BULAWAYO – President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s party plans to reopen talks with Britain amid faint hopes the former colonial master could reconsider a return to its pledges to contribute financially towards Harare’s land reform policy, long blemished by violent land grabs from thousands of former commercial white farmers since the turn of the century.
The talks collapsed spectacularly back in 1997 when the British Labour government led by now former Prime Minister Tony Blair pulled out citing corruption and financial mismanagement, among other alleged ills by Zimbabwean authorities under late former President Robert Mugabe.
The stalemate triggered what became chaotic land seizures which started early 2000 and continued unabated into the later years.
According to authorities, nearly 4,000 white farmers lost their land and have not been compensated almost two decades since the land grabs.
The Zimbabwe government, through Treasury, announced plans recently to compensate over 400 former farm owners affected by the land reform process, adding it has allocated US$20 million towards the reimbursement process.
The Zanu PF led authority further pledged a US$3.5 million compensation to local farmers by the end of 2024.
However, in resolutions drafted at its annual people’s conference in Bulawayo over the weekend, Zanu PF resolved to “engage the British Government to fulfil its promise to contribute financially to pay off former white commercial farmers”.
