Staff Reporter
THE Minister of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform has said that the occupation of farm Witsand in the Omaheke region is considered as an unlawful action and that government is proceeding with legal action against the perpetrators.
Farm Witsand in the Omaheke region, approximately 130 km west of Gobabis, is one of government’s resettlement farms earmarked for Namibians repatriated from Botswana.
The illegal invasion of farm Witsand took place on Saturday, with a video of farmers offloading their livestock from a truck going viral. Schlettwein in response to the illegal occupation of the farm said that the farm is government property and can only be occupied by following the lawful procedures prescribed, adding that anything else is not tolerated.
Farmers who operate illegally in the Gobabis municipal area, however, decided to illegally occupy the farm over the weekend, stating that they are not allowed to engage in livestock farming in towns or municipal land. The farmers also requested the agriculture minister, Schlettwein, to consult with them on their landlessness, as their previous applications for resettlement farms failed.
Towards the end of January 2024, the Gobabis town council announced the eviction of farmers in municipal and town areas, citing that the eviction was sanctioned under the provisions of the Public and Environment Health Act of 2015, section 59, subsections (h) and (d). The evictions garnered uproar from landless farmers in the area.
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