Deputy Speaker, the Natives Land Act, Act 27 of 1913, has been described as apartheid's original sin and as the start of a long century of injustice and racial economic exclusion in South Africa. While these definitions are accurate, none seems capable of describing the extent and the consequences of this law, which bequeathed to our country a century of pain, suffering, despair and alienation. Its long, cold tentacles reached so far into the future that this law's effects are still with us today - 22 years after it was repealed.
Hon members, let me be very clear: the 1913 Natives Land Act was morally repugnant; it was a massive injustice. It originated a system that saw 80% of the people of our country - millions upon millions of black South Africans - removed from their homes and dumped onto 13% of South Africa's total land mass. The Natives Land Act was one of the first of an arsenal of laws passed by the colonial and apartheid governments to legislate black South Africans of all hues out of the formal economy of our country. From the Glen Grey Act, introduced as far back as 1894, to the 1936 Native Trust and Land Act to the Pegging Act of 1943; to the Asiatic Land Tenure and Indian Representation Act; from the Group Areas Act to the Bantu Education Act - all formed part of a complex and far-reaching bureaucracy devoted to depriving black South Africans of the right to participate fairly and equally in the economy. These laws prevented black citizens from moving freely and unencumbered around the country of their birth, from use of their talents and intellect towards realising their aspirations to live lives of their choosing. Sol Plaatje is often quoted with reference to the Natives Land Act, because he encapsulated so crisply the extent of its injustice. He said:
Awakening on Friday morning, June 20, 1913, the South African Native found himself not actually a slave, but a pariah in the land of his birth.
Deputy Speaker, it is precisely because of the impact of this legislation and the way it continues to plague us today that we must continually ask ourselves: What must we still do to put right the many calculated wrongs of the past? On this particular occasion, as we commemorate a century since the enactment of the Natives Land Act, our attention must be focused on land reform and land restitution as measures of redress and reconciliation. How far have we come in our efforts to redress the devastating effects of an Act that reserved 87% of South Africa's land exclusively for white ownership? Have we done enough to bind the wounds inflicted upon our country's people by subsequent policies like the system of Bantustans? The answer, unfortunately, is no. We still have a very long way to go. The question is: What has gone wrong, and what must still be done to put right the injustices of the past?
The DA is fully committed to land restitution and land reform as a means to redress the injustices of the past and as tools for building a stronger rural economy into the future. We believe that, if executed properly, a successful land reform process can play a vital role in rebuilding our commercial agriculture sector and making a meaningful contribution to growing our economy and creating jobs. But the process until now has been crippled by inefficiency. This government has failed to make good on its promise to redress these ills. Realising freedom takes more than just promises; it requires hard work and commitment. If we are going to redress the legacy of the Natives Land Act, Act 27 of 1913, we need a government that has the capacity to deliver on its promises.
Most of us in this House agree on the need for an effective and sustainable programme of land reform that puts right the wrongs of the past. Today we must reflect on how to achieve this. I believe we need to start thinking differently about land reform. Do all people want to own land in rural South Africa, or would some prefer title deeds for urban properties which put them closer to economic opportunities? Do citizens living on communal land have a stake in the property they have lived on and farmed for generations? If not, why are they denied this right? What can we do to help emerging black farmers make economic successes of their enterprises, to redress the opportunity cost of being locked out of the rural economy for 100 years? Should we not put more focus on giving farm workers equity in existing enterprises that have already proven to be a success?
Time does not permit me to set out all the answers here today. The point is that we need to start thinking differently. We need to take the political heat out of land reform and come up with creative solutions that will benefit everyone. It is not too late for us to roll back the inequalities imposed on our country by the Natives Land Act. Indeed, when it comes to putting right the wrongs of the past, there is no time like the present. Let us commit ourselves today to making this goal a reality. I thank you. [Applause.]