In a move to safeguard their ancestral homes, Chishawasha villagers have approached the High Court seeking to prevent their eviction by the Roman Catholic Church.
The church’s plans involve displacing over 200 families from their communal land to make way for a church-managed urban settlement, Newsday has reported.
In response to the villagers’ legal action, the church has filed an opposing affidavit, arguing that the land dispute has been ongoing since 2014 and therefore lacks urgency. Maintaining ownership of the 3953.8816-hectare property, known as the Remainder of the Chishawasha Farm in Goromonzi district, the Roman Catholic Jesuits claim to have secured the necessary government approvals to proceed with their urbanization project.
Isaac Hawafadzwi Chimbetete, the Provincial Superior of the Jesuits province of Zimbabwe, filed the opposing affidavit, defending the church’s position.
“The Jesuits simultaneously applied for change of use from agricultural land to urban land, and for the subdivision of the Chishawasha Farm into residential stands of different sizes. A permit was subsequently issued,” Chimbetete said.
“Condition 20 of the permit clearly spelt out that the implementation of the urbanisation project shall be subject to commitments set out in the Chishawasha Development Phasing plan, annexure 2 to the permit as agreed to between the owner, and Chief Chinamhora, and in consonant with government policies, legislation and guidelines on the displacement and relocation of persons or households.”
According to Chimbetete, Chief Chinamhora had also given approval for the transformation of the land into an urban settlement.
“His (chief) acceptance was subject to clause 20 of the development permit as well as an undertaking by the Jesuits to preserve sacred and heritage sites. The heritage sites have since been handed over to Chief Chinamhora.
“The Jesuits have also, through the developer obtained key regulatory licences from other agencies including the Environmental Management Agency, and the National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe,” he said.
Represented by their lawyer Chrispen Mukome, the villagers accused a Jesuit priest of colluding with high-ranking government officials to orchestrate their fraudulent eviction from their ancestral land.
