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IOL News
5 days ago
- Politics
- IOL News
SA Human Rights Commission urges clarity on land expropriation policy
Deputy President Paul Mashatile's recent promise to return the land to the people and take it from the banks has resulted in the SA Human Rights Commission raising concerns over lack of legal and legislative frameworks to ensure equitable redistribution of land. Image: Bongiwe Mchunu / Independent Newspapers The SA Human Rights Commission has called on government to distinguish between acceptable legal instruments that enable administrative procedures and those that substantively achieve constitutional obligation following the recent enactment of the country's Land Expropriation policy. The Commission has accused government of pushing a concerning public discourse both nationally and globally over this policy with no clear legislative framework to achieve equitable land redistribution. "The South African Human Rights Commission (Commission/SAHRC) has observed, with concern, public discourse at national and global platforms, whereby, the Expropriation Act is portrayed as a key component of South Africa's land reform agenda. The position of the SAHRC is that the Expropriation Act does not clarify the conditions for equitable redistribution of land. Neither does it represent a compensation framework that is historically sensitive. It merely delineates the procedures and conditions under which the State may acquire privately owned land. The Commission emphasises the importance of distinguishing between legal instruments that enable administrative procedures and those that substantively achieve constitutional obligation," the Commission said on Tuesday. The Commission's statement of concern comes just a week after deputy president Paul Mashatile promised the return of land to black people saying this will be done without the interference of banking institutions. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad loading IOL reports that Mashatile made this commitment during a question-and-answer session in the National Assembly on Thursday with Mashatile saying the government was determined to protect land reform beneficiaries from being trapped by commercial debt. 'Our role as a new government is to return the land to the people and do it in such a way that we protect them from the commercial don't want a situation where they lose land again because of loans," he said. Last year, President Cyril Ramaphosa signed into law a bill allowing land seizures by the state without compensation - a move that put him at odds with some members of his government within the GNU. While speaking during a recent National Assembly debate, DA MP, Willie Aucamp indicated that the DA will continue to oppose 'Expropriation Without Compensation" as it "threatens investor confidence, destabilises the agricultural sector, and ultimately jeopardises jobs and food security." It is these sentiments that the SAHRC said it is concerned about with the Commission having called on the government to take the necessary steps in ensuring reasonable legislative steps to safeguard the rights of landowners. "Section 25 of the Constitution mandates the State to take reasonable legislative and other measures, within its reasonable resources, to foster conditions that enable citizens to gain access to land on an equitable basis. Since the enactment, of the Constitution, no legislative measures have been taken by the State to give effect to Section 25 (5) of the Constitution. The State's continued failure to enact specific legislation to give effect to Section 25 (5) of the Constitution enables prevailing context of policy incoherence regarding land rights," the Commission stated. The National Department of Agriculture and Land Reform referred the matter to Department of Public Works who are the custodians for the Expropriation Act. "The Expropriation Act is the law that is administered by the Department of Public Works. Your questions should be directed there, as indicated the Expropriation Act is currently legislation/law in the country. It should also be indicated that South Africa has had an Expropriation Act which was enacted in 1975," the department said.
News24
5 days ago
- News24
Survivor tells how trapped miners ate human flesh and cockroaches to survive
The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) is to hold hearings into the tragedy at Stilfontein gold mine. More than 90 people died when police were deployed to 'smoke out' illegal miners - zama zamas. Some of the survivors intend to testify before the SAHRC and some police officers may speak out about wrongdoing by colleagues. Zama zama miner Patrick Ntsokolo saw colleagues eating cockroaches and even dead bodies underground after police from Operation Vala Umgodi blocked deliveries to illegal miners at Stilfontein. He hopes to tell his story to the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC), GroundUp reports. Ntsokolo, a 40-year-old father of six children, survived underground for 18 days with no food except scraps of expired goods. He said he would be willing to testify during upcoming hearings of the SAHRC, but had not yet been approached. A date for the SAHRC hearings has yet to be announced, but the 30 May deadline for public submissions has closed. In an interview, Ntsokolo said he witnessed fellow miners succumb to hunger and eat human flesh. This corroborates media reports and affidavits from several miners that were submitted to the Constitutional Court. 'We tried to tell them, 'hey man, you cannot do that'. They said these human bodies are like pork,' said Ntsokolo. Miners were drinking brackish salty water, he said. During Operation Vala Umgodi, the police were assigned to 'smoke out' illegal miners from the hijacked gold mine. The operation garnered global attention in January, when images were broadcast showing survivors - and body bags - being pulled to the surface from Shaft 11 in a metal cage during a court-ordered rescue operation. 'Everyone wanted to come out… Everyone was like: 'Being in jail is much better than being in this jail of the mine'.' Ntsokolo made his break 1.2km underground by making his way to Shaft 10. 'I told myself, I am not going to die here. I have to go out. God, please help me, I am not going to die here.' He surfaced five days later, on Christmas Day, and was arrested immediately. After what we've been through, when we got to the surface, the police were pointing guns at us. They saw us as hardcore criminals. Ntsokolo was charged with trespassing and illegal mining. On 29 May 2025, he was sentenced to seven months in prison or a R7 000 fine. He said he spent four days behind bars while arranging payment. 'I'm ready to tell the Human Rights Commission everything that happened,' he said. 'They need to know the truth.' Amid a death toll of at least 93, the government's Natjoints police-led operation is accused of effectively trapping illegal miners underground for months without food, water or medicine. At the time, the police presented a united front. But, months later, and with the HRC inquiry under way, it seems some police officers might speak out about alleged wrongdoing. Nomazulu Moyo/GroundUp Johannes Dire, North West Provincial Secretary Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (Popcru), said that the union was aware of accusations of misconduct within the police. But he said the inquiry would likely clear the police of wrongdoing. 'Our members acted within the confinement of the law, and therefore, Popcru supports [the inquiry],' he said. 'Police officers are used to external investigation, and it wouldn't be a new issue.' But the union would support whistleblowers, as it had always done, he said. This reporter visited Stilfontein numerous times from January to April 2025, interviewing miners, civil society organisations and police officers. An officer who is facing serious legal challenges spoke to GroundUp anonymously, out of fear of reprisal. He claimed that if Operation Vala Umgodi hadn't blocked the community from lowering food into the mines, lives could have been saved. 'People died because those officers chose power over humanity.' He said members of the Vala Umgodi task force removed ropes used by community members to deliver supplies to trapped miners, cutting off their lifeline. 'They didn't just target illegal miners - they robbed them, beat them, took their IDs and passports, even when valid. And they did it with soldiers by their side,' he claimed. Tensions ran high between local police, like this officer, and officers deployed from other provinces. The officer claimed locals were often excluded from Vala Umgodi due to suspicion of corruption. 'There are corrupt officers, yes. Some used police vans to deliver food to the miners. But not all of us were corrupt,' he said. 'We were willing to help, but we were shut out.' Nomazulu Moyo/GroundUp Dire confirmed that Popcru had received 'a number of complaints' about strife between police, many of which were 'addressed expeditiously'. 'The unfortunate part has always been that the result of operations creates overwhelming situations at the police stations. That's why maximum capacity is needed,' he said. 'Still, we are open to external investigations.' He added that local officers wished to be part of Operation Vala Umgodi, but that was 'impossible due to the magnitude of the operation'. SAPS police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe responded: 'No local police officer was excluded. The reason we utilise dedicated teams is to ensure we don't remove resources from local police stations so that day-to-day policing continues with required capacity.' A pillar of the inquiry is likely to be testimony from critics of the operation who have stated that miners who died were trapped inside the mine because they were too weak and too far away from the exit shafts. During the standoff at Stilfontein, the government defended the operation as essential to fight crime. Vala Umgodi involves multiple departments and has been rolled out in numerous provinces, with operations ongoing. Police said that exit points were established for resurfacing. And in a statement in December, Natjoints said that miners had the 'capability to exit the underground tunnels independently… Their delayed emergence appears to be a tactic to evade arrest by law enforcement agencies'. After the mass retrieval of bodies in January, Mineral and Petroleum Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe said the miners had gone underground on their own volition. 'If you go to a dangerous place, such as a neglected mine, and stay there for about three months, starving yourself to death, how does that become the responsibility of the state?' he told the media, adding that the mine owners - the Chinese-owned Buffelsfontein Gold Company - should be held accountable. In a March parliamentary reply, Police Minister Senzo Mchunu said that in Stilfontein, 1 916 miners had been arrested and charged with illegal mining, illegal immigration, possession of gold-bearing material and unlawful possession of explosives. The total cost of the operation, he said, had been more than R36.7 million. Now, in June, the North West health department has begun mass burials of unclaimed bodies. Besides investigating the conduct of Vala Umgodi officers, the HRC will also examine the impact of illegal mining on human rights in communities, and gaps in the policy framework on artisanal mining. Civil society grouping MACUA (Mining Affected Communities United in Action) which raised the alarm last year over the plight of the miners underground, plans to testify. In a damning written submission to the HRC, MACUA refers to the 'Stilfontein massacre', claiming that 'state-sanctioned extrajudicial killings' had been carried out under the pretext of combatting illegal mining. MACUA says the HRC did not respond fast enough. For those who lived through the operation - on the ground or underground - accountability is long overdue. 'I'm very hurt by what the government and police did to us,' Ntsokolo said. 'We're still waiting for someone to care.' 'I said we must help those who are weak to get out first' Ayanda Ndabini, 36, spent nearly a month trapped underground in Shaft 11. He went down on 20 September with food, paraffin, and a rough plan. But by November, everything had collapsed - supplies, the communication systems, sense of time, and, almost, the will to live. 'Food finished and we started trying to look for a way to other shafts, like Margaret Shaft, trying to check if we can find a way to get out from there,' he said. 'But we failed… we didn't find any way leading there. We then came back and sat down,' he said during an interview in mid-February. What followed was a slow unravelling of human dignity in the underground dark. 'Some people then started eating cockroaches. They would hide when eating them, but you'd see them gathering cockroaches and putting them in bottles. Then they'd make a fire and fry them.' Nomazulu Moyo/GroundUp Communication with the surface, once maintained by handwritten notes passed through a bucket-and-rope system, disintegrated in early November. 'We started panicking when we noticed that instead of the rope coming in there [were] stones being thrown in - and then we immediately knew that there might be police outside.' Then there was a shift after community leaders pleaded with police, and the miners got word that help had arrived and they would begin to be pulled out. They pleaded for food, and they were given supplies of porridge and Mageu. On 12 November, a letter came, asking Ndabini to exit. 'I said we must rather help those who are weak and can die anytime to get out first. We already had one dead body. I was hungry too, but I chose those who were weak to go first.' The group began prioritising the most vulnerable. Then on the morning of 15 November, Ndabini surfaced. 'I told them I'd report everything to the community as soon as I got out and ask for more food to be lowered. People underground were perishing - many couldn't even stand. Even those we brought up were immediately taken to hospital.' He claimed that food supplies were suspended again on 16 November and resumed on 22 November. This investigation was produced by the Southern Africa Accountability Journalism Project, a project of the Henry Nxumalo Foundation funded by the European Union.
TimesLIVE
6 days ago
- TimesLIVE
Incitement of violence online: How law deals with this while shielding free speech
While freedom of speech is a right, incitement of violence is a punishable offence, the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) and legal expert Emma Sadleir have cautioned. The warning follows threats on social media against foreign nationals ahead of Youth Day. The SAHRC said it had alerted the national police commissioner's office about the threats and would monitor the culprits. It reserved the right to pursue charges under the Cybercrimes Act. 'While the commission does not dismiss genuine grievances about crime or service delivery, we remind the public that freedom of expression does not extend to speech that incites hatred or violence,' it said. The commission encouraged people to report any alleged criminal or unlawful activity to police and other competent authorities rather than taking the law into their own hands, and to consult the SAHRC Social Media Charter for guidance on responsible online conduct. It said it was encouraged by the Hawks confirming they would urgently look into this matter.
IOL News
7 days ago
- Politics
- IOL News
Why SAHRC flagged Operation Dudula to Hawks over June 16 plans
Members of the Operation Dudula Movement led yet another operation of shutting down spaza shops owned by illegal foreigners in Diepkloof. The operation uncovered expired food items which included cookies, snacks, colddrinks, painkillers and sanitary pads. The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) has raised the alarm over Operation Dudula's latest planned activities in Rosettenville, Johannesburg, and has reported the group to the National Police Commissioner, General Fannie Masemola, and the Hawks. This follows social media posts by Operation Dudula, in which the group called on members of the public to join them on 16 June to 'reclaim hijacked properties from illegal foreigners.' The post, shared on the group's Facebook page, claims that a Nigerian national has taken control of over 100 properties and alleges, without evidence, that several white South Africans have been murdered in the process. The planned gathering is expected to start at 9 am at the Moffettview police station. It forms part of the group's ongoing efforts to mobilise communities around their anti-immigration agenda — a campaign critics say fuels xenophobia and undermines the rule of law. In response, the SAHRC said on Sunday that it had taken note of the concerning language and potential for incitement. 'We have already alerted the National Commissioner of Police and will keep these calls under close watch,' the Commission stated. 'We reserve the right to pursue charges under the Cybercrimes Act 19 of 2020 should the content amount to criminal incitement.'While acknowledging that communities often face real concerns about crime and service delivery, the Commission urged citizens not to take the law into their own hands. 'Freedom of expression does not extend to speech that incites hatred or violence,' it added. The Commission encouraged South Africans to report criminal activity to SAPS or relevant authorities and to consult its Social Media Charter for responsible online engagement. 'Together with law enforcement and civil society, the SAHRC will continue to safeguard the dignity, equality and security of every person in South Africa.'In response to the SAHRC, Operation Dudula denied being a violent organisation. 'We are peaceful,' the group said in a statement. 'We just want to help illegal foreigners return to their home countries. We are good Samaritans.' However, Operation Dudula's activities are under increasing legal scrutiny. Last week, the High Court in Johannesburg heard arguments from civil society groups including Kopanang Africa Against Xenophobia (KAAX), the South African Informal Traders Forum (SAITF), Inner City Federation (ICF), and Abahlali baseMjondolo. The applicants argue that the group's actions constitute xenophobic harassment, intimidation, and unlawful evictions. According to legal counsel Jason Brickhill, Operation Dudula has been forcibly shutting down informal businesses, demanding identity documents, and even removing learners and teachers from schools based on nationality. The applicants also challenged Section 41 of the Immigration Act, arguing that its current form allows warrantless searches beyond public spaces and does not require reasonable suspicion before demanding immigration status. As tensions rise ahead of 16 June, the SAHRC and the Hawks have pledged to monitor the situation closely. The case against Operation Dudula highlights broader concerns around rising anti-immigrant sentiment and the erosion of constitutional protections for vulnerable communities in South Africa.
The Citizen
7 days ago
- The Citizen
SAHRC reports Operation Dudula's activities to Hawks
Operation Dudula claims it is a group of 'good Samaritans' who are helping illegal foreigners return home. The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) says it has alerted the National Commissioner of Police, Fannie Masemola, and the Hawks regarding Operation Dudula's planned activities for 16 June. On Friday, Operation Dudula took to their Facebook page, calling on the public to join their operation in Rosettenville, 'as we will be reclaiming Rosettenville hijacked properties from illegal foreigners'. 'It has been discovered that one illegal Nigerian foreigner has hijacked over 100 properties, while an undisclosed number of white people have allegedly been murdered in the process,' it claimed. ALSO READ: Operation Dudula vows to remove foreign shop owners from Ekurhuleni 'We are fighting for space with our siblings in small houses, yet foreigners are comfortable in hijacked properties. Those are our RDPs.' The meeting point for the operation is Rosettenville at the Moffettview police station at 9am. SAHRC: 'We alerted police' The SAHRC said on Sunday that it had taken note of the social media posts and alerted Masemola. 'We have already alerted the National Commissioner of Police and will keep these calls under close watch, reserving the right to pursue charges under the Cybercrimes Act 19 of 2020 should they amount to criminal incitement,' it said. 'While the Commission does not dismiss genuine grievances about crime or service delivery, we remind the public that freedom of expression does not extend to speech that incites hatred or violence. 'Citizens are encouraged to report any alleged criminal or unlawful activity to Saps and other competent authorities rather than taking the law into their own hands, and to consult the SAHRC Social Media Charter for guidance on responsible online conduct. ALSO READ: Operation Dudula tells immigrants to get healthcare 'in their own countries' 'Together with law-enforcement agencies and civil-society partners, the SAHRC will continue to safeguard the dignity, equality and security of every person in South Africa. 'The Commission is encouraged by the confirmation by the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation, Hawks, that it will urgently look into this matter.' However, Operation Dudula says it is not a violent organisation. 'We just want to remind SAHRC that Operation Dudula is a peaceful organisation helping illegal foreigners go back to their countries and develop them. We are good Samaritans,' it said in response to the SAHRC. Case against Operation Dudula Last week, the High Court in Johannesburg heard arguments presented on behalf of Kopanang Africa Against Xenophobia (KAAX), the South African Informal Traders Forum (SAITF), the Inner City Federation (ICF), and Abahlali baseMjondolo, challenging the alleged xenophobic and racist speech and conduct of Operation Dudula. Legal counsel Jason Brickhill, for the NGOs, accused Operation Dudula of harassing and intimidating foreigners by demanding to verify identity documents, forcing businesses to close, preventing informal traders from operating, evicting people from their homes without a court order, wearing uniforms that resemble those of the police or the military, denying people access to health care or education by removing students and teachers from schools based on of nationality. The applicants also challenged the constitutional validity of Section 41 of the Immigration Act 13 of 2002, to the extent that its application is not confined to public spaces, authorising warrantless searches in private places that include the home and places of study, work, and/or business; and to the extent that it does not require an immigration officer or police officer to hold a reasonable suspicion that a person is unlawfully in South Africa before requesting such persons to identify themselves as a citizen, permanent resident, refugee, asylum seeker or undocumented migrant. Judgment was reserved. READ NEXT: NGOs say foreigners in SA told to return to their countries when opening cases against Operation Dudula
