Apr 17 2013
GlobalPost: Tanzania to evict Maasai people in favor of fee-paying trophy hunters
NAIROBI, Kenya — Tens of thousands of Maasai people in northern Tanzania, under a new government plan, face eviction from their homes and a ban from the land their cattle have grazed for generations.
Tanzania says it will designate as a “wildlife corridor” a 600-square-mile patch of land next to the popular tourist attractions of the Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro Conservation Area.
The designation bans pastoralist Maasai herders — known for their red tartan-print blankets and intricate beadwork — from the land, but permits fee-paying trophy hunters to access the area as guests of a United Arab Emirates company called Ortello Business Corporation (OBC), which has had a concession in the area for 21 years.
“The government it taking the land for this so-called wildlife corridor. The Maasai is being kicked off that land but the investor is left to enjoy,” said Samwel Nangira, an activist and resident of the affected area of Loliondo.
“The government is clearing the land, not for conservation but for commercial hunting,” he said.
International activists agree and say the plan could further impoverish Maasai communities to the extent that their traditional, semi-nomadic way of life becomes impossible to sustain.
“The proposed move will prevent the Maasai from accessing vital pastures and water in the area and risks causing destitution,” said Carl Soderbergh, director of policy and communications at Minority Rights Group International.
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