Charges against Maasai in Loliondo, Tanzania dropped; “Their only ‘crime’ was exercising their right to protest while security forces tried to seize land from them in the name of ‘conservation’”

The Maasai living in Loliondo and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area in Tanzania continue to face threats of evictions from their land and serious human rights abuses. Tanzania’s Director of Public Prosecution recently dropped charges of murder and conspiracy to murder against 24 members of the Maasai. This decision came more than five months after they were arrested.

Muleya Mwananzanda, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for East and Southern Africa, comments that,

“Dropping these charges against members of the Maasai people is unequivocally the right decision. They should never have been arrested in the first place. Their only ‘crime’ was exercising their right to protest while security forces tried to seize land from them in the name of ‘conservation’.

“The Tanzanian authorities must immediately stop their ongoing security operations in Loliondo and ensure that any traditional pastoral lands they have seized are returned to the Indigenous Maasai.

“Tanzania should immediately stop suppressing the right to freedom of assembly. The government should instead take steps to protect the right to protest.”

In Loliondo, the government plans to evict up tens of thousands of Maasai to make way for a protected area to be used as a luxury game hunting reserve operated by Otterlo Business Corporation, that organises hunting from Sheikh Mohammed of Dubai.

In June 2022, dozens of Maasai were seriously injured when armed police and the military started demarcating a 1,500 square kilometre area of Maasai village land as a game reserve.

The government has now put more than 400 concrete beacons on Maasai village land, illegally demarcating what the government calls the “Pololeti Game Controlled Area”. The Maasai are prevented from grazing their livestock in this area, which obviously was set up without their free, prior and informed consent.

Open letter to the president of Tanzania

In October 2022, Indigenous Peoples Rights International sent an open letter to Samia Suluhu Hassan, Tanzania’s president, demanding a stop to the human rights violations against Maasai land defenders.

The letter is signed by 71 organisations and nearly 100 individuals.

The letter is posted in full below:

Honorable
Samia Suluhu Hassan
President
United Republic of Tanzania

Otterlo Business Corporation

We, the undersigned organizations and individuals, express our profound concern and outrage over the continuing attacks and grave human rights violations committed by the State of Tanzania against the Maasai indigenous pastoralists in Loliondo and the larger Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA). The customary land of the Maasai is, among others, the source of their livelihoods, their identities, ways of life, culture, and knowledge. It is fundamental to their survival as an Indigenous People, a people with reciprocal relations to their lands and resources.

Tanzania is systematically attacking the Maasai, using excessive and unwarranted force, misusing and abusing its criminal laws against the Maasai. It is also deceiving and misinforming the population with the objective of taking over the customary lands, territories and resources of the Maasai. These actions are generating a humanitarian crisis with the impending forced eviction of at least 150,000 Maasai pastoralists. Women and children suffer disproportionate effects as many of them are facing or already experiencing hunger and malnutrition.

The recent judgement of the East Africa Court of Justice is hugely disappointing and an appeal is being prepared. Justice will be sought internationally. The State has an obligation, under international law, to respect and protect the rights of the Maasai, including an obligation to not forcibly displace them from their ancestral lands. The State must not violate the rights of the Maasai, and it cannot disregard the deep concerns raised by UN experts and the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights

Those who are defending their rights are being criminalized. 27 Maasai were falsely accused of killing a police officer. To date, only three (3) have been released, while 24 (2 women) remain in jail. In addition, over 90 Maasai were charged as illegal immigrants and 45 (over 30 are women) remain detained as illegal immigrants in their own country. Furthermore, 40 Maasai women were wounded in the violent attacks by State forces. The Maasai have had to pay more than $86,000 USD (200,000,000 TZS) to claim back over 3,500 livestock confiscated by the State.

The aim of establishing the “Pololet Game Control Area” is also unjust and discriminatory. There is no rational basis for their eviction or otherwise in the name of “conservation”. On the contrary, it is outrageous that their rights are being violated and their very survival is put at risk so that the Otterlo Business Corporation (OBC) can manage this wild game area for rich foreigners to hunt in.

We also appeal to the UAE-based Otterlo Business Corporation to respect the rights of the Maasai. You cannot be complicit to these human rights violations. The land rights of the Maasai pastoralists also need to be respected by business groups. Any contract or agreement with the government should be invalidated as there was no consent provided by the traditional Maasai landowners. The plan to evict them and use their customary lands for the recreational pursuits of the rich is deplorable, all the more, as they have cared for those lands since time immemorial.

We urge you, as President of the United Republic of Tanzania, to stop these unjust, illegitimate and discriminatory actions and to ensure that Tanzania complies with its international human rights obligations pertaining to the Maasai’s individual and collective rights. Stop criminalizing the Maasai for defending and exercising their rights. Immediately release those who have been imprisoned under trumped-up charges; provide access to justice to all the victims, including just compensation. Cancel any concession or permits granted to the OBC for the establishment or management of the “Pololet Game Conservation Area.” Engage with the Maasai pastoralists, including women, and obtain their consent prior to any further actions and to address their needs for sustainable livelihoods, basic social services, food security and to ensure peace in their territory.

We urge the Otterlo Business Corporation to desist from further engaging with Tanzania for the establishment or management of the “Pololet Game Conservation Area.” The collective and individual rights of the Maasai must be respected, including by business enterprises.

c.c. Former President, Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete
Secretary-general of Chama Cha Mapinduzi, Abdulrahman Omari Kinana
Conservation Commissioner, Freddy Safiel Manongi

---