OBC - Hunters from Dubai and the Threat against 1,500 km2 of Maasai Land in Loliondo

It’s been some time since I wrote a summary about OBC and the 1,500 km2, a lot has happened, and there has been much misinformation, mostly from government and “investors”, but unfortunately also from well-meaning quarters.

Very short version:

OBC have been hunting in Loliondo since 1993.

There were extrajudicial evictions in 2009 from the sought-after 1,500 km2 next to Serengeti National Park. People eventually moved back.

In 2011 a draft district land use plan – funded by OBC – proposed turning the 1,500 km2 into a protected area. This was strongly rejected by the district council.

In 2013 Minister Kagasheki made statements threatening to take the 1,500 km2. The threat was revoked by the PM, who said the land belonged to the Maasai that should continue their lives as before. This promise has not been put in writing.

After 2013 there haven’t been any open official statements from the Tanzanian government announcing any interest in grabbing land in Loliondo.

There have however been alleged threats in closed meetings, and a media campaign against the Maasai of Loliondo. A written declaration from the government is needed, and so is continued vigilance. 

The sections of this blog post are:

Loliondogate in the 90s

New Millennium

The Extrajudicial Evictions in 2009

The District Land Use Plan Revealed in 2011

Kagasheki’s Horrible and Twisted Threat in 2013

The Confusion in 2014

Reply to the Ministry for Natural Resources and Tourism's press release about Loliondo

“The government of United Republic of Tanzania has never had any plan to evict the Maasai people from their ancestral land” https://appablog.wordpress.com/2014/11/28/tanzania-refute-claims-to-evict-40000-maasai-from-their-land-in-ngorongoro/

This is a patently false and untrue statement. The 1,500 square kilometres dry season grazing land in question, bordering Serengeti National Park, has already been under threat several times. This land is also the core hunting area of Otterlo Business Corporation Ltd that for two decades has held the hunting block (permit to hunt) that covers more than the whole area of Loliondo Division. The Dubai-owned OBC organizes hunting trips for the highest levels of United Arab Emirates society.

The Nyalandu-Style Loliondo Land Grab Attempt Almost Becomes World News

The renewed 1,500km2 grab attempt finally was reported about by the press, but in a distorted way.

One Tanzanian newspaper is inciting the public against the people of Loliondo.

The same paper published a letter by the councillor for Oloipiri supporting Thomson Safaris and OBC.

Minister Nyalandu denies everything and talks about other things.

A delegation from Loliondo failed to meet the Prime Minister.

More About the New Corridor Grab Attempt and About Thomson Safaris’ too Old Land Grab in Loliondo

Thomson Safaris have sent some of their “friends” for witness training.

The police are intimidating victims of Thomson’s violence.

There have been some meetings and a lot of silence about the Nyalandu-style land grab threat.

A document will be presented.

Content:

Thomson Safaris Land Grab

Nyalandu-styleThreat against the 1,500 km2

A Background to the Threat against 1,500 km2 of Dry Season Grazing Land

Extremely Worrying New Attempt by the Government to Grab 1,500 km2 of Maasai Land – and Other Updates about Land Threats in Loliondo

-Thomson Safaris are back to harassing people and cattle that enter onto the land that they have grabbed.

-Good and bad news from Kakesio in NCA.

-The Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism has met several times with the council chairman and also held a meeting with all councillors from affected wards. The information/threat is that the government is set on taking the land.

My Reply to Lies About Loliondo in UNWTO Handbook

I’ve come across an “International Handbook onTourism and Peace” that’s published by the Centre for Peace Research and Peace Education of the Klagenfurt University in Austria in cooperation with the United Nations World Tourism Organization. There’s a chapter in this handbook that deals with the conflict between the people of Loliondo and the government working in the interest of the “investor” OBC, but unfortunately this chapter gets some basic facts totally wrong presenting last year’s land grabbing attempt by the Ministry for Natural Resources and Tourism led by the then Minister Khamis Kagasheki as “entirely based on wisdom”! I sent an email - copied and pasted below – to the writer of the chapter and to the two editors of the handbook. This handbook was launched already in January this year with the support of the Ministry of Economy, Family and Youth and the Ministry of European and International Affairs of Austria. I’d kindly ask everyone reading this blog post to if possible share it with anyone who has read the disinformation of the handbook. I have so far only read the chapter about Loliondo and hope that the rest is not in the same vein. (Though I wouldn’t know since I only have detailed information about Loliondo…)

Email sent on Thursday 28^th August 2014 22:47 “Misleading information in Handbook on Tourism and Peace‏”.

Dear Emmanuel, Cordula and Werner (writer and editors),

Good News, Strange News, Worrying Developments, Idiotic Comments and Inexplicable Silences about Loliondo Land Threats

After some months of silence central government reappeared and disappeared in Loliondo. Then the Prime Minister appeared and declared that the 1.500km2 belong to the Maasai and their coming generations thereby reversing the threats and lies by the Minister of Natural Resources and Tourism.

Long term FZS head comes out in support of the Government and OBC.

The court case against Thomson Safaris is ongoing, there’s still unity, but sinister old manager is back.

This dry season turned bad and grazing in Serengeti NP was needed. Cows and people were arrested with strange charge sheets.

After the Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism, Khamis Kagasheki, had spent the first part of 2013 issuing threatening and bizarre statements about the Government’s intention of taking 1,500km2 of important grazing land for a “wildlife corridor” and several protest delegations from Loliondo had visited Dar es Salaam and Dodoma, the Prime Minister wrote a letter to the Arusha Regional Commissioner on 30^th May and everything went quiet. Kagasheki had gone as far as calling the Maasai “landless” invaders of their own land, and saying that they were being “given” land since the Government would not take the whole of Loliondo Game Controlled Area (that in its totality is village land). The Prime Minister, in contrast, did recognise that the land does belong to the villages, but otherwise his letter wasn’t very promising since the PM did not show an understanding of the importance of this land for pastoralism. Nothing was ever heard from the Regional Commissioner about the Prime Minister’s letter.

Brief Summary of the – Hopefully Now Forever Stopped – Plan of Grabbing 1,500km2 from the Maasai of Loliondo

The Government of Tanzania has repeatedly declared interest in taking 1,500km2 of important dry season grazing land bordering Serengeti National Park from the Maasai of Loliondo and Sale divisions of Ngorongoro District.

Under the provisions of the Village Land Act No 5 of 1999 – and under customary land tenure since as long as can be remembered - this land belongs to the villagers of Ololosokwan, Soitsambu, Oloipiri, Oloirien, Maaloni, Arash, Malambo and Piyaya – and the land is also of vital seasonal importance for pastoralists beyond the borders of these villages. The loss of this land would signify the destruction of tens of thousands of lives and livelihoods.

Delayed Updates about the Attackers on Land Rights in Loliondo – Thomson Safaris, OBC and, the Government of Tanzania

Thomson Safaris step up their propaganda while continuing the occupation of Maasai grazing land at their self-styled 'Enashiva Nature Reserve' – and their land grab PR person since 2007 appears as a graduate student in collaboration with The Nature Conservancy.

The Government through Tanzania National Parks Authorities and later the Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism renews and intensifies the threat of grabbing a 1,500sq km “wildlife corridor”. And on 26^th March 2013 the Government declares total war on the people of Loliondo.

To my frustration I’ve not been able to return to Loliondo for over a year and a half, but I’ve managed to obtain some information from a selection of very busy people. The information about some issues is still incomplete, but I can’t wait any longer to publish this ridiculously delayed update.

I did publish some reports I got from NCA in a separate blog post. 

Guestblogging at East African Notes and Records

On 1st April 2013 Martin Walsh kindly welcomed and accommodated a guest post about The Latest and Greatest Loliondo Land Grab on his blog East African Notes and Records.

The Tanzanian Government Insists on Grabbing Maasai Land in Loliondo

The Tanzanian government, through the Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism, Khamis Kagasheki, is moving forward with a plan of taking 1,500 square kilometres which are essential dry season grazing land for the Maasai of Loliondo in Ngorongoro District.

The main economic activity and source of livelihood of the people of Loliondo is pastoralism – moving livestock between seasonal grazing areas - that compared to other land uses is relatively compatible with wildlife – and this is a major reason that their land is so sought after by the tourism industry and the Government.

In 1959 all people were evicted from the vast Serengeti by the British Government for the purpose of establishing the National Park. Among them the Maasai that were moved to Ngorongoro Conservation Area and also to Loliondo. Contrary to promises the Tanzanian government has continued with a greedy eye on lands that it wants for the exclusive use of hunting and photographic tourism. Currently this greed is focused on a corridor of land in Loliondo Division of Ngorongoro District.

The Beacons from Hell

The most recent efforts by the Tanzanian government to grab a “corridor” of land from the people of Loliondo

The threat of a corridor of extension of Serengeti National Park onto village land in Loliondo Division of Ngorongoro District has again reared its ugly head. On 20^th November 2012 villagers from Ololosokwan went to Klein’s Gate and it was established that Tanzania National Parks (TANAPA) were planning to put border beacons – that had been brought and were being stored - far inside land belonging to the village. They already tried this in 2008 and then the beacons were destroyed by angry villagers, some of whom were arrested for a few hours until fellow villagers forced their release. Through the years TANAPA have tried many bad tricks and then there have been times of uneventful coexistence. Similar attempts at expanding borders are going on around most protected areas in Tanzania.

Article about Loliondo land threats on Just Conservation’s website

On 2^nd December Just Conservation – a network that’s an open space for all who care about the conservation of our world and who want to see it achieved with justice, compassion, dignity and honesty – published an article I had written as a short overview of land grabs in Loliondo.

Here is the link:

http://www.justconservation.org/grabbing-land-for-conservation-in-loliondo,-tanzania

I’ll very soon publish a post about the current crisis caused by the government moving forward with the plans of grabbing a corridor of Loliondo land next to Serengeti National Park, and before the end of the year I have to post an update about Thomson Safaris and some other issues.

Odupoi Ndekerei  - one of the three young boys who in August were beaten at Thomson’s camp and arrested for “trespassing” and whose court case was dismissed since the prosecution did not show up and there was no supporting evidence - was yesterday again arrested by Thomson’s guard for “trespassing” and grazing cattle on the grabbed land. Today he remains at Loliondo police station without legal representation.

Thomson Safaris are also moving on with the absurd court case against five young herders that were arrested and humiliated in July. The main hearing is on the 14^th December. It’s the abused people that should sue Thomson! Though I suppose there aren’t resources for this. At least the land case is continuing.

The Corridor - and the Story of OBC in Loliondo

Maasai pastoralists in Loliondo are under the threat of having a massive 1,500-km2 piece of dry season grazing land taken away from them by the Tanzanian government. This will have a decidedly negative impact on their livelihoods and has to be stopped.

I’ve been trying to find out the background, and this is a summary of what I’ve found so far. I may have to make some amendments if I receive information that I’ve been waiting for a bit too long now.