Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06HARARE972
2006-08-01 16:13:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Embassy Harare
Cable title:  

2006 REPORT ON INVESTMENT DISPUTES AND

Tags:  EINV KIDE OPIC CASC PGOV 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO7210
PP RUEHDU RUEHJO RUEHMR RUEHRN
DE RUEHSB #0972/01 2131613
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 011613Z AUG 06
FM AMEMBASSY HARARE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0451
INFO RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC PRIORITY
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC PRIORITY
RUCNSAD/SOUTHERN AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 HARARE 000972 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

EB/OIA:JAMES ROLLENS, L/CID:EEDAUGHTRY, M/R:MCOFFEY,
AF/EPS:AADLER, CA/OCS:EBETANCOURT, EB/CBA:NSMITH-NISSELY,
SCA/RA:LBLEE, USDOC:ELEVY, TREAS:GCHRISTOPOLIS, H:ABOTTI,
S/ES-O:CRTRIBBLE, USTR:EDUNLAP, OPIC:RHORANBURG

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EINV KIDE OPIC CASC PGOV
SUBJECT: 2006 REPORT ON INVESTMENT DISPUTES AND
EXPROPRIATION CLAIMS-ZIMBABWE

REF: STATE 060294

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 HARARE 000972

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

EB/OIA:JAMES ROLLENS, L/CID:EEDAUGHTRY, M/R:MCOFFEY,
AF/EPS:AADLER, CA/OCS:EBETANCOURT, EB/CBA:NSMITH-NISSELY,
SCA/RA:LBLEE, USDOC:ELEVY, TREAS:GCHRISTOPOLIS, H:ABOTTI,
S/ES-O:CRTRIBBLE, USTR:EDUNLAP, OPIC:RHORANBURG

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EINV KIDE OPIC CASC PGOV
SUBJECT: 2006 REPORT ON INVESTMENT DISPUTES AND
EXPROPRIATION CLAIMS-ZIMBABWE

REF: STATE 060294


1. The US Government is aware of eight (8) claims of US
persons which may be outstanding against the Government of
Zimbabwe (GOZ). All eight claims arise out of the GOZ's Land
Resettlement Program, which commenced in 2000. The general
pace of land seizure has slowed, as very few non-indigenous
commercial farmers are left on their properties.
Nevertheless threats of seizure by individuals and government
officials are unabated and disruptions to the operation of
the remaining non-indigenous commercial farmers are frequent.
In the past year, the case of one additional American
property owner (Claimant H) who has been threatened with
expropriation came to post,s attention.

Under its continuing Land Resettlement Program, the GOZ has
targeted almost all farm or wildlife property owned by
non-indigenous landowners for compulsory acquisition. The
GOZ has consistently maintained that no compensation will be
made for land itself, but that compensation will be made for
improvements to the property. However, to date, the GOZ has
not compensated any American claimants for either acquired
property or improvements to property. Disruptions posed by
land reform and the economy's generally chaotic conditions
complicate meaningful valuation of the land or of any
improvements made. However, the values of the eight American
citizen claimants properties at issue range from $100,000 to
more than $2,000,000.

In 2005, Parliament amended the constitution to grant title
to the government of all agricultural land acquired in the
past under the land reform program and any agricultural land
that may be acquired in the future. The amendment removed
the right of landowners, whose land has been acquired, to
challenge the acquisition in court. There has been no
progress either on the ground or in the courts to resolve
compensation issues for the American-owned properties.

Because of judicial and political chaos during the land
seizures, it is difficult to state precisely when most of the
eight landowners were legally dispossessed. Therefore, the
dates of expropriation offered below are approximations only.


All eight properties have received either Preliminary or
Final Notices of Acquisition from the GOZ. Most of the
American citizens affected have not asked the Embassy to
intervene beyond raising the issue of compensation with
appropriate GOZ officials in our normal course of meetings
and through diplomatic notes.


2. Claimant List

a. Claimant A

b. 2002

c. Claimant A reported that his property had been invaded by
approximately eight war veterans, and that a prosperous and
connected Zimbabwean was grazing his cattle on the property.
Approximately 60 sables had been released from a grazing pen
and had subsequently disappeared ) either escaped from the
property or poached. Post has not had contact with Claimant
A in the past year.

a. Claimant B

b. 2002

c. Claimant B had an 85-hectare flower)exportin farm that
was listed for compulsory acquisitionby the GOZ under an
initial notice of acquisition (Section 5 notice). In 2004
the Mashonaland East Governor signed a "delisting" form, but
the Local Government and Land Ministries refused to assent.
Claimant B then attempted to sell his property to the nephew
of the Chief Justice of Zimbabwe's Supreme Court, but the
sale fell through as the nephew reneged on payment. Claimant
B is off the farm, and the Commander of the Zimbabwe Defence
Forces, General Constantine Chiwenga, currently farms the
land. Post has not had contact with the claimant in the past
year.

a. Claimant C

b. 2003


HARARE 00000972 002 OF 003


c. Claimant C, received a final notice of acquisition
(Section 8 notice) in January, 2003 Claimant C purchased
the 7,618-hectare property in 1985 with Zimbabwe Investment
Center (ZIC) certificates to run a hunting and photographic
safari business. The property is part of a 17-farm, 80,000
hectare private wildlife conservancy that receives donor
funding for the conservation of black rhinos. However
poaching in recent years has reduced the black rhino
population from 55 to 22 and jeopardized donor funding. The
conservancy owners are being harassed by some members of the
local population, who are demanding a revenue share in the
conservancy. Claimant C has stopped his safari business as
he claimed invaders had poached all of the game. Claimant C
had been protesting the acquisition through Zimbabwe's
courts. After receiving permanent residency in South Africa,
Claimant C was laying the groundwork to emigrate but, at last
contact, was unable to secure the proper documentation to
move personal belongings out of Zimbabwe. Post has not had
contact with the claimant in the past year, but has been kept
abreast of developments in the conservancy by a third party.

a. Claimant D

b. 2002

c. Claimant D's rural wildlife-based property, which was
transferred from a Zimbabwean spouse to a trust benefiting
the couple's two US citizen children, is located in the
district of Hwange. Claimant D used the 420-hectare property
primarily for hunting and photographic safari purposes. The
property was allocated to a Zimbabwean settler who has done
nothing with the land. Claimant D left the farm on October
1, 2002 and the settler kicked off all of Claimant D's
employees by March 2004. Claimant D has asked the Embassy
not to pursue this case through official channels. Post has
had no contact with Claimant D in the past year.

a. Claimant E

b. n/a

c. Claimant G has received a Section 5 notice but is still
in possession of the property in the district of Bikita in
southern Zimbabwe. This property is dedicated to a 26-farm
wildlife conservancy containing both black and white rhinos.
The GOZ has announced plans to implement a land tenure scheme
whereby title of conservancies reverts to the State, which
then grants a 25-year lease to each property owner. In
return, the current owners would agree to indigenize their
businesses through shareholder equity. The 25-year leases
would be automatically renewable, but not transferable.
Claimant E, along with other conservancy members, continues
to negotiate a solution with the GOZ. Ambassador Dell raised
Claimant E,s case with Environment and Tourism Minister
Francis Nhema, who indicated that he would like to see
Claimant E and the rest of the conservancy join the
Trans-Frontier Conservation Area (a park linking tracts in
Zimbabwe, Mozambique, and South Africa). Claimant E
regularly keeps the Embassy abreast of the status of
negotiations. Claimant E has not sought further Embassy
advocacy.

a. Claimant F

b. 2004

c. Claimant F owns a 996-hectare farm in his American wife,s
name after Claimant F,s son ran the farm into bankruptcy.
Claimant F does not have a Zimbabwe Investment Certificate.
Claimant F was able to move much of his irrigation and farm
equipment off the property prior to losing control of the
farm but lost 170 head of cattle. Settlers first arrived on
the farm in 2000 but Claimant F maintained good relations
with them and local police, and he continued to have access
to the farm until 2004. From May to July 2004, Claimant F
received Section 5 and Section 8 notices of acquisition and
asked the Embassy to write a diplomatic note protesting the
intended acquisition. The Embassy did so and received a pro
forma response. Shortly thereafter, Claimant F was no longer
afforded access to the farm and effectively dispossessed of
the land. There have been no further developments on the
ground and Claimant F decided not to use the courts as the
GOZ was not enforcing judgments adverse to its own interests.
Post has had no contact with Claimant F in the past year.


HARARE 00000972 003 OF 003


a. Claimant G

b. N/A

c. Registered in 1997, Claimant G is a subsidiary trust of a
California-registered Non-Profit Religious Organization that
planned to establish an environmental and life skills
teaching center operating near Kadoma. Claimant G purchased
the 160-hectare parcel in 1999 but has been unable to obtain
a proper transfer of title. Nonetheless, in addition to
having exclusive use of the land since 1999, Claimant G has
the Agreement of Sale as proof of purchase. In November
2004, Claimant G received a Section 5 initial notice of
acquisition, to which it responded in court as well as by
correspondence to various Zimbabwean government entities.
Claimant G also received a Section 8 notice of immediate
acquisition, which it is was contesting in the courts. Post
has had no contact with Claimant G in the past year.

a. Claimant H

b. 2006

c. Claimant H informed the Embassy in April, 2006 that he was
the owner, along with his non-American citizen parents, of a
33 hectare plot in Nyanga, Eastern Highlands. Claimant H
resides in Mozambique; his parents reside on the Nyanga site,
where they grow apples on part of the plot and sell them in
the local market. Although the plot is registered as a
residential and not agricultural property, it was recently
gazetted (Section 5 initial notice of acquisition) for
takeover. Claimant H and his parents are contesting the
notice. Claimant H has not requested assistance from the
Embassy.

The claimant has not provided the Embassy with any
documentation to corroborate the claim. In addition, in
light of the likely one-third US-person ownership, it is not
clear that the claim qualifies under the definition of &US
person.8



3. Claimants' names - Harare update to Section 527 report

Claimant A: William Holmes Taylor IV and two sons, all
American citizens, with property owned in trust by Emblehope
Enterprises (Pvt.) Ltd., a Zimbabwean entity. Taylor and his
two sons are the primary beneficiaries. No PAW signed.

Claimant B: Edward Galante, an American citizen, with the
property owned by Machera Farming Enterprises (Pvt.) Ltd., a
Zimbabwean entity. Galante and his two AmCit children are
the primary beneficiaries. No PAW signed.

Claimant C: Sam and Janet Chambliss, both American citizens.
The property is owned by Twin Springs Conservancy (Pvt.) Ltd.
With Sam and Janet Chambliss as the sole shareholders. No
PAW singed.

Claimant D: Debbie Rabinovitch and minor children Diane and
Desmond Rabinovitch, all American citizens. The property is
owned by a Zimbabwean trust of which Diane and Desmond are
the beneficiaries. No PAW signed.

Claimant E: Weldon and Kathy Schenck, both American citizens.
The property is owned by a Zimbabwean trust due to
interrelated obligations of conservancy landowners. No PAW
signed.

Claimant F: Terry and Joan Ryan, husband is Zimbabwean and
wife is American citizen. The property is owned under J.T.
Management Consultancy (Pvt.) Ltd. No PAW signed.

Claimant G: Lasting Impressions Wilderness Training
Corporation, a registered California Non-Profit Religious
organization, which wholly owns and controls The Lasting
Impressions Trust, a Zimbabwean entity. Shelly Croudace, a
director of The Lasting Impressions Trust is our contact and
is an American citizen as well. No PAW signed.

Claimant H: Lance Edwards, an American citizen. The
property is owned by himself, as far as we are aware, and his
non-American parents. No PAW signed.
RAYNOR