrators are continuing with their destruction and invasions.”
Govender owns six hectares of farming land and cultivates mainly sugar cane.
He said he had just planted sugar cane shoots, which took around three months to mature.
“It cost me R45000 to plant those crops and R25000 worth was lost overnight, after they burnt my land.”
Prior to the fire, Govender said about 600 square metres of land was uprooted by tractors.
“We work so hard for our land. Our input costs are so high that we rely on the crops to feed our families and pay our bills. Farming is not a choice for us. It is our livelihood. It is a trade that has been passed on from our forefathers. It is our heritage and it is in our blood,” said Govender, who has been farming for 25 years.
Govender said land grabbers needed to understand that, even though some of the farms are Indian-owned, the farmers worked hard to buy the land.
“In the same manner, we look after these farms and invest our lives in them. My message to the invaders is to please stop. We have the title deeds and have produced it to the courts and to the police. We have done all we can and now we want to be left alone.”
The land grab situation at farms has become increasingly tense in recent weeks. Many farmers have attributed the expropriation of land without compensation motion in parliament as the root cause.
Farming instability
Willie Naicker, the chairperson of the Umdloti Farmers’ Association and spokesperson for the affected farmers in Inanda, is concerned about the stability of production for the sugar industry.
“We normally harvest a crop size of 25000 to 30000 tons of sugar cane per annum. This year our estimate has dropped to around 7000 tons; an estimate we are unlikely to achieve due to the current land invasions.”
He said another concern was the inability to provide employment due to the current situation.
“We previously employed 800 to 1000 workers but now we can only employ 250 workers.”
Naicker said most of the labourers were afraid to work due to intimidation.
He said the invasions began in 2016 but escalated to a point that farmers were unable to make enough money to meet their commitments.
Naicker said on average it cost farmers at least R37000 a hectare to plant crops and they have to wait between 18 and 24 months to reap their harvest.
“We have done everything we can to find solutions to this problem. We held meetings with the relevant departments but no promises were made. We even submitted title deeds to the police and the anti-land invasion unit but have yet to receive a response.”
Police spokesperson Captain Nqobile Gwala said they received several recent complaints of land invasion. Gwala said a complaint from a Tea Estate farmer was attended to by Verulam SAPS earlier this month.
“We escorted the complainant to Tea Estate. Police approached a male, who was on site and produced documents saying he had purchased the land from the local inkosi. Police also asked the complainants for their title deeds, which they did not have in their possession.
“Police informed the complainant to get his title deed and to also open a case of land invasion. The farmers in the Tea State areas have opened numerous cases and they are still under investigation.”
Naicker said it was not the job of the police to get involved in civil matters and to request title deeds from complainants but to deal with the complaint itself.