"THERE SHOULD PERMANENCY AND DEVELOPMENT FOR ALL RESIDENTS AND FARMERS IN INANDA AND ELSEWHERE IN SOUTH AFRICA"

“WE SHOULD CONTINUE TO LIVE IN PEACE AND HARMONY WITH ALL RESIDENTS AND PEOPLE.” By Subry Govender

“We want permanency and stability in our lives.” This is the plea of disadvantaged families living on farm land in Upper Inanda, near the town of Verulam, north of Durban in the province of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. They took part in protests on the main tarred road in the area on Monday and Tuesday, Nov 14 and 15 (2016), to highlight their social and economic plight 23 years into the new non-racial and democratic South Africa. They shouted slogans and carried racial placards during the protests held in the aftermath of statements by Julius Malema and his fellow leaders of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) that people should invade and take occupation of vacant land.

I visited the Tea Estate and other areas of Inanda after the protests and spoke to the residents concerned. About 40 families have been living in these areas since the mid-1980s when most of the farming families of Indian-origin started to move out because of the climate of fear that emerged following acts of intimidation, attacks, robberies, burglaries and high-jackings.

The situation once again started to degenerate in the early 1990s and more families of Indian-origin began to move out. Most of the farmers leased their land to other farmers. They also allowed their workers and poor African families to stay in the houses that they had vacated. The Indian-origin families first moved to the Inanda region since the early 1900s after their forefathers and mothers had completed their indentures (slavery) on the sugar estates in and near the towns of Verulam and Tongaat. It was one of the most productive vegetable and sugar farming areas with more than 300 families or between four to five thousand Indian-origin families residing here in peace and harmony with their fellow African residents. Now there are only about 30 Indian-origin families and about 10 Indian-origin farmers in the area.

(Mr Thulisa Khuzwayo) “WE HAVE LIVED WITH INDIAN FAMILIES AND THE PEOPLE FOR DECADES WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS.” One of the residents in the Tea Estate area who took occupation in the mid-1980s is Mr Thulisa Khuzwayo. He lives with his wife and children in a house formerly occupied by an Indian-origin family. When I introduced myself and informed him about the reasons for my visit, he readily agreed to talk to me. The family hospitality was something that I will treasure. His wife, noticing that I was taking notes and also conducting a radio interview, came out of the house with chairs for us to sit on so that we could continue our discussions in comfort and ease. “We have lived with Indian families for years without any problems and now we want to continue to live in harmony,” he said. “But what is of concern to us is that we have lived in this place for more than 30 years and we have no permanency for the land we are living in. We want the authorities to provide us with the necessary papers so that we could build a better future for us. “WE WANT LAND OWNERSHIP”

“I am concerned that 23 years into the new South Africa, the government is moving very slowly to provide us with security.” “We want to have ownership of the land we are living on,” he said. As far as he was concerned, land ownership was distorted, even in the new South Africa. “The way I see it is that Mandela went to prison, fighting. When Mandela came out, taking over the country, he was supposed to have taken over the land first.” Mr Khuzwayo said it seemed they were still being ignored in the new democratic South Africa. “So now who is still gaining?”, he asked. “We need land. If you don’t have a place to stay, if you don’t have a house, how can you live life? We live in democracy, we always say we live in democracy, I don’t understand that because at this point in time, I don’t have a paper for the place I am staying in.”

(Ms Lisa Mbele with Mr Thulisa Khuzwayo) A young girl, Ms Lisa Mbele, talking on behalf of her family and the other families in the area, told me they lived in a state of uncertainity without being given ownership of the land. “My father has been staying here for so long,” she said. “WE WANT PAPERS FOR SECURITY AND ADVANCEMENT” “It’s been long now and we only want ownership of this land. We must be treated equally. Now that I am standing here, I must be given the papers to allow me to do everything that I want to do in the property I am in, because you can’t do anything if you don’t have the papers.” Ms Mbele, Mr Khuswayo and other members of their community expressed the hope that the authorities will “wake up” and give them security and stability in their lives like all other South Africans. After obtaining the views and opinions of the residents here, I also drove on the corrugated and dirt roads to speak to some of the farmers who are still continuing with sugar cane and vegetable farming.

(MR RAMESH SIVASUNKER) I met Mr Ramesh Sivasunker who was born and grew up in the Inanda area. He showed me the house near the Wild Memorial School where his grand-father settled in the 1930s. His father was born there as well along with several other brothers and sisters. Mr Sivasunker moved out of Inanda with his family to the nearby town of Verulam in the mid- 1980s. His workers now occupy their house in Inanda. “When I grew up here I could walk four to five kilometres to the nearest shop and return home without any problems,” he said. “We lived with all people here and we grew up as one large community. We did not have any problems. “We moved out in the 1980s but we continued with our farming. I come here every day to continue with farming. However, since Malema has made his land invasion speeches, some of the people have turned against us. “It seems these people want to take over our land. The attitude of our workers and our black neighbours have changed in the recent times. Before that we lived in harmony, like families as well. There was understanding and there was no such thing as fear.

(THE HOUSE IN THE DISTANCE WHERE MR RAMESH SIVASUNKER USED TO STAY PRIOR TO THE LATE 1980s) “I PUT IN A LOT OF WORK TO ENSURE THAT MY FARM IS A GOING CONCERN” “After Mandela became our president we all were very happy and proud of our new country. But now I did not know it will come to this stage from people around us and beyond us. By Malema making these statements it has brought a lot of fear and we don’t have any mind to work as well. We cannot put our full potential in farming. It’s not an easy job, you have to stay on the farm every day. “I put in a lot of effort to ensure that my farm is working and producing.” “THE FUTURE IS OF CONCERN” Mr Sivasunker said he was worried about the future. “I am not concerned about my future but what about the younger generation. Their future is at stake. If this climate of fear continues then they cannot choose farming as a profession.” SEKELA FARM After speaking to Mr Sivasunker, I drove further north to speak to Mr Brett Williams of Sekela Estate. His family have been involved in the area since the 1930s mainly in sugar cane and banana farming. They provide employment, accommodation, electricity and water for about 125 workers. “We run a very successful farm here and keep in close contact with other farmers. We also have a very good relationship with the local leader and the people,” he said. UNDERSTANDS THE CALLS FOR LAND RE-DISTRIBUTION BUT THIS MUST BE DONE IN AN ORDERLY MANNER

(ONE OF THE WORKERS WHO WAS ATTACKED BY PROTESTING RESIDENTS) He told me they understood the calls for land re-distribution. But, he said, incendiary statements by Malema and his fellow leaders, violent acts and intimidation should not become the order of the day. Due processes should be followed. “I went down to assist my neighbours, again it was aggression, burning of tyres, blocking of roads. I don’t feel there’s a need for this. Aggression is not what anybody wants. We just hope we can resolve this in a peaceful manner and go down the correct channels because what’s happening now is wrong. I mean pulling out a man’s irrigation pipes, burning them in his roads, surrounding their houses so that their children and wives can’t get in or out or can’t leave.”

MALEMA’S STATEMENTS NOT IN THE BEST INTERESTS OF THE COUNTRY He said Malema’s statements were not in the best interests of the country. “We all like to think that we have learnt from our past mistakes. However, bringing up skin colour and race constantly is upsetting. We like to look forward, not back. We want to work together. Statements like these always creates tension which the majority does not want. “The majority of us have a confident view and statements like that don’t worry us too much.”

(MR YAGA GOVENDER, CHAIRPERSON OF THE CANEGROWERS ASSOCIATION AND A HUMANITARIAN AND PHILANTHROPIST) I also spoke to Mr Yaga Govender, a dynamic young businessman who is also chairperson of the Canegrowers’ Association. His forefathers and mothers had also settled in Inanda in the early 1900s. He told me that after the protests by the residents of Tea Estate, he had worked tirelessly along with the local chief, police and other leaders for sanity to prevail. He was of the view that certain criminal elements were using the latest outbursts by Malema for their own personal benefits. “We have agreed to do everything in our power to improve the social environment in the area,” he said.

A PHILANTHROPIST WHO BELIEVES LAND RE-DISTRIBUTION MUST BE IN AN ORDERLY AND PROCEDURAL MANNER Mr Govender, who is also a humanitarian and philanthropist, said he understood the need for land re-distribution but believed that this must be done in an orderly and procedural manner. “There must be very procedural ways in which land is transferred back to growers who need the lands and in terms of bringing about equalisation in so far as land ownership in the country is concerned,” he said. CHAOS AND MAYHEM SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED He said without procedural methods, there would only be chaos and mayhem. “People who make inciting statements like Malema will only aggravate the situation because right now the security forces and the government cannot control illegal land invasions. The government has no mechanism to control or provide support to farmers whose land come under attack. “We don’t want to see mayhem and instability in our new South Africa,” he said. The South African Government has strongly condemned the incendiary statements by Malema and his fellow leaders. One just hopes that measures will be put in place not only to bring about security and stability for all people but also there’s land re-distribution and permanency and development for farm workers and others who have been living on farm land for decades on end. Ends – subrygovender@gmail.com November 18 2016