Law Feature: Bill gives clarity on expropriation of land

There’s been lots of movement on the land question in the last two weeks. Two weeks ago the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (DLRD) announced that members of the public will be able to apply to lease 700 000 hectares of underutilized or vacant state land in seven of the provinces. A new Expropriation Bill, published on Friday 08th October, has made clear the circumstances under which property can be expropriated and, where appropriate, that compensation for expropriation can be zero. The newly gazetted Expropriation Bill sets out exactly under which scenarios it would be just and equitable for no compensation to be paid when land is expropriated in the public interest. The bill will now enter the parliamentary process before becoming law. Bulelwa Mabasa, director at Werksmans Attorney and member of the president’s advisory panel on land, and human rights lawyer Richard Spoor, both laud the Bill a major improvement and step forward in ensuring the sanctity of property rights remain protected in South Africa.