DODOMA: A SPECIAL Parliamentary Committee formed to investigate the land dispute between an investor in Malonje Farm and the surrounding villagers has uncovered several loopholes, including violations of human rights, which have contributed to the prolonged conflict.
According to the committee, the dispute between the owner of the farm, Efatha Ministry in Sumbawanga District, Rukwa Region and the surrounding villagers has significant economic, social and political repercussions, adversely affecting both parties.
Presenting the committee report in the National Assembly on Tuesday, the Chairman, Prof Shukrani Manya, said the lawmakers have discovered clashes between the investor’s security guards and the residents of the villages surrounding the farm, involving the use of excessive force.
“There has been excessive use of force by security guards using firearms, while the residents resorted to traditional weapons. This resulted in the death of one security guard and injuries to several villagers,” he said.
He said the clashes indicate a breach of human rights, including the right to life. He added that the shortage of land for production compared to the demand contributes to tension and conflicts between the residents and the investor.
Prof Manya said that the committee also discovered sexual abuse against women in Sikaungu, Msandamuungano, Mawenzusi, Isesa and Ulinji villages, where seven women reported being abused by the investor’s security guards.
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“These women said that they were arrested and taken to two locations within the farm, where they were subjected to acts of violence and sexual abuse, including rape.”
He, however, said that the women admitted that they did not report the incidents to the Police due to shame and fear of being abandoned by their husbands.
The committee also learned that the residents have been prohibited from using traditional pathways that cross through the investor’s farm without permission from the village government, even though they have been using them to access various essential services since the colonial era.
The report indicated that villagers were being forced to pay a fine of 50,000/- per cow if their animals entered the investor’s farm.
The investor has also been leasing portions of the farm to villagers and other community members, who are required to pay 10,000/- for an application form to lease the land and must surrender one bag of their produce per acre after the harvest.
The committee further revealed that the investor has not adhered to the terms of the farm purchase agreement and title deed. The agreement stipulated that the farm was to be used for modern livestock farming, but the investor has primarily utilised it for agriculture.
Prof Manya noted that it has been almost 17 years since the investor purchased the farm. However, the report presented to the committee indicated that only 41.9 per cent of the land has been developed.
In contrast, information provided by the Land Commissioner to the Parliamentary Committee on Natural Resources and Tourism on May 3 this year showed that only 4.1 per cent of the land had been developed.
The assessment by the committee reveals that the variations in the size of the farm over time are not adequately explained. The increasing size of the land differs in various documents, leading to a lack of authenticity.
“The analysis suggests that these inconsistencies indicate that decisions regarding the boundaries of the farm have been made arbitrarily,” he noted.
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Following the revelations and recommendations presented by the committee, the National Assembly has directed the government to take appropriate actions against all executives involved in the dispute.
The House resolved that the authorities in charge of criminal cases in the country should conduct investigations and take appropriate action based on the findings.
The legislators also advised the government to review and assess the current procedures for issuing licenses to security companies to determine if the criteria used to grant licenses to the companies meet current security needs.
The MPs also resolved that the government should investigate the legality and competency of the investor’s security guards in relation to the alleged claims against the villagers surrounding Malonje Farm.
They said the government should investigate the claims against Funguka Company’s security guards in injuring the villagers with firearms and take action against those found to have violated the laws and regulations governing the use of the weapons.
The MPs also resolved that the government should revoke the ownership of the entire Malonje Farm (Efatha Farm) and 51 plots, in accordance with the law and public interests and prepare a land use plan for all eight villages surrounding the farm, as well as for Mollo Prison, to identify land needs and how the land will be used.
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