During Colonialism and Apartheid the white minority brutally stole thousands of acres of land from the African majority in South Africa. Consequently, upon independence, whites owned over 87% of the land although they constituted less than 10% of the population. At independence, the African liberation parties struck a deal with the Apartheid government. Whites would be able to maintain their jobs and property despite how it was acquired. In exchange, the African majority was promised land reform. Although it has been 15 years since independence, the majority of Africans remain landless and impoverished while the affluent white minority still owns the majority of the land. This is one of the most outrageous injustices of the 21st century, yet few people even know about it.
The only redemptive aspect of this heart wrenching story is that, through the Land Restitution Program, the African majority has received some compensation for past land dispossession. With funding from the Council on Foreign Relations, in 2008 I was in South Africa for nine months working under the Director General of Land Affairs to evaluate the Land Restitution Program. I conducted a study where I interviewed over 150 people from families whose land was stolen by the Apartheid government and who received compensation. The stories I gathered are the basis of a book that I am writing. The problem is that books only reach a miniscule portion of the population, and these are stories the world needs to hear. This is what inspired Rich and I to produce this film.
- Bernadette Atuahene
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