Prevention of the Unlawful Occupation of Land Bill [B98-97]: briefing by Department

SELECT COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SERVICES
4 March 1998
PREVENTION OF THE UNLAWFUL OCCUPATION OF LAND BILL [B98-97]: BRIEFING BY DEPARTMENT

MINUTES
The Bill under discussion is the draft amended by the Portfolio Committee on housing the previous week after extensive consultation and public hearings. Although it had been classified as a s75 bill, there was a need to get an input from the provinces since it will affect them when implemented. The Department of Land Affairs had drafted the bill but since the Housing Ministry is in charge of the existing Prevention of Illegal Squatting Act, the Ministry of Housing was carrying it through.

The concept of the Bill is four-fold:
1 to bring legislation in line with the Constitution
2 to criminalise unlawful eviction - the cornerstone of the Bill
3 to create a new and fair procedure for evicting unlawful occupiers
4 to allow the government to act against unlawful occupiers when it is in the public interest.

A clause-by-clause examination of the Bill, highlighting the Portfolio Committee amendments, was undertaken.

The short title was amended to highlight the desire to tackle illegal eviction: Prevention of Illegal Evictions From and Unlawful Occupation of Land Bill. A preamble has been included to strengthen the constitutional base of the legislation and to bring the Bill into context.

The Chairperson adjourned the meeting until a later date, giving members an opportunity to consult in their provinces.