Tanzania, siding with UAE firm, plans to evict Maasai from ancestral lands

[Abu Ubaidah Commando]

Huyo ana mawazo ya kimasikini,bado fikra zake zinaishi katika zama za mawe "Stone age"

Watu wa sampuli hii ndiyomaana hawaendelei

 

[The Icebreaker]

Nakuona muarabu Koko, juzi Kuna habar one trend Sana ya binti Wa kiganda kutolewa Figo Na Bosi wake, hizo Ni case chache tu zipo nyingi kama hizo za wafanyakazi Wa ndani ambao wanapitia mateso Na manyanyaso kutoka kwa hao waarabu

Vipi kuhusu Albino wanaokatwa viungo huku wakiwa hai hilo nalo hutokea huko kwa hao waarabu?
Vipi kuhusu vikongwe wenye macho mekundu wanaocharangwa mapanga na kuuawa kwa imani za kishirikina hilo pia hutokea huko kwa waarabu?
Vipi kuhusu vibaka watuhumiwa kuchomwa moto wakiwa hai hilo nalo hutokea kwa waarabu?


Vipi kuhusu haya mauaji ya kila siku watu kuuana au watoto kuua wazazi wao kwa tamaa ya mali hilo nalo hulioni?

 

[fundimchundo]

Are they kept or they agreed and are still agreeing to stay in that form? Who told you what you have written is civilisation? I think you are enslaved mentally thats why you see them in bondage yet its you who is to be sympathized with such kind of mentality...

Those are amongst the few who were not enslaved by the colonialists in such extent today we enjoy to have Ngorongoro and the like still in their pristine nature...They are good stewards to our environment; we have to emulate them instead of calling them names!

Your argument is interesting in the sense that, you say the Masai are amongst the few who were not enslaved by the Colonialists.
First and foremost, there has never been a separate Country for the Masai. Tanganyika was colonised, so were everybody in Tanganyika, including the Masai.
My argument is that, after independence from the Colonialists, in 1961, everyone could "Own land" in Tanzania, except the "Ngorongoro Pastoralists".
This is bondage!
The Masai in Monduli could own land.
The Masai in Morogoro own land.
But the Masai in Ngorongoro can not own land. And this is by an Agreement signed by Colonialists!
The Ngorongoro Masai are still under the Laws reached during Colonial era!
How do you dare to support such an inhumane Agreement?

 

[The Sunk Cost Fallacy]

Tanzania, siding with UAE firm, plans to evict Maasai from ancestral lands​

by Laurel Sutherland on 18 February 2022

In northern Tanzania, more than 70,000 Indigenous Maasai residents are once again facing eviction from ancestral lands as the government reveals plans to lease the land to a UAE-based company to create a wildlife corridor for trophy hunting and elite tourism.

Maasai leaders have filed an appeal at a regional court, seeking a halt to all plans for the area and calling the renewed attempt to seize the land a blatant violation of an injunction that barred the government from evicting Maasai communities in a case that involved violent evictions.

According to sources, the regional commissioner of the region told Maasai leaders that the leasing of the land is in the national interest to increase the country’s tourism revenue and was a tough decision for the government to make.

Evicted residents from Loliondo will be relocated to the neighboring Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA), where they will join another 80,000 evicted Maasai to share a strip of land designated for humans and wildlife.

In 2018, the East African Court of Justice (EACJ) granted an injunction prohibiting the Tanzanian government from evicting Maasai communities from 1,500 square kilometers (580 square miles) of ancestral, legally registered land in the Loliondo division of Ngorongoro, northern Tanzania.

Today, 70,000 Maasai pastoralists are once again at risk of eviction after the government disclosed a plan to lease the same parcel of land to the Otterlo (sometimes spelled Ortello) Business Corporation (OBC), a company based in the United Arab Emirates, to create a wildlife corridor for trophy hunting and elite tourism.

OBC is a hunting firm said to be owned by the UAE royal family. According to the Oakland Institute, a policy think tank based in the U.S., OBC will control commercial hunting in the area. This is despite the company’s past involvement in several evictions of the Maasai people in the region and the killing of thousands of rare animals in the area, including lions and leopards.

Maasai residents protesting after Arusha’s Regional Commissioner John Mongella revealed plans to lease 1,500 square kilometers of ancestral land to United Arab Emirate (UAE) based Ortello Business Company. Image courtesy of Oakland Institute.​

The decision to lease the land to OBC was made known to Maasai leaders on Jan. 11, 2022, by John Mongella, the regional commissioner for the Arusha region, according to a statement by the Oakland Institute.

Anuradha Mittal, executive director of the Oakland Institute, quoted Mongella as telling Maasai leaders that the government planned to remove them from their land at some point this year, even if this decision will be painful to many.

A Maasai leader who spoke to Mongabay on the condition of anonymity said that Mongella continuously stressed that leasing the land is in the “national interest” and should therefore also be of priority to the Maasai people.

Renewed attempts to seize land​

Approximately 15 villages within the proposed area would be impacted by the decision. The strip of land that is legally registered in the Loliondo division of Ngorongoro district is vital for Maasai pastoralists, who have sustainably stewarded the area for generations, according to the Oakland Institute.

Mittal said the creation of the wildlife corridor and the displacement of the communities would exacerbate hunger and poverty, given that pastoral livelihoods depend on the region’s grazing areas and water sources. The strip of land is part of the 4,000-km2 (1,544-mi2) Loliondo Game Controlled Area that became a multipurpose area for hunting, conservation and pastoralism.

Mittal said the Maasai have developed a symbiotic relationship that has allowed local ecology, domesticated livestock, and people to coexist in a resource-scarce environment.

A Maasai herder moves cattle across rangeland shared with zebras. Image by Guy Western.​

“This local knowledge has been largely credited as allowing the large mammal population and ecological diversity to grow under the stewardship of the Maasai,” Mittal told Mongabay. “Replacing them with tourists and hunters will likely negatively impact the environment and health of wildlife populations.”

When informed of the decision, the Maasai leaders indicated they would not leave the area and have signed a statement opposing the plan.

On Jan. 13, thousands of Maasai gathered in Oloirien village, one of the communities in the area, where they staged a protest and promised to not leave the area until the government reverses the decision. Tanzania Wildlife Authority rangers, who were erecting border beacons for the wildlife corridor, were forced to leave the area after confrontations with the people of neighboring Malambo village, which brought the protests to an end. Leaders say protests will resume if the rangers return.

In addition, leaders of Oloirien, Ololosokwan, Kirtalo and Arash villages have filed an appeal at the East African Court of Justice, asking for a halt to all plans.

The leaders say the renewed attempts to seize the same land is a blatant violation of an injunction that barred the Tanzanian government from evicting Maasai communities from the area. This case involved violent government-led evictions of Maasai villages in August 2017.

Maasai gathering at Oloirien village in protest against the Tanzanian government decision last Sunday. Image courtesy of Oakland Institute.​

At the time, under the instructions of the government, homes of Maasai families were burned to the ground leaving thousands homeless while several residents were arrested.

The injunction also prohibits the destruction of Maasai homesteads, the confiscation of livestock, and the office of the Inspector General of Police from harassing and intimidating the plaintiffs. The injunction remains in effect until a ruling on the full case can be heard. A hearing date has not yet been set.

“That the Maasai are once again facing eviction to please the UAE royal family shows the Tanzanian government continues to prioritize tourism revenues at the expense of the Indigenous pastoralists who have sustainable stewarded the area for generations,” Mittal said.

Tanzania’s economic development depends heavily on the private sector. Tourism contributes 17.2% to the country’s gross domestic product, and 25% of all foreign exchange revenues. In 2020, then-President John Magufuli announced that the government would put great emphasis on several economic sectors, including tourism.

Otterlo did not respond to several requests for comment through social media, and the telephone number listed for its office in Tanzania is no longer in service. The Oakland Institute’s attempts to reach out to Otterlo went unanswered.

​

A relocation plan in motion​

The Tanzanian government’s plan to evict the Maasai from Loliondo is not the only one in motion, but is rather part of a larger plan to resettle communities in the region to make space for a conservation area, tourism and hunting. There are preparations to implement a multiple land use and resettlement plan in the neighboring Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA) that will relocate another 80,000-plus Maasai within the UNESCO World Heritage Site. The NCA is considered one of the most cinematic landscapes on the planet, seeing over 1 million wildebeest migrate through the area, and is home to the critically endangered black rhino (Diceros bicornis).

According to Mittal, the first group of Maasai are expected to be relocated at the end of February. The NCA plan proposes to divide the conservation area into four zones. At least 82% of the area currently accessible for pastoralism will be designated as a conservation area, and the remaining 18% will be classified as multiple land use for human and wildlife.

The more than 150,000 evicted pastoralists in Ngorongoro district, including those from Loliondo, will be resettled to this 18% of land.

A map showing the location of Loliondo Game Controlled Area and Ngorongoro Conservation Area in northern Tanzania. Image courtesy of the Oakland Institute.
A Maasai activist and community representative, who requested anonymity, has appealed to the Tanzanian government to put a stop to its plans to evict communities and wait until the court case is concluded.

“The myth of protected areas takes away not only our rights as people but our ability to exercise our responsibilities related to land,” the leader said as he appealed for international support on behalf of his community, noting that Tanzania is a signatory to the U.N.’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Kwani kukodisha vitalu kumeanza Jana au leo? Vitalu kibao tuu vimekodoshwa sio tuu huko Ngorongoro bali hifadhi nyingi hususani za TAWA.

Hiyo porojo na propaganda haiondoi ukweli kwamba wamasai wanaharibu hifadhi.

Na in fact wakikodishwa Hao wawindaji wanatunza mazingira na kudhibiti uharibifu.

 

[joseph1989]

Kuna mzee mmoja aliniambiaga utajiri wa waarabu wengi wenye malori haya ya mizigo na hata wenye makamouni source yake ni ujangili naona naanza kuamini,haya wacha wale kwa urefu wa kamba zao sie wengine tunawasindikiza.

 

[Abu Ubaidah Commando]

Kuna mzee mmoja aliniambiaga utajiri wa waarabu wengi wenye malori haya ya mizigo na hata wenye makamouni source yake ni ujangili naona naanza kuamini,haya wacha wale kwa urefu wa kamba zao sie wengine tunawasindikiza.

Hayo umesikia tu bali huna uhakikanacho,,,waarabu wanajituma na ndiyomaana hawakawi kupanda juu. Alafu unadhani waarabu kama wamatumbi miongoni mwao wamejawa na ushirikina, wanautafuta utajiri kwa njia ya haram, mtoto wa familia wanamtoa kafara kisa mali au wanamchizisha 😁😁 ,huu ni zaidi ya upumbavu ase. Alafu unakuja kufananisha waarabu na vitu vya kipumbavu. Mi kuna mshkaji namfahamu vizuri sana kamtoa mwanae kafara ili apate mali, sasa hii ni akili mzee!!!!

 

[joseph1989]

Hayo umesikia tu bali huna uhakikanacho,,,waarabu wanajituma na ndiyomaana hawakawi kupanda juu. Alafu unadhani waarabu kama eamatumbi miongoni mwao wamejawa na ushirikina, wanautafuta utajiri kwa njia ya haram, mtoto wa familia wanamtoa kafara kisa mali au wanamchizisha 😁😁 ,huu ni zaidi ya upumbavu ase. Alafu unakuja kufananisha waarabu na vitu vya kipumbavu. Mi kuna mshkaji namfahamu vizuri sana kamtoa mwanae kafara ili apate mali, sasa hii ni akili mzee!!!!

Mzee mtu mzima na mwanasheria usizani mtu wa stori za vijiweni.

 

[Ame]

Colonialism enriched Europe, so it's no wonder that there is still a section of people that favours it.
How can anybody, in his/her right mind, even dream of continuing to keep people in bondage, in the 21st Century?
This, so called 'Agreement' between the British and Masai Elders banned the Masai from 'Owning Land', 'Building Decent Houses', and all amenities that are a pinnacle of Civilisation, and Iam appalled that there are Tanzanians who are in support of this "Inhumane agreement'.
We have been told, time and again, that close to 70% of the Children in Ngorongoro do not go to School.
In the 21st Century!
When the World is talking about the 4th Industrial Revolution!
Children not going to School!
This is keeping people in bondage.
And it is very shameful.
Pastoralists of Masai, Sukuma, Barbaig, and other origins are thriving in several regions in Tanzania, notably Morogoro, Tanga, Coast and Lindi Regions.
They do not live on handouts as their counterparts in Ngorongoro.
Why do we have people insisting to keep the Ngorongoro Pastoralists in bondage?
Keeping them by donated handouts!
Is it for personal and selfish gains?

Are they kept or they agreed and are still agreeing to stay in that form? Who told you what you have written is civilisation? I think you are enslaved mentally thats why you see them in bondage yet its you who is to be sympathized with such kind of mentality...

Those are amongst the few who were not enslaved by the colonialists in such extent today we enjoy to have Ngorongoro and the like still in their pristine nature...They are good stewards to our environment; we have to emulate them instead of calling them names!

Your argument is interesting in the sense that, you say the Masai are amongst the few who were not enslaved by the Colonialists.
First and foremost, there has never been a separate Country for the Masai. Tanganyika was colonised, so were everybody in Tanganyika, including the Masai.
My argument is that, after independence from the Colonialists, in 1961, everyone could "Own land" in Tanzania, except the "Ngorongoro Pastoralists".
This is bondage!
The Masai in Monduli could own land.
The Masai in Morogoro own land.
But the Masai in Ngorongoro can not own land. And this is by an Agreement signed by Colonialists!
The Ngorongoro Masai are still under the Laws reached during Colonial era!
How do you dare to support such an inhumane Agreement?

Check your history fundiz historia imechakachuliwa ujue...Makabila ambayo wakoloni walishindwa kuwa fikia ni hayo ambao waliendelea kuishi kivyao na ndiyo sababu mpaka leo hawajaingia kwenye mifumo rasmi...Kwani kuna ugomvi? Pengine tungechukua positive tungesaidika je iliwezekanaje wao wakaweza kutunza culture na institutions zao mpaka leo pamoja na huo ukoloni kiwa almost every where na to every communities?

 

[Ranger9]

Kwa kuwa waarabu wanaudugu na wazanzibar bora wapewe eneo kule visiwani sio kuwatesa wamasai kwenye nchi yao

Loliondo iliuzwa kwa waarabu kinyemela na ngororongoro wanataka waipige mnada ?

Na tukumbuke enzi zile Loliondo iliuzwa pia na Mzanzibar, Ali H. Mwinyi

Mazanzibar kumbe majangili tu hata wanawake, dah

 

[FRANCIS DA DON]

Cheki ulivyo mzembe ukitetea kundi fulani kuweka miji ndani ya hifadhi za wanyama na kufuga ndani ya hifadhi ng'ombe milioni moja

Wamasai na OBC nani anataka kupora ardhi?

 

[fundimchundo]

Are they kept or they agreed and are still agreeing to stay in that form? Who told you what you have written is civilisation? I think you are enslaved mentally thats why you see them in bondage yet its you who is to be sympathized with such kind of mentality...

Those are amongst the few who were not enslaved by the colonialists in such extent today we enjoy to have Ngorongoro and the like still in their pristine nature...They are good stewards to our environment; we have to emulate them instead of calling them names!

Check your history fundiz historia imechakachuliwa ujue...Makabila ambayo wakoloni walishindwa kuwa fikia ni hayo ambao waliendelea kuishi kivyao na ndiyo sababu mpaka leo hawajaingia kwenye mifumo rasmi...Kwani kuna ugomvi? Pengine tungechukua positive tungesaidika je iliwezekanaje wao wakaweza kutunza culture na institutions zao mpaka leo pamoja na huo ukoloni kiwa almost every where na to every communities?

Yes and no.
Wamasai wameendelea kudumisha Utamaduni wao kwa sababu ya kuendelea kuishi katika mazingira yale yale kwa muda mrefu.
Wamasai uliosoma nao wanaishi sawasawa na wewe.
Pili usisahau.
Wanaoishi Ngorongoro ni asilimia ndogo sana ya idadi ya Wamasai nchini.
Wanaonufaika na Wafugaji wa Ngorongoro wanataka kuaminisha watu wasiojua kuwa Wamasai wote wanaishi Ngorongoro.
Asilimia zaidi ya 95 ya Wamasai wanaishi Mikoa mingi ya Tanzania. Hao wachache wa Ngorongoro, ambao hawana haki ya kumiliki ardhi katika Tanzania huru, nani anayesisitiza waendelee kuishi bila kuwa na haki ya kujenga nyumba bora?
Hao wanaoshinikiza Wamasai waendelee kuishi kwa kupewa chakula, badala ya kulima wao wenyewe, wanaishi wapi?
Ninyi Watetezi mnaishi nyumba za nyasi?

 

[Masamila]

Wamasai na OBC nani anataka kupora ardhi?

La OBC ushahidi uko wapi? Hao OBC population yao ikoje?

 

[Bulesi]

Huo ufugaji bora ni upi? So far duniani wao ndiyo wafugaji bora...usipotoshe ndugu mpendwa...Ufugaji unaouita bora ndiyo ambao kwa sasa unaongoza kwakukata miti duniani, ndiyo ambao unazalisha hewa ya ukaa ambayo ni zaidi ya ile inayotolewa na magari yote duniani...Kuuliza si ujinga!

Ufugaji bora ni ule unaozingatia kutunza mazingira!! Kuwa na makundi sio makubwa ya mifugo na na kutokuzurula hovyo na hiyo mifugo !!

 

[Extrovert]

Maasai acheni kuwapora ardhi hadi wanyama pori ! Maslahi ya watanzania wa vizazi vijavyo yazingatiwe

Warabu ni watanzania?

 

[Extrovert]

Serikali inahitaji kutumia hata pesa nyingi tu kukomboa hawa watu kifikra na kielimu, wapo nyuma sana. na hiyo sio ancestral home yao, walitoka serengeti hawa, hapo sio kwao. pia, yaani rundo la wanadamu hao kweli waishi na wanyama? kweli?

Halafu wakilisha mimea yote kiaisha hapo ngorongoro si watahama kwenda kutafuta malisho sehemu nyingine? wakati huo wanama pori nao watakuwa hawana majani, watakufa kama mangómbe yao yanavyokufa sasaivi maeneo yasiyo na malisho. huu ni ujinga ambao serikali haitakiwi kuuvumilia ili kulinda mbuga.

Hao warabu wakija kuwinda watakuwa wanawafanyaje hao wanyama wenu?

 

[Extrovert]

Haya mambo ya nchi yanavyokwenda kwa kasi utafikiri tamthilia fulani hivi...Daah Mungu saidia nchi yangu!

Magufuli alipokuwepo hakuna mtu ange raise upumbavu kama huo akabakia salama!

They always hatred him for that!😪

 

[Extrovert]

Umeona mbali sana.
Sema majamaa hapa tz ni majizi hatari, hapo kinachotafutwa sio interest ya nchi, Bali ni 10%

Ukiongelea hili unaonekana bogus na mpinga maendeleo! Watu wanatafuta 10% yani kuna ulafi wa mali uliokithiri! Hivi hayo mabillion watu wanayoiba wataenda nayo wapi kama si kufa na kuyaacha?

Huu ulafi utakuja sababisha hili taifa limwagane damu siku moja!

 

[Abu Ubaidah Commando]

Mzee mtu mzima na mwanasheria usizani mtu wa stori za vijiweni.

Kwaiyo kama ni mwanasheria ndiyo watu tuamini!!! 😁😁😁

 

[Extrovert]

Nakuona muarabu Koko, juzi Kuna habar one trend Sana ya binti Wa kiganda kutolewa Figo Na Bosi wake, hizo Ni case chache tu zipo nyingi kama hizo za wafanyakazi Wa ndani ambao wanapitia mateso Na manyanyaso kutoka kwa hao waarabu

Warabu ni makatili hakuna mfano!

 

[Extrovert]

Muda wa Tembo kwenda kunyanyasika tena kwa awamu nyingine😅