In a press release dated August 31, 2023, the Land Advisory Council (LAC) expressed its outrage at the massive demolitions of homes that have taken place in recent days. In this belated statement, the Land Advisory Council noted that these demolition operations did not follow proper procedures.
“The Land Advisory Council has noted with indignation in recent days that forced execution measures based on court decisions, resulting in massive demolitions of homes, have been undertaken by the winning parties without adherence to certain legal provisions in this matter,” the press release reads. And yet, they could have reacted or taken action earlier to prevent mothers and fathers from being left homeless after more than 20 years of settlement.
On Wednesday, August 23, several households found themselves homeless following the demolition of their homes. The victims were caught off guard by the demolition team while already engaged in a negotiation process following the court decision that favored a property owner. According to the president of the Tankpè Development Association, a meeting was even scheduled for Monday, August 28 at the National Agency of Domain and Land (ANDF) with all parties involved.
This means that the negotiation process was indeed underway, but the winning party chose to use force even before the outcome of the meeting on Monday, August 28. And this is precisely what the LAC denounces. “Indeed, Article 528 of Law 2013-01 of August 14, 2023, which regulates land and domain codes in the Republic of Benin, as amended and supplemented by Law 2017-15 of August 10, 2017, provides for a preliminary negotiation stage to bring the parties closer together and avoid the serious consequences of demolitions. The same law prohibits, in Article 415, forced evictions during the rainy season,” it denounced.
To put an end to excessive demolitions, the President of the Land Advisory Council (LAC) “urgently urges beneficiaries of land-related court decisions to refrain from such practices and to contact the LAC’s permanent secretariat for notification of the institution’s decisions regarding their cases.”
