Stop Illegal Evictions of the Maasai People from their Land

Tens of thousands of Indigenous Maasai people have been evicted from 1,500 square kilometres of their ancestral land in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, which is being handed over to foreign investors to establish a private game reserve.

Illegal evictions have been repeatedly occurring: Serengeti (1950s), Mkomazi (1980s), Loliondo (2009, 2013, 2017, and 2022), as game reserves and private hunting concessions expanded  

These acts constitute a grave violation of Indigenous rights, international law, and human dignity.  Tanzania is a signatory to the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and violates Article 8 (2)(b), Article 19, Article 25 and Article 26(1). 

The Impact on the Maasai being relocated includes:

• Economic & social harm: loss of grazing, water access; sales or seizure of livestock; increasing poverty.
• Health & education decline: schools, clinics downgraded, pregnant women and children neglected; 20,000 children lacking access to health services.
• Violence & trauma: homes burnt, community members injured or missing; use of live ammo, tear gas; arbitrary detentions.
• Cultural loss: displacement interrupts pastoralist traditions, governance, and spiritual ties.

We respectfully demand the following:

To International Courts and Human Rights Bodies:

• Immediately launch an independent investigation into the human rights violations being committed against the Maasai.
• Issue an emergency injunction against further evictions and land transfers until due process and Indigenous rights are observed.
• Hold the Tanzanian government accountable for violations of international human rights law.

To President Samia Suluhu Hassan:

• Immediately halt all evictions of the Maasai from Ngorongoro and Loliondo.
• Return the full 1,500 sq km of ancestral land to the Maasai people.
• Compensate all victims of the evictions, including those injured and those whose homes, livestock, and property were destroyed.
• Ensure the safe return of Oriais Oleng’iyo to his family and community, and provide accountability for his disappearance.
• Reaffirm your leadership’s commitment to the constitution, international treaties, and the dignity of all Tanzanians, especially those who have long safeguarded this land.
• To specifically incorporate constitutional articles in Tanzania’s constitution that recognise the fundamental rights of ingenious people