Date:30/04/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/04/30/stories/2007043004911400.htm

International

Zimbabwe compensates ex-white farmers

HARARE: The Zimbabwean Government has compensated 800 white former commercial farmers who had their properties acquired for resettlement since 2000, The Saturday Herald reported. Minister of State for Special Affairs responsible for Land and Resettlement Programme Flora Buka was quoted by the newspaper as saying billions of Zimbabwean dollars was paid out in compensation.

More farmers would be paid out for improvements before the end of the year. ``There is room for negotiation when we pay compensation and farmers are taking up what we are offering.

We have a compensation committee chaired by the Secretary for the Ministry Ngoni Masoka and have members from the Ministries of Finance and Agriculture,'' she said. `` As the Government, we are committed to paying for the infrastructure which was owned by the white farmers,'' said Ms. Buka.

Though she did not give the exact amount for compensation, she said the treasury was disbursing money in quarterly tranches. Ms. Buka said 226 white farmers were given eviction notices, which expire before the end of September. Initially, the farmers were supposed to move out of the properties at the beginning of February but were offered a reprieve to allow them to vacate the land in an organized way. Once acquired, the farms are set aside for allocation to the land hungry, said the minister. — Xinhua