Tanzania has been accused of reneging on its promise to
40,000 Masai pastoralists by going ahead with plans to evict them and turn
their ancestral land into a reserve for the royal family of Dubai to hunt big
game. Last year the government said it had backed down over a proposed 1,500 sq
km “wildlife corridor” bordering the Serengeti national park that would serve a
commercial hunting and safari company based in the United Arab Emirates. . The
Ortelo Business Corporation (OBC), is a luxury safari company set up by a UAE
official close to the royal family with clients reportedly including Prince
Andrew. Now the deal appears to be back on and the Masai have been ordered to
quit their traditional lands by the end of the year. Unlike last year, the
government is offering compensation of 1 billion shillings (£369,350), not to
be paid directly but to be channelled into socio-economic development projects.
The Masai have dismissed the offer.
The Masai insist the sale of the land would rob them of
their heritage and directly or indirectly affect the livelihoods of 80,000
people. The area is crucial for grazing livestock on which the nomadic Masai
depend
“I feel betrayed,” said Samwel Nangiria, co-ordinator of the
local Ngonett civil society group. “One billion is very little and you cannot
compare that with land. It’s inherited. Their mothers and grandmothers are
buried in that land. There’s nothing you can compare with it.” Nangiria said he
believes the government never truly intended to abandon the scheme in the
Loliondo district but was wary of global attention. “They had to pretend they
were dropping the agenda to fool the international press.”
Last year saw the online campaign Stop the Serengeti
Sell-off petition attracted more than 1.7 million signatures and led to
coordinated email and Twitter protests.
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