Question NW2400 to the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation
19 September 2018 - NW2400
Alberts, Mr ADW to ask the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation
(1)Whether, in view of her department’s mandate to manage and implement international relations and co-operation, she has been informed that land ownership around Mpumalanga and other parts of the country has been contested by external parties before the land reform programme started; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details; (2) did the Government at any stage engage the Kingdom of eSwatini about land and border issues since 27 April 1994; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details; (3) what was the (a) purpose or objective of the commission that was set up by the Government in 2006 (details furnished) to discuss land and border matters with their counterparts from eSwatini and (b) outcome of those talks; (4) what was the outcome of the various Diplomatic Notes sent between the United Kingdom, the Republic of South Africa and the Kingdom of eSwatini, between 1966 and 1969, requesting that borders between the two countries be defined; (5) whether she will make a statement on the matter?
Reply:
(1) Yes, I have been informed and I am aware that the Government of Kingdom of eSwatini has over the years submitted claims on some parts of South Africa’s territory. South Africa’s position on such cases will be informed by:
i) South Africa’s Constitution (Schedule 1A) defines the territory of the Republic.
ii) The OAU 1964 Resolution AHG/Res.16 (1) on colonial borders, as well as the AU Constitutive Act 2001, Article 4(b), and
iii) International Law.
(2) Yes, at the request of the Kingdom of eSwatini, the South African Government has since 1994 engaged them on their land and border claims. In this regard, the two governments engaged with a view to resolving the land and border matters.
(3) (a) In 2005, the then Minister of Foreign Affairs, established the South African International Boundaries Committee (SAIBC) to investigate the land and border claims by the Kingdom of eSwatini. In this regard, the SAIBC had met with the Swaziland Border Restoration Committee (BRC) on several occasions to discuss the land and border matters.
(b) The outcomes of those meetings resulted in both sides restating their positions on the land and border dispute. The SAIBC presented its report to the then Minister of Foreign Affairs, subsequent to which, the then Minister, disbanded the SAIBC.
(4) It has proven difficult to find such material and to even determine the location where the information may be kept, considering that the diplomatic notes referred to, date back from the period between 1966 and 1969.
(5) No.