KEY POINTS

• The Mandebvu family wants coordinates defining Eastdale Air Base’s boundaries.

• The family disputes its removal from farmland it says it occupied under government-issued documents.

• The military cites a 2006 land designation, but the precise boundaries and extent of the overlap remain unclear.

A family displaced from disputed farmland in Gutu, Zimbabwe, is seeking precise boundary coordinates from the Air Force of Zimbabwe (AFZ) to establish how much of the property falls within a designated military area.

Lawyers representing the Mandebvu family have asked the Air Force to provide the coordinates defining Eastdale Air Base, as the family challenges its removal from land it says it occupied under government-issued documents.

The request is intended to determine whether the family’s land lies entirely within the military reservation or whether some portions fall outside its officially designated boundaries. The dispute remains unresolved.

Lawyers seek official boundary coordinates

In a letter dated April 10, 2026, the Air Force of Zimbabwe told the family’s legal representatives, Mutendi, Mudisi and Shumba, that it wanted the dispute resolved.

The letter, signed by Air Vice-Marshal Biltim Chingono, stated that the Air Force did not own the entirety of Eastdale Farm, but that a portion had been gazetted as a cantonment area.

The family’s lawyers are now seeking the precise coordinates of that designated area to establish its extent and determine how it overlaps with the land occupied by the family.

The request follows an August 31, 2026 letter from Zimbabwe Defence Forces Commander General Emmanuel Matatu, who acknowledged that the disputed land had been gazetted as a cantonment area under Notice Number 93 of 2006.

Matatu urged the parties to find common ground and resolve the matter amicably.

However, the correspondence did not include coordinates or a survey plan showing the military reservation’s exact boundaries.

Family disputes removal from farmland

The Mandebvu family reportedly occupied and developed approximately 175 hectares of land over more than two decades.

Previous reports said the family held an offer letter and a subsequent lease issued by the Ministry of Lands. The family had invested in agricultural activities, including cattle rearing, small livestock, poultry and fish farming.

The family was reportedly ordered off the property by soldiers from the nearby Eastdale Air Base, with household belongings placed outside and the farmhouse subsequently occupied.

The precise circumstances surrounding the removal, including whether a court order authorised the eviction, have not been established by the available correspondence.

The family’s lawyers want the authorities to clarify how the military’s claim relates to the government documents under which the family says it occupied the land.

Livestock and farming operations affected

The displacement has reportedly disrupted the family’s farming activities and access to grazing land.

Earlier reports said more than 70 cattle and over 100 goats and sheep were being moved across the Gutu-Chivhu Road to reach borrowed grazing land near the Drifontein turn-off.

The family also reportedly suffered poultry losses and was unable to maintain its fish ponds.

The extent to which these difficulties have continued remains unclear. However, the reported losses illustrate the economic consequences of the dispute for the family’s agricultural operations.

Military urges an amicable settlement

The Zimbabwe Defence Forces has maintained that the land was designated a cantonment area under Notice Number 93 of 2006 and therefore became prohibited for private occupation.

Matatu has nevertheless encouraged the parties to negotiate a settlement.

The family’s request for coordinates places the boundaries at the centre of the dispute. Without an accurate survey of the military reservation and a comparison with the family’s land documents, it remains unclear whether the entire property, only part of it, or none of the disputed holding falls within the designated area.

The available correspondence has not clarified questions concerning compensation, alternative land or the treatment of the family’s agricultural investments.

The next step is for the Air Force to provide the requested boundary information, which could help the parties establish the extent of the military’s claim and identify a possible way forward.