Thomson Safaris

Press Releases & Public Statements

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Press Release
Travel conglomerate Lindblad Expeditions acquires Thomson Safaris despite allegations against the US firm of land theft & abuses against the Maasai
On April 30, 2024, US-based luxury safari operator Wineland-Thomson Adventures, which runs Thomson Safaris in Tanzania, was acquired for approximately US$30 million by the adventure travel conglomerate Lindblad Expeditions. The acquisition came just weeks after the release of Capitalizing on Chaos, a report by the Oakland Institute that documents the ongoing resistance of Maasai communities to Thomson Safaris for alleged land theft and human rights abuses committed by the company’s agents in Tanzania. Announcing the deal, Sven-Olof Lindblad, CEO of Lindblad Expeditions, emphasized the importance of being “stewards of the Wineland-Thomson brands and honoring the legacy of its founders.”
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Press Release
US Luxury Safari Operator Tightens Stranglehold Over Maasai Land in Tanzania
Boston-based Thomson Safaris is exploiting the Tanzanian government’s brutal repression of land defenders to legitimize control over Maasai land in the Loliondo Division of the Ngorongoro District. In June 2022, the government carried out land demarcation to create a Game Reserve in Loliondo, which saw security forces fire live ammunition on the Maasai, severely wounding dozens and displacing thousands. In the immediate aftermath of these events, Thomson Safaris carried out a resurvey of a long-contested land claim they have in the same area. Communities say they were excluded from the resurvey process and alleged in a November 2023 court filing that they have since suffered abuse by the company’s agents enforcing the new boundaries.
Entrance to a new boma built by the displaced Maasai. Credit: The Oakland Institute
Public Statement
UNESCO and Tanzanian Government's Plan Threatens the Continued Survival of the Maasai
---FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE--- October 10, 2019 Media Contact:Anuradha Mittal [email protected] +1(510)469-5228 Proposal for Dividing the Ngorongoro Conservation Area Must Be Stopped Oakland, CA — In a shocking move, the Tanzanian government, at the behest of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and international conservation organizations, has announced a plan to divide the Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA) into four distinctive zones — further marginalizing land rights of the Indigenous communities.
Maasai villagers, their faces are hidden for their protection. Credit: Oakland Institute
Press Release
Maasai Villagers Win a Major Victory in the East African Court of Justice in Case Against Tanzanian Government
On September 25, 2018, the East African Court of Justice (EACJ) awarded a major victory to four Maasai villages fighting for their rights to their land in northern Tanzania.

Audio & Video

News Articles

The Canary
Land-grabbing luxury safari tourism is displacing Maasai communities in Tanzania
Indigenous Maasai communities in Tanzania are being subjected to more land-grabbing and human rights abuse. This time, a major tourism company is the culprit. On Tuesday 16 April, independent policy thinktank the Oakland Institute exposed Boston-based Thomson Safaris’ human rights violations against Indigenous villagers. Specifically, the company has tightened control over land it previously stole from Maasai communities.
The Canary
UNESCO World Heritage Day is a celebration of violent colonial conservation against Indigenous people
Thursday 18 of April marks the annual United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Day. This year however, an Indigenous rights non-profit is exposing UNESCO for the racist colonial institution that it is. Significantly, the group is calling out the colonial conservation model that sits at the heart of the UNESCO designated World Heritage Sites. On top of this, the Canary has dug up more evidence revealing the systemic violence, displacement, and abuse of Indigenous and local communities living at a number of these sites.
Current Affairs
A Brief History of the Bourgeois Safari
Safari is a popular form of ecotourism often billed as a benefit for conservation. But this colonial practice cannot make up for centuries of exploitation of Africa’s people, wildlife, and lands.
GEO
En Tanzanie, la nature reste reine
Du Serengeti à Selous, la nature est reine. Avec quatre millions d’animaux sauvages, dont les célèbres big five, la Tanzanie possède un trésor, essentiel pour elle. Et pour toute la planète. Partout, à Marera, on devine leur passage. Dans ce petit village peuplé de représentants de l’ethnie iraqw et situé entre la zone de conservation du Ngorongoro et le parc national du lac Manyara, dans le nord de la Tanzanie, le sol s’est affaissé par endroits sous le poids des éléphants.