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Wednesday, April 24, 2002 - Web posted at 10:10:41 pm GMT

THE National Assembly has passed the long-awaited Communal Land Reform Bill, following three years of deliberation.

The Bill, which provides legal mechanisms for the granting rights of customary land rights and leasehold rights, was given the thumbs up by both the opposition and Swapo yesterday.

The Bill was referred back to the National Assembly by the National Council, following a disagreement between the two chambers of Parliament over customary land rights and leasehold rights.

During deliberations in December 1999, the National Council objected to the principles of the Bill.

The National Assembly adopted the Communal Land Reform Bill after the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Natural Resources studied and approved various amendments made by the National Council.

Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Natural Resources, Ponhele ya France, said the committee agreed with the National Council that Clause 4, which deals with the composition of Land Boards, should be amended.

Ya France's Committee also recommended that a person should not be allowed to own land exceeding 25 hectares under customary law rights.

He said after thorough consideration, the Committee proposed that as the Bill dealt with communal land, any farms acquired for the sole purpose of resettlement should be dealt with under the appropriate policy and legislation by the Ministry of Lands, Resettlement and Rehabilitation and not be included in the Bill.

Ya France, however, expressed concern that due to security concerns, the Kavango and Caprivi Regions were not covered by the National Council Committee during its public hearings.

"This means, therefore, that the communities in these regions may not be aware of the impact of this Bill," he said.

The National Assembly had earlier reaffirmed the principles of the Bill, but referred it to the Standing Committee on Natural Resources to consider the proposed amendments from the National Council.

The Bill was eventually passed with the input from the Office of the Attorney General.