Introduction
Forest conservation and biodiversity protection are essential for climate change mitigation and ecological sustainability. However, these objectives frequently conflict with the land tenure rights and livelihoods of Indigenous communities. This tension is particularly acute in South Africa, where the creation of protected areas is rooted in colonial and apartheid-era dispossession. These policies systematically displaced Indigenous peoples from ancestral lands, leaving a legacy of inequality that persists today.
This blog post aims to examine the disputes between forest conservation and Indigenous land rights by focusing on the Dwesa-Cwebe Nature Reserve in the Eastern Cape. It argues that South African conservation law must move beyond exclusionary models to embrace approaches that balance ecological preservation with social justice and community empowerment.
The Colonial-Apartheid Legacy
The conflict over conservation and land rights in South Africa is not recent but stems from a long history of dispossession. Prior to colonisation, Indigenous communities lived sustainably with nature, governed by customary laws.[1] European colonisers fundamentally altered this relationship, using forest conservation as a tool of control. The state reserved natural resources while forcibly removing local populations. As a South African government report acknowledges, “the creation of parks often resulted in communities being forcibly relocated to new areas, or losing their land”.[2]
This pattern was entrenched by apartheid. The Land Acts of 1913 and 1936 relegated Black South Africans to only 13% of the country’s land.[3] Protected areas were created without consultation, and access to resources such as firewood and medicinal plants was criminalized.[4] Conservation became an exclusionary and often violent process, creating deep resentment that the post-apartheid state has struggled to overcome.[5]
Dwesa-Cwebe: A Case Study in Liminality
The legacy of dispossession is powerfully illustrated by the Dwesa-Cwebe Nature Reserve. This protected area of approximately 5,700 hectares, along with a marine reserve, is located on the Eastern Cape’s Wild Coast. First established as a state forest in the 1890s, it was formally proclaimed a nature reserve under the apartheid Transkei government, resulting in forced evictions of local communities.[6]
Following the 1994 transition to democracy, the Dwesa-Cwebe communities successfully claimed land restitution, with a settlement agreement in 2001 restoring their legal ownership. Yet this legal victory has not translated into practical freedom. Despite being recognised as landowners, communities remain effectively excluded from accessing reserve resources, participating in management, or benefiting from economic opportunities. They exist in a state of “chronic liminality”, neither fully in possession of their rights nor completely excluded.[7]
Scholars have documented how various state agencies operate in confusion, fail to harmonise oversight and leave communities in perpetual limbo. This liminality has fuelled resistance, including protests and covert resource harvesting, as communities struggle to assert their rights against a slow-to-reform conservation establishment.
Pathways to Balance
Despite these challenges, there is growing recognition that conservation must become more inclusive. The post-apartheid era has seen a policy shift toward “People and Parks” and community-based natural resource management, aiming to involve local communities as partners. However, this promise requires concrete action.
Recognizing informal land tenure rights, ensuring meaningful community participation in decision-making, and redistributing power over natural resources are critical steps. As scholars argue, biodiversity conflicts arise “if social justice interests like the informal land tenure rights of local and indigenous communities are disregarded”.[8]
Conclusion
The conflict between forest conservation and Indigenous land rights in South Africa is a direct consequence of a colonial-apartheid past. The Dwesa-Cwebe story demonstrates that legal recognition of land rights is necessary but insufficient for justice. To achieve true balance, South African conservation law must move beyond exclusion and actively embrace co-management and community empowerment. Only then can conservation serve both people and nature.
[1] September-Van Huffel A, Veldkornet D and Raphela T, ‘Exploring Biodiversity Conflict as a Result of Conservation Practices and Private Property on Local and Indigenous Communities’ Land Tenure Rights’ (2025) 12 Journal of Law, Society and Development https://unisapressjournals.co.za/index.php/JLSD/article/view/17625 accessed 16 July 2026.
[2] Matose, F. (2026). Forests and the Power of Marginalised People in Southern Africa. Cambridge University Press.
[3] Ngcukaitobi T, Land Matters: South Africa’s Failed Land Reforms and the Road Ahead (Penguin Books, 2021) 45; Cousins B, ‘Access to Land and Rural Poverty in South Africa’ (Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies, 2012) 8.
[4] Matose F, Forests and the Power of Marginalised People in Southern Africa (Cambridge University Press, 2026) 15; September-Van Huffel A, Veldkornet D and Raphela T, ‘Exploring Biodiversity Conflict as a Result of Conservation Practices and Private Property on Local and Indigenous Communities’ Land Tenure Rights’ (2025) 12 Journal of Law, Society and Development https://unisapressjournals.co.za/index.php/JLSD/article/view/17625, accessed 16 July 2026.
[5] Ngcukaitobi, T. (2021). Land Matters: South Africa’s Failed Land Reforms and the Road Ahead. Penguin Books.
[6] Spatial development, power dynamics and social tensions: Insights from Dwesa-Cwebe, Wild Coast Region, South Africa’ (2024) http://hdl.handle.net/11427/37051 accessed 16 July 2026.
[7] Frank Matose, ‘Dwesa-Cwebe: From restored land rights to enduring liminality’ in Forests and the Power of Marginalised People in Southern Africa: Politics of Chronic Liminality (James Currey 2025) ch 2.
[8] South African history of conservation’(Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment) https://www.dffe.gov.za/south-african-history-conservation, accessed 17 July 2026.
