The Policy and Legislative Framework for Zimbabwe’s Fast Track Land Reform Programme and its Implications on Women’s Rights to Agricultural Land BY MAKANATSA MAKONESE Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements of the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Law Southern and East African Regional Centre for Women’s Law (SEARCWL) University of Zimbabwe Supervisors Professor Julie Stewart and Professor Anne Hellum 2017 i Dedication To my two mothers, Betty Takaidza Nhengu (Gogo Dovi) and Felistas Dzidzai Nhengu (Gogo Banana) - Because of you, I believe in love. To my late brothers Thompson, Thomas Hokoyo and Munyenyiwa Nhengu; I know you would have been so proud of this accomplishment. To my late father, VaMusarinya, In everything I do, I always remember that “ndiri mwana wa Ticha Nhengu” ii Acknowledgments For any work of this magnitude, there are always so many people who contribute in many but unique ways in making the assignment possible. If I were to mention all the people that played a part in small and big ways in making this dream a reality, it would be such a long list. To all of you, I say, thank you. I am grateful to my supervisors, Professor Julie Stewart and Professor Anne Hellum for your guidance, patience, commitment, for the occasional “wake-up” slap and for meticulously combing through the many chapters and versions of this thesis which I produced along the way. Thank you for believing in me and for assuring me that with hard work, I could do it. I would also like to thank Professor William Derman of the Norwegian University of Life Sciences for his advice on my thesis and for providing me with volumes of useful reading material on the Zimbabwean land question. Dr Amy Shupikai Tsanga (University of Zimbabwe and now Judge of the High Court of Zimbabwe), Dr Ellen Sithole (University of Zimbabwe and currently Deputy Chairperson of the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission), Dr Alex Magaisa (Kent University), Professor Patricia Kameri-Mbote (University of Nairobi and Strathmore University), Professor Lilian Tibatemwa-Ekirikubinza (Makerere University, and now Judge of the Supreme Court of Uganda), Professor Bonita Meyersfeld (University of the Witwatersrand) and Dr Ngeyi Ruth Kanyongolo (University of Malawi, Chancellor College) all provided useful insights on my thesis during the SEARCWL PhD seminars. I would like to thank the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs for providing funding for my studies. My family played an important role in ensuring that I completed my studies. To my husband Stanley, I am grateful for the many “garage sessions” and the confidence you had in my ability to see this study through. To my daughters Ruvarashe and Farirai, thank you for the many telephone calls, messages and “chats” when I was away at the University of Zimbabwe or down under in the villages and farms in Masvingo during my field research. Finally the “farm thing” or the “farm story” is done and we can now have more time to play. To my son Mufaro, thank you for acknowledging that your mother is intelligent and for always confidently telling me that I would make it. My brother Julius, I am grateful for your love and patience, your input as my research assistant and for virtually donating your car to this project. My brother Collins and Mai Hesed, thank you for doing the school run between Harare and Kyle College in Masvingo where you would hand over the kids to Mukoma Juri and Mai Tafadzwa. Your love for my children made it possible for me to concentrate on my studies. To my young sisters, Sekai, Rudo and Harugumi, thank you for always checking on me and the progress on the PhD, with the occasional “Doc” taunt which always helped in spurring me forward. My big sisters, Ottilia (Mai Chikomwe) and Bessie (Mai Moyo), I got this far because of your love and support as I was growing up and for giving me the little things that every young girl would wish for. Gogo Dovi and Gogo Banana, thank you for the packed lunch of mealies and pumpkins as I left in the mornings for my fieldwork and for the warm bath water, boiled over firewood when I returned in the evenings. To my nephews and nieces, I will always remember the “happy birthday” songs with muffins as birthday cakes during my February sojourns at the University of Zimbabwe iii To the staff at SEARCWL; Blessings Tsomondo, Rudo-Bonzo-Makunike, Johnson Chingozho, Sesedzai Munyaradzi, Cecilie Mariri and Primrose Zikiti, your support was invaluable. I would like to thank Justice Thoba Poyo-Dlwati (South Africa) and Mrs. Kondwa Sakala- Chibiya (Zambia), both past presidents of the SADC Lawyers' Association for their support as I struggled with balancing my job, my family and my studies. As women bosses, you understood the challenges of holding a full time job, studying for a PhD and nurturing a growing family. I may not have said it enough then, but I would like to say it now; thank you very much. I am grateful to my late colleague, Mmakwena Rabele whose support for the short period that I worked with her was invaluable. My colleague Prudence Mabena took over that mantle and has been my ever-cheerful cheerleader. To my fellow PhD students at SEARCWL; Rosalie Kumbirai Katsande, Renifa Madenga, Catherine Makoni, Annette Mbogoh and Elizabeth Lwanda-Rutsate, thank you for the many insightful engagements in the “PhD” reading room and during the PhD seminars. I remember the many days of the seminar presentations and the dreadful “electric chair” as we faced our Professors, but it has all been worth the while. My circle of friends, Anna Mutavati, Catherine Makoni and Revai Makanje-Aalbaek, all I can say is thank you my friends. Sekai Muchena, you will always hold a special place in my heart. My respondents at various levels were instrumental in providing the requisite information that made it possible for me to write this thesis. To my women respondents on the farms and in the communal areas of Masvingo, thank you for your hospitality and for taking me into your confidence. Above all, I thank God the Almighty for giving me the strength and the wisdom as I worked on my thesis. iv Declaration I, Makanatsa Makonese declare that the work submitted in this thesis is my own and it has never been submitted for a degree course in any other University. Where information has been obtained from other sources, I verify that this has been revealed. Signed………………………………………………… Date…………………………………………………… v List of Acronyms AIDS- Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome ACHPR- African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights/African Court on Human and People’s Rights ASA- American Sociological Association BSAC- British South Africa Company CAMPFIRE- Communal Areas Management Programme for Indigenous Resources CBNRM- Community Based Natural Resources Management CLA- Communal Land Act CSCFAZ - Commercial Sugarcane Farmers' Association of Zimbabwe CEDAW- Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women COPAC- Constitutional Parliamentary Committee DA- District Administrator DCJ- Deputy Chief Justice DLC- District Lands Committee DTZ- Development Trust of Zimbabwe ECA- Economic Commission for Africa EISA- Electoral Institute of Southern Africa EU- European Union FAO- Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations FGD- Focus Group Discussion FGDs- Focus Group Discussions FTLRP- Fast Track Land Reform Programme GMB- Grain Marketing Board GNU- Government of National Unity GoZ- Government of Zimbabwe HIV- Human Immuno Virus HRC- Human Rights Council HRW- Human Rights Watch ICCPR- International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights ICESCR- International Covenant on Economic Social and Cultural Rights ILO- International Labour Organization JA- Judge of Appeal LAA- Land Apportionment Act vi LAMA- Legal Age of Majority Act LHA- Lancaster House Agreement MDC- Movement for Democratic Change MDC-T- Movement for Democratic Change- (led by Tsvangirai) MDGs- Millennium Development Goals NGO(s)- Non-Governmental Organisation(s) NLHA- Native Land Husbandry Act PLC- Provincial Lands Committee PA- Provincial Administrator PG- Provincial Governor RAU- Research and Advocacy Unit RDCs- Rural District Council(s) RDCA- Rural District Councils Act SADC- Southern African Development Community TCPL- Total Consumption Poverty Line SEARCWL- Southern and Eastern African Regional Centre for Women’s Law TTL(s)- Tribal Trust Land(s) TTLA- Tribal Trust Lands Act TLA- Traditional Leaders Act UDHR- Universal Declaration of Human Rights UDI- Unilateral Declaration of Independence UNDP- United Nations Development Programme UN-Habitat- United Nations Human Settlements Programme UNICEF- United Nations Children’s Fund UPR- Universal Periodic Review UZ- University of Zimbabwe VA- Village Assembly VIDCO- Village Development Committee WAG- Women’s Action Group WB- World Bank WCoZ- Women’s Coalition of Zimbabwe WLLG- Women and Land Lobby Group WLZ- Women and Land in Zimbabwe WHO- World Health Organisation ZANU (PF)- Zimbabwe African National Union (Patriotic Front) vii ZESA- Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority ZFWT- Zimbabwe Farm Workers’ Trust ZINWA- Zimbabwe National Water Authority ZNLWVA- Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association ZWLA- Zimbabwe Women Lawyers’ Association ZWRCN- Zimbabwe Women’s Resource Centre and Network ZSCDA - Zimbabwe Sugarcane Development Association viii Abstract This study explores the rights of Zimbabwean women to access agricultural land on the basis of equality with men and in their own right under the country’s Fast Track Land Reform Programme (FTLRP). The focus is on the policy and legal framework that governed the land reform process between the years 2000 and 2015 and how the legal framework interfaced with different women’s lived realities in their efforts to access agricultural land and effectively utilise it. To understand the lived realities of the different women during the process, field research was undertaken in three resettlement sites in Masvingo province namely, the Hippo Valley Sugar Estates, Chidza and Lothian Farms and Ward 16 in Masimbiti, Nuanetsi Ranch.