Land reform has been a recurring theme of enormous consequence in world history. They are often highly political and have been achieved (or attempted) in many countries.
Latin America As a region, Latin America has historically been characterized by land inequality. Attempts at reforms were made in numerous countries in the aftermath of independence, as well as in the second half of the 20th century. Attempts to initiate land reforms have often sparked resistance by political and economic elites, which have resulted in coups and political instability.
Argentina During and after the colonial period, Argentina has had political conflict between various groups and interests over land policy. In 1836, the Argentine government sold 1,500 square leagues of public land to pay off government debts. President Nicolás Avellaneda implemented a land reform in 1876. The Argentine Homestead Act of October 12, 1884, modeled on similar policy in the United States, provided grants for people to settle remote agricultural lands in Patagonia and the Chaco. Once certain conditions were met, these individuals would get permanent title to their lands. In contrast to other Latin American countries, Argentina's agricultural system during the 20th century did not have a semi-feudal system.
Brazil Getúlio Vargas, who rose to presidency in Brazil following the Revolution of 1930, promised a land reform but reneged on his promise. A first attempt to make a nationwide reform was set up in the government of José Sarney (1985–1990) as a result of the strong popular movement that had contributed to the fall of the military government. According to the 1988 Constitution of Brazil, the government is required to "expropriate for the purpose of agrarian reform, rural property that is not performing its social function" (Article 184). However, the "social function" mentioned there is not well defined, and hence the so-called First Land Reform National Plan never was put into action.
Bolivia
Land in Bolivia was unequally distributed – 92% of the cultivable land was held by large estates – until the Bolivian national revolution in 1952. Then, the Revolutionary Nationalist Movement government abolished forced peasantry labor and established a program of expropriation and distribution of the rural property of the traditional landlords to the indigenous peasants. A unique feature of the reform in Bolivia was the organization of peasants into syndicates. Peasants were not only granted land but their militias also were given large supplies of arms. The peasants remained a powerful political force in Bolivia during all subsequent governments. By 1970, 45% of peasant families had received title to land. Land reform projects continued in the 1970s and 1980s. A 1996 agrarian reform law increased protection for smallholdings and indigenous territories, but also protected absentee landholders who pay taxes from expropriation. Reforms were continued at 2006, with the Bolivian senate passing a bill authorizing the government redistribution of land among the nation's mostly indigenous poor.
Chile
Attempts at land reform began under the government of Jorge Alessandri in 1960, were accelerated during the government of Eduardo Frei Montalva (1964–1970), and reached its climax during the 1970-1973 presidency of Salvador Allende. Farms of more than 198 acres (80 ha) were expropriated. After the 1973 coup the process was halted by the military junta and substantially reversed.
Colombia Alfonso López Pumarejo (1934–1938) passed Law 200 of 1936, which allowed for the expropriation of private properties, in order to promote "social interest". Later attempts declined, until the National Front presidencies of Alberto Lleras Camargo (1958–1962) and Carlos Lleras Restrepo (1966–1970), which respectively created the Colombian Institute for Agrarian Reform (INCORA) and further developed land entitlement. In 1968 and 1969 alone, the INCORA issued more than 60,000 land titles to farmers and workers. Despite this, the process was then halted and the situation began to reverse itself, as the subsequent violent actions of drug lords, paramilitaries, guerrillas and opportunistic large landowners severely contributed to a renewed concentration of land and to the displacement of small landowners. In the early 21st century, tentative government plans to use the land legally expropriated from drug lords and/or the properties given back by demobilized paramilitary groups have not caused much practical improvement yet.
Cuba
Land reform was among the chief planks of the revolutionary platform of 1959. The decree of May 1959 held that no corporation could own land, no private landowner could own more than 990 acres (with exceptions), and that each agricultural alborer would receive 66 acres for free. Almost all large holdings were seized by the National Institute for Agrarian Reform (INRA), which dealt with all areas of agricultural policy. A ceiling of 166 acres (67 hectares) was established, and tenants were given ownership rights, though these rights are constrained by government production quotas and a prohibition of real estate transactions. However, by 1962, 80 percent of all land was held by the government while the rest was held by small proprietors. In July 1962, Castro announced there would be an end to cooperatives and that those farms would all become "state farms."
El Salvador Historically, El Salvador had inequitable distribution of land, with most of it concentrated among the so-called Fourteen Families. Whereas other states in Latin America had implemented land reforms, El Salvador still had a highly inequitable land system by the middle of the 20th century. By 1980, 38% of El Salvadorans were landless. Grievances related to land inequality have been characterized as a contributing factor to the Salvadoran Civil War.
Guatemala
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