STATE LANDS (RECOVERY POSSESSION) ACT NO 7 OF 1979. In the section 7 of this act gives special powers to the government or any authorized body to take possession of any land by following necessary steps that are indicated in the act for the urban development projects. Under that president, minister in charge of urban and UDA have extensive powers to take lands for development and management projects. This act gives special powers to the president to issue a gazette to expropriate land. According to their source it indicates that there is an ambiguity to define what it meant by ‘urgent’ and what is meant by ‘for the welfare of the people’.
Supporting Evidence #2: “ we have known that our lands were despoiled in the name of supposedly legal texts, which in reality recognized only the right of the stronger” (Lumumba, 1960, paragraph 3). Explanation: when the people are taking over and colonizing, they are taking things that people have worked for and made like these people are putting heavy taxes on their land which is making it harder for the South Americans and natives to stay because they can afford such heavy taxes. So the government of whoever is controlling
2.2.1 Concept and definition of land expropriation and compensation There are many legal terminologies used by different legal systems that share the same name and transmit same meaning, Expropriation, on the other hand, assumes different names in different legal systems. In the United States it is known by the name “Eminent Domain”, in the United Kingdom and continental Europe it is termed as “Compulsory Purchase” and “Expropriation” respectively (A court in Louisiana a state in the USA that follows a Civil Law legal s system,1967) as cited by (Daniel, 2013). Compulsory acquisition is the power of government to acquire private rights in land for a public purpose, without the willing consent of its owner or occupant and this power is known
The Homestead Act promoted westward expansion and further displaced Indians. It allowed any American, including freed slaves to claim 160 acres of federal land. Eventually, 256 million acres would be claimed. After claiming their land the settler would then have to live on that piece of ground for five years continuously for them to have finally owned their claimed ground. In the winter of 1862, President Lincoln appoints one of his friends, John Evans to become the Territorial Governor of Colorado.
These acts and government policies make “it relatively easy to divide up land formerly held communally on reservations and to allot it to individual Indians” (Peterson 181). The agenda behind the implementation of such acts is to civilize the natives and create an affinity with them towards the so-called civilized life. However, the legislation shatters the community life of the Ojibwa and confines them to an individualistic society. The Dawes Allotment Act divided the native land and gave an individual share to the natives. It also stresses that they should pay taxes for that land.
A harsh industry and plantation-based economy exploited Indian lands and contributed further to the racism against indigenous people. In 1952, President Juan Jose Arevalo put the law of Agrarian Reform into motion. This law outlawed debt peonage and regulated land renting. The U.S, whom was benefiting from the focus on a “coffee boom”, then launched operation PBSuccess, in which a CIA coup overthrew Arevalo by spreading propaganda around the
The peasants were expropriated from their lands, with ridiculous compensation. They were condemned to choose between rural exodus and work for foreign mining companies for very low wages. The state stopped subsidizing agriculture, fertilizers, machinery etc. condemning peasants, who once were living from their farm and their field, to poverty. These subsistence farms were razed to allow gold mining by multinationals.
For example, by 2011, Indian farmers have received more than 1.8 million hectares of land. Some experts argue that this trend of massive farm land leasing (“land grab”) by foreign companies threatens the food security of the poor. Schiffman 2013 notes: “When local food prices become locked into highly unstable global commodity prices, it is often the people at the bottom of the economic ladder who are the first to feel the pain.” In Ethiopia, the issue of land grab also extends to claims of serious rights abuses by the government which, according to Human Rights Watch, has forcibly been evicting and resettling local people under the guise of villagization, in order to clear land for foreign
Here, public purpose conflated with industrialisation, development of infrastructure and urbanisation. There are no ceilings fixed on the extent of land that can be acquired and so this will intensify inequalities of ownership, and wealth. The government acquisition for private entities has been legitimised and the consent clauses are vaguely formulated for private acquisition and ceiling on acquisition have been disregarded and all these extends the scope of eminent domain. In addition this act dilutes the compensation criteria, as now, the government is sole authority to determine whether compensation should be at market value of land. There are no ceilings fixed on the extent of land that can be acquired and so this will intensify inequalities of ownership, and wealth.
The government was taking over the land. Kim was very angry. “This garden is part of my life. They can’t do this!”, Kim said frustrated “We need to do something”, I said to her “Let’s go somewhere quiet, so we can think clearly about this”, She came with me and we agreed on doing whatever is necessary to save the land. I asked some people and searched about it, I discovered that the government was taking it to build a new city hall.