If one fails to take into account the political, social and economic history that shaped South Africa, it is not possible to properly understand the progress and initiatives that are taking place in land reform in our country today.
At the time of the first democratic elections in April 1994, the new government faced a staggering racial imbalance in land ownership. Between 3,5 million and 7 million people had been relocated in post 1913 social engineering under various apartheid measures in South Africa; expectations of the new government ran very high.
Restitution of land rights, as a process, came into being when the interim Constitution directed Parliament to pass legislation establishing a Commission of Restitution of Land Rights. When the Restitution of Land Rights Act 22 of 1994 was promulgated in December 1994, a constitutional and legislative framework was created for the restitution process. This process has been administered by the State, through the Department of Land
