LAND POLICY NEEDED - HRC

BY SABELO MAJOLA

MBABANE – Land disputes, some of which resulted in fatalities, have not gone unnoticed by the Human Rights Commission and Public Administration. 

Section 211 (2) of the highest law in the land states that save as may be required by the exigencies of any particular situation, a citizen of Eswatini, without regard to gender, shall have equal access to land for normal domestic purposes.

 Subsection 3 states that a person shall not be deprived of land without due process of the law and where a person is deprived, that person shall be entitled to prompt and adequate compensation for any improvement on that land or loss consequent upon that deprivation unless otherwise provided by the law. 

Disputes

In respect to this provision in the Constitution, Human Rights Commissioner Sabelo Masuku said they had been making recommendations to government regarding the land disputes and forced evictions, including the advice to have a land policy that would regulate issues of land. Masuku made this revelation during the Human Rights Day Commemoration, which was held at the commission’s offices yesterday. 

The Commissioner was mindful that there are lawful institutions that have powers to deal with issues of land like chiefs, courts, Land Management Board and the Farm Dwellers Act, but he stated that they suggested a multisectoral body which should be led by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Energy. 

He said it should incorporate such other bodies as the Attorney General’s office and other structures to deliberate more on the subject and find long-term solutions. 

On another note, Masuku said throughout the devastating effects of COVID-19, there had been lessons learnt on how everyone could put their efforts together and be there for each other as humanity. “This period reaffirmed the importance of human rights in every society. The commission takes this time to reflect on what we have done to ensure the protection and promotion of fundamental rights and freedoms of all within Eswatini,”

 he shared. 

This year’s commemoration was held under the theme ‘Recover Better – Stand Up for Human Rights’ and focus was on the need to build back better by ensuring that human rights are central to all recovery efforts post-COVID-19. 

Resuscitate

Masuku said as the country adapted to the new normal and worked on plans and strategies to resuscitate the economy, this year’s theme was calling for the creation of equal opportunities for all, addressing the failures exposed and exploited by COVID-19 and applying human rights standards in these activities. 

“For us to build back a more resilient and sustainable society, human rights should be at the centre of the economic recovery plans. To achieve this, we should end discrimination of any kind; promote and protect economic, social and cultural rights, encourage participation and solidarity and promote sustainable development. As the UN slogan during this pandemic outlines ‘We are in this together’,” he said. 

Masuku revealed that the commission had also launched a website where information touching on human rights could be accessed. He said the platform was long overdue as human rights commissions across the globe were accessible through such platforms where anything relating to human rights is updated. 

About the Human Rights Day 

Yesterday marked the 72nd anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights signed this day, and the International Human Rights Day is observed by the international community annually on December 10. This is the day in 1948 when the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) which is a milestone document that proclaims the inalienable rights which everyone is entitled to as a human being without discrimination. 

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