§ 33. Mr. WEDGWOODasked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether the Colonial Office have ever committed themselves to the view that all land in Northern and Southern Rhodesia not already sold to settlers is the absolute property of the Chartered Company; and, if so, what steps, if any, have been taken to safeguard the rights of the natives to any portion of the soil?
§ The SECRETARY of STATE for the COLONIES (Mr. Harcourt)No, Sir, the exact limits of the Company's rights have formed the subject of controversy in Rhodesia, and His Majesty's Government, when asked by the Legislative Council of Southern Rhodesia in 1908 to decide them, hold that, the question was not susceptible of a binding solution, except by the Courts of Law. In regard to the natives, however, the Southern Rhodesia Order in Council of 1898 clearly lays down in Article 81 that the Company must from time to time assign to the natives land sufficient for their occupation, whether as tribes or portions of tribes, and suitable for their agricultural and pastoral requirements, including in all cases a fair and equitable proportion of springs or permanent water. The same provision exists in the Northern Rhodesia Order in Council (Article 40).
§ Mr. WEDGWOODMay we take it that no change in Rhodesia will be detrimental to the natives' rights in the land?
§ Mr. HARCOURTCertainly.