THE PEOPLE OF RIEMVASMAAK AND THE SOCIOECONOMIC IMPACT OF LAND REDISTRIBUTION: HISTORICAL ANALYSIS 1995–2013
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25159/2309-5792/1581Keywords:
Riemvasmaak, forced removals, land restitution, Presidential Launch Project, challenges, local municipalityAbstract
In terms of apartheid policies, the people of Riemvasmaak were forcefully removed in 1973/74 to Namibia and the Eastern Cape. Efforts to bring the people of Riemvasmaak back to their land gained momentum in 1993. Finally the decision to give the entire 74 000ha back to the people was taken in February 1994, and Riemvasmaak was registered as a Presidential Launch Project, one of the first land-restitution projects in post-apartheid South Africa. Most of the original residents returned to their land at the end of 1995 and in 2002 the people of Riemvasmaak received the title deeds to the plots on which they were living. While this is a noble project, the people of Riemvasmaak originally faced serious problems such as abject poverty, poor soil quality, no secondary schools, no tar roads, poor access between settlements, inadequate transport and limited access to water. However, in the last eighteen years, a great deal of impetus has been placed on agrarian transformation, rural development and land reform, which included improved economic and social infrastructure. This oral research study will therefore undertake to analyse the everyday lives of the people living in Riemvasmaak, the improvement in quality of life in the area as well as what regaining their land has meant for these people if seen against the backdrop of the history of forced removals in South Africa.
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