Maasai told to leave historic homeland by end of the year so it can become a hunting reserve for the Dubai royal family...

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.

Activists celebrated last year when 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.

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. Masai representatives will meet the prime minister, Mizengo Pinda, in Dodoma on Tuesday to express their anger. They 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.

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. Full story...

Related posts:

1. Maasai face eviction from ancestral lands to make way for Dubai hunting firm...
2. Lion lights: Masai boy scares off lions with flashy invention...
3. King of Spain ousted as honorary president of World Wildlife Fund branch after...
4. The Maasai use condoms on goats! No kidding!