Photo Shutterstock According to Lerato Thakholi in her dissertation.
Thakholi investigated the distribution of land use and labor in and around private game reserves in northeastern South Africa, near Mozambique and the Kruger National Park. These reserves are located near villages where approximately 2 million black South Africans live in harsh conditions, characterized by limited access to clean drinking water and high unemployment rates.
Land
In a historical analysis, Thakholi shows that the apartheid state granted land to white farmers in the nineteenth century. Some black people were detained for free labor, while many others were expelled to areas adjacent to these new white farms.
However, animal husbandry in this area became a challenge due to low meat prices and predators from the nearby Kruger National Park. That is why the area was converted from cattle ranching to a game reserve in the 1960s.
Fences
The local population did not benefit from this development, says Thakholi, even after the end of the apartheid regime in 1994. One of the reasons for this was the Game Theft Act of 1991. “This law provided private property rights to wildlife, suddenly wild animals became private property. The fences built because of this not only separated animals from people, but also meant that wild animals were valued more than the lives of black people.’
Redistribution
Today, western tourists stay in 5-star lodges, while the black guards, maintenance and hospitality workers are poorly paid and live in shabby staff houses. To reduce this inequality, all employees in the private nature reserve should have at least a living wage, Thakholi says. But to really reduce inequality, the land needs to be distributed more fairly. ‘There is a land redistribution program, but so far the local authorities and the powerful private landowners have managed to thwart this program.’
