Posted on 08/16/2002 2:34:59 AM PDT by Clive
COMMERCIAL Farmers Union Matabeleland regional chairman Mac Crawford and up to 50 others will today appear at the Gwanda Magistrates' Court charged with breaching the Land Acquisition Act's Section 8 orders.
Government has dispatched the police to all farmers on Section 8 notices in the Matabeleland region issuing them with summons to appear in court today and making them sign warned and cautioned statements for failure to move off their farms.
Crawford yesterday said police had visited him at his Victory Farm to serve him with summons and made him sign a warned and cautioned statement.
"I will be appearing at the Gwanda Magistrates Court together with 50 neighbouring farmers charged with failing to move off our farms," Crawford said. "Most farmers in the region have been visited by the police and will soon appear in court." By last night six farmers had confirmed they would be appearing in court today.
The blitz is likely to intensify as government cracks down on commercial farmers defying the order to vacate their properties after the August 10 deadline. Land task forces throughout the country are visiting farms which have Section 8 notices checking on compliance.
Mashonaland West-South regional executive Ben Freeth said the land task force would be visiting his province shortly to take stock of how farmers had responded to the deadline.
"We are still not aware of the action that will be taken against defiant farmers," Freeth said. "The only incident in my province was at Impalavel Farm near Kadoma where the farm owner returned home from a shopping trip to find settlers had moved into his farmhouse."
Regional executives throughout the country said although there were no incidents of violence or displacement, government had deployed police and army details on all farms under Section 8 to establish why the farmers had not moved.
Only one third of the 2 900 farmers served with notices have left their properties while the rest decided to stay put. - Staff Writer.
Taking action against all 2,000 or so farmers who have not left would make too many waves.
So the government is hitting a group of them with criminal charges while the thugs hit others with all night pungwes, intimidation and arson in the expectation that enough farmers will get the message and leave.
Then it will be a simpler task for the jackals to clean up the stragglers.
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