'Shocking Blow to Indigenous Land Rights' as Court Dismisses Maasai Herder Claim

Lizzy Davies and agencies

Lawyers for Maasai herders who say the Tanzanian government is trying to violently evict them from their ancestral land to make way for a luxury game reserve have lodged an appeal against a court ruling that dismissed their case.

Donald Deya, lead counsel for the herders and chief executive officer of the Pan-African Lawyers Union (Palu), said his team had, on Wednesday, appealed against the verdict of the east African court of justice, which campaigners branded “a shocking blow” to Indigenous land rights. […]

In a statement issued by Palu earlier this week, the Maasai communities were said to be “dissatisfied and disappointed” by the ruling, which they felt “disregarded the compelling multitude” of evidence they presented in court.

“The failure of the east African court of justice to hold the Tanzanian government accountable for blatantly abusing human rights of the Maasai in Loliondo is a travesty for all Indigenous communities on the continent,” said Anuradha Mittal, executive director of the Oakland Institute. […]