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Tuesday saw the government of Venezuela finally begin to implement its programme of expropriating land from the country's major landowners. To begin with, more than 100,000 hectares will be handed over to landless farmers.
Although President Hugo Chávez once spoke of a 'war against the landed estates', the government now carefully avoids using the word 'confiscation'. It is simply 'retaking' land which, while it has always been 'public property', was dubiously 'occupied' by private landowners and businesses.
From controversy to coup
The measure marks the first practical step in putting the land reform law of 2001 into effect. It was the introduction of this legislation that was one of the main factors behind the mass protests against President Chávez which led shortly afterwards to a lengthy national strike and a short-lived coup against the head of state.
Having won last year's referendum on whether or not he should stay on as president, Mr Chávez now feels strengthened in pushing ahead with the reform, while the opposition remains deeply divided.
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Previously, Venezuela's land reform was confined to paper, with the government having made no attempts to confiscate property from major landowners. However, it has redistributed publicly-owned land to some 130,000 farmers and their families. Nonetheless, those opposed to President Chávez fear that the new round of land redistribution is just the beginning of a programme aimed at bringing full Cuban-style socialism to the country.
Meanwhile, the National Land Institute (INTI), which falls under the ministry of agriculture, says this is not an issue of confiscation. The INTI has carried out an investigation and identified property believed to have been in public ownership since as far back as 1840 and which is currently under-utilised or not productive at all. This has led the INTI to designate four 'fincas' or estates in the grasslands in the western part of Venezuela which satisfy these two requirements.
International impact
The reform is also having an impact on foreign firms, with British meat producer the Vestey Group about to lose land which has been deemed not to be in productive use. The company has protested against the plans, claiming it has documentary proof that it has been the rightful owner of the property since the 19th century. It will be allowed to keep approximately one third of the estate because this is actually used for raising cattle.
There is a tradition of land reform being a key item on the agenda of most left-wing governments in Latin America, where the existence of millions of landless farmers stands in sharp contrast with the existence of huge ranches and estates, many of them with vast tracts of land which are not put to any use at all. With a growing number of landless farmers in countries such as Brazil now moving to occupy land on their own initiative, it seems that organised land redistribution may be the best way of combating the scourge of rural poverty.