The large-scale occupation of commercial farms since early 2000 has meant that workers’ wage employment on the farm is often ended. In some cases, they are allowed to remain on the farm, but cannot work and are not paid; in others, they are displaced, and must find a place to shelter as best they can. As a union organizer commented, “They have been caught in between because their workplace is their home and they have no rural places to go to.”149 Farm workers are also “caught in between” as regards their political affiliations: because of their dependent situation, they may feel obliged to show support for the political party favored by the farm owner, and thus become vulnerable to violence from supporters of other parties, whatever their own beliefs. One NGO expert commented that not as many farm workers had initially been displaced as was expected, because resettlement was “largely a paper exercise in which people are allocated plots but not taking them up.”150 By October 2001, however, the Commercial Farmers’ Union estimated that 75,000 people (13,636 families) had been either forced off the land or laid off because of the shut down of farming operations.151 The Zimbabwe Agricultural Welfare Trust, established in late 2001, claims that between February 2000 and December 2001, about 350 large-scale commercial farms had to close operations, affecting about 15,000 farm worker families.152 The United Nations noted that by January 2002, the number of farm workers displaced was estimated at 30,000 families.153 Though all of these figures must be regarded as estimates, the problem is clearly serious. Farm workers interviewed by Human Rights Watch reflected these concerns: When the boss goes away, I’ve got no job to do. It’s about 200 people working on the farm, with families it is plus 300. I can’t even say it’s good because I don’t know what is going to happen tomorrow…They could come and say each and all of you with your boss you have to leave. The boss just says, wait and see. If they come, tell me quickly and I will tell you what to do. When the war veterans come, the boss won’t do anything…We will stay on this place but we are very frightened. 154 Even farm workers interviewed by Human Rights Watch who had lost their jobs showed some appreciation of the war veterans’ actions in cases in which their employer had a bad record in labor relations: “The war veterans came for the land, and also they said because the farmer is not working hand in hand with his workers, the conditions of working are not good. Sometimes I agree with them, the working conditions are bad… and at other farms the situation is better.”155 The Labour Relations Act has been amended and new regulations promulgated in early 2002 to provide that the owner of a farm whose land is compulsorily acquired by the government of Zimbabwe pay the benefits due to employees when they are laid off. Previously, the law required the acquiring authority to take over responsibility for the legal obligations towards workers on the farm on conditions no less favorable than those existing before. 149 Human Rights Watch interview, Acting General Secretary, General, Agricultural, and Plantation Workers’ Union of Zimbabwe, July 12, 2001. 150 Human Rights Watch interview, NGO worker, Harare, July 13, 2001. 151 CFU statement, October 19, 2001. 152 An Appeal for Assistance for the Beleaguered Farm Workers of Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe Agricultural Welfare Trust press release, December 3, 2001. 153 UNDP Interim Mission Report, January 2002, p.35. 154 Human Rights Watch interview, farm worker, Beatrice District, Marondera West, July 26, 2001. 155 Human Rights Watch interview with farm worker from Marondera area, Harare, July 18, 2001. Human Rights Watch 33 March 2002, Vol. 14, No. 1 (A)