September is the month when we remember Steve Biko- who is one of the founding figures of TCOE and who together with others played a leading role in establishing Zingisa and giving this organisation a rich legacy. However, this month will also be remembered for the bruising public sector strike, with thousands of teachers, nurses and public workers bringing some services to a near halt.
Highlights of the month:
The National office partnered AIDC to host a very successful public seminar on the Right 2 Food. This was attended by over 120 participants and was followed on by some extensive capacity building on the use of advocacy and media to create a public dialogue around access to land and food sovereignty.

We also hosted the People’s Dialogue SADC seminar on Agriculture and the Creeping Green Revolution. Many different partners such as peasant movements; small farmers unions; NGOs; research organisations and rural women movements participated in the three day dialogue.

TCOE and several of the women from the rural women’s forums that we facilitate participated in a three day process (Women and Land Rights) – the TCOE staff presented case studies.

This month we presented case studies; research and papers at the Action Aid conference (WOLAR); Ilitha La Bantu’s Focus on women and social movements and also at the PLAAS conference on poverty.

This was followed up by an intense workshop to finalise land sector collaboration in a partnership called Tshintsha Amakhaya which consists of TCOE and ten other organisations.

We also organised our quarterly action-reflection gathering with the leadership from Mawubuye; Makhanya; Iliziwi Lama Fama; Siyazakha; Mopani Farmers Union and Rural People’s Movement.

• Masifundise and Coastal Links played a key role in engaging the Ministry of Agriculture, Forests and Fisheries to get concrete support to coastal villages and fishers to receive interim relief for those who are struggling to access the sea;
• They also participated in organising popular participation and debates amongst Coastal Links fishers in formulating draft policy for Small Scale Fishers of the Department of Agriculture, Forests and Fishing.
• Masifundise director and three Coastal links leaders also participated at a national task team that supported government’s policy drafting team.

Mawubuye this month focused on three main activities:
organised a road show in Villiersdorp to introduce Mawubuye to the small farmers, landless and also farm workers. This was very successful and subsequently, a branch of Mawubuye was launched.

1. they organised with the support of Legal Resource Centre a very good community workshop in McGregor on municipal commonage as a means to get locals more aware of their rights to access land in McGregor.
2. A soup kitchen that supports over 500 people daily was initiated in Ladismith (Kannaland district). This imitative requires a great deal of support.

• CALUSA- Together with Siyazakha- the focus has been on supporting local struggles around the imposition of traditional authority where communities are against a dual system of governance.
• CALUSA has supported the Committee of 13 from Tsengiwe to fight the imposition of the headman ( introduced them to LRC and the Public Protector);
• CALUSA participates in the District Land rights Forum and have used this platform to challenge evictions in the district of farm workers and their families.

Khanyisa and Makukhanye
Khanyisa has supported the Gamtoos Valley Farmers to engage the municipality to scrap huge water bills of small farmers; small farmers have become indebted to the Land Bank and face loosing their land. This is a struggle that they will continue with in the coming months.
Masifunde

• The organisation participated in a two –day Water Indaba hosted by the Makana municipality- this was an important activity to start engagement with local government around access to water for rural communities and farmers. This initiative is linked to Masifunde decision to explore a right to water campaign.
• Training on permaculture, natural farming and water management for conducted for Pikoli small farmers;
• PAR on GMO and the massive food production programme gave Masifunde and RPM insights in what was happening in the Department of Agriculture and how the green revolution was seen in the Eastern Cape.

Zingisa
Highlights for September are the following:

1. one week long capacity building for small farmers in Peelton on permaculture and organic agriculture
2. Exchange visit to the Western Cape where Iliziwi met with Mawubuye Stock Farmers; organic formers in Stellenbosch and Abalimi base khaya (urban agriculture project.
3. Raising awareness of GMO; tracking Monsanto’s role and promises to small farmers culminated in the PAR on the massive food production programme.

Itireleng and Mopani farmers Union
Water, water, water- this is the main activity and struggle that the Mopani small farmers are actively engaged in.
Itireleng continues to support communities with their restitution claims- one success this month has been the Banareng ba Mantjana – Balloon claim. The locals have started tilling their land a few days ago.