Expropriation of Land in the Pre and During Democratic South Africa : Compensation or Nil Compensation? 

Expropriation of land is not new in South Africa, the pre-democratic government expropriated land through the 1913 Land Act. The expropriation of land left black people without land for practising agricultural activities, and no compensation was made. Although this approach excluded blacks, it was successful since the economy was growing very fast. The development was consequently appreciated by the United Nations (UN). After 1994, the democratic government introduced different programmes to address the injustices of the past. However, the progress was too slow. Hence, the Land Expropriation Without Compensation (LEWC) by the South African government was introduced with the aim of addressing the past injustices. It is against this background that the paper raises the question: "Because the predemocratic government expropriated without compensation, does that mean the present government should not compensate the present farmers?" This study shows that non-payment of compensation does not guarantee that this approach will be successful and the past injustices will be addressed. Likewise, giving compensation does not mean that the approach will ensure economic growth and poverty alleviation. Therefore, this article suggests that the implementation of this approach should be done with an African philosophy of Ubuntu which views the land as a living entity, not as a commodity. This will further embrace the Freedom Charter which believes that the land belongs to all - black and white - who live in it.