[DEBATE] : Landowners Demand Bafokeng/Impala Platinum Prospectors Leave

[Anne Mayher]

Jubilee South Africa
National Office
Press Alert

LANDOWNERS STRUGGLE AGAINST THE BAFOKENG AND IMPALA PLATINUM
Rooidekraal, Near Sun City, North West Province, South Africa
23 May 2009, Saturday 15:00

Landowners are marching to a prospecting site of Impala Platinum
today, to give them notice to leave their land with immediate effect.
They have not been consulted and they do not want any mining to take
place. Despite this, a joint venture of Impala Platinum and the Royal
Bafokeng have started prospecting on their land. The communities are
planning rolling mass actions from today.

As stated by the landowners, "Our grandfathers bought the two pieces
of land in Brits with the following registration number 823-92-197JQ
referring to land at Ward Hex River (some refer to it as Twee Rivier)
and Ysterfontein 45 beginning in 1907, and finishing paying for these
portions of lands in 1912." In 1923-1924 they were forcefully removed
from these lands and resettled at Roodekraal Spruit.

History of Land Claims

With the new dispensation in 1994 people were encouraged to claim for
the land were they were forcefully removed. On 11 June 1997 we lodged
our first restitution land claim and this was followed by the second
claim on 28 September 1998. We lodged as a individual claims and
communal claims with title deeds and shares including minerals lying
underground. Our claim was Gazetted in 1999. After the Gazetting was
done and we were assisted by two people who confused us, as the
Roodekraal Spruit community. They started to mention the different
entities that communities can claim land under, including a Trust,
Communal Property Association and a Closed Corporation. They told us
we should choose the CPA without even training us on the different
entities mentioned above.

With regard to Roodekraal Spruit where our forefathers were resettled,
the government only allocated them 7469 Morgen 360 square without
including the Ysterfontein hectare even though they were also forced
out of Ysterfontein.

The agreement was for every 1 Morgen taken they would get 2.5 morgen
back at the new place where they were relocated, but they only
received 1.5 Morgen for every 1 Morgen. They also promised three
boreholes, but to no avail. In all the negotiations there were no
Bafokeng tribe authorities or members, and that is why we are today
surprised to hear that they have portion of our land. Most importantly
we are against the Royal Bafokeng for also dispossessing us of our
land.

We now find ourself having to go to the land claims court and even
embark on rolling mass action to protect and defend our land.

It is against this backdrop that we are planing to hold a meeting on
Saturday to inform all community members and to plan the way forward.
We are inviting all media houses and Social Movements like Jubilee
South Africa to also help us like they are helping those who are like
us in Mokopane and Xolobeni - and many others that they are assisting.

Issued by Mr. Jaconiah Mafoko (079 854 8917) and Mr. Sello Ditsela
(072 222 0955) of Roodekraal Spruit

For more information please also feel free to contact Jubilee South
Africa's Brand Nthako at 082 628 1362.

-- 
Anne Mayher
Email: akmayher at gmail.com
Mobile: 082 398 6882