An inter-ministerial meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Theo-Ben Gurirab, to discuss last week's eviction of six families from Farm Kalkpan, 30 km west of Gobabis, decided that "a legal instrument be established to end the eviction of farm labourers".

The meeting was attended by Lands Minister Hifikepunye Pohamba, Deputy Agriculture Minister Paul Smit, Justice Minister Ngarikutuke Tjiriange, Labour Minister Marco Hausiku and Attorney General Pendukeni Ithana.

They mandated Hausiku to seek a long-term solution to end the eviction of farmworkers from commercial farms.

At a press briefing in Windhoek yesterday, Hausiku said the families evicted from Kalkpan last week would remain on the farm while negotiations continued to settle the matter.

However, he ruled out chances of evicted workers being resettled under Government resettlement programmes, saying "there are still people who have been waiting for four years".

Hausiku declined to comment on a request by the Swapo Party in the Omaheke Region that Government seize Kalkpan.

Hausiku said the expropriation of the farm was among a host of proposals being presented as a "last-gasp option" to stop farmworker evictions.

"The meeting agreed that my Ministry follow up the developments and submit proposals to Cabinet next week," he said.

"The Kalkpan issue is viewed by Government in a very serious light. Government ... will make sure that it is addressed within the existing legal framework. I also want to ask all stakeholders to approach this matter with sober minds and restraint," the Minister said.

Hausiku said his Ministry would establish "the causes and consequences of the eviction and develop a strategy to prevent such uncalled for and inhumane evictions".

To achieve that, he said, the Ministry would thoroughly investigate all aspects of the eviction of workers from farms and "based on the findings a long-term strategy and action plan to address the matter will be found".

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