Hundreds of Maasai people have staged protests in Tanzania’s Ngorongoro Conservation Area, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, to draw attention to their ongoing eviction from ancestral lands in the name of conservation.
The demonstrations, held on World Heritage Day, highlight what activists describe as a long-standing campaign by Tanzanian authorities to displace Indigenous communities. Protesters accuse the government of using arbitrary arrests, beatings, torture, and the suspension of health services to force families out of the region.
Two presidential commissions have recently endorsed the continuation and expansion of these evictions, citing the area’s UNESCO status as justification. The Maasai have lived in the Ngorongoro region for generations, with historical assurances in 1951 that they could remain in exchange for ceding land for the Serengeti National Park.
Eight UN human rights experts have issued a public statement urging the Tanzanian government to release the commissions’ findings and respect the rights of Indigenous Peoples. They stressed that past commitments to the Maasai must be honoured and that their human rights must be fully respected.
The Maasai International Solidarity Alliance condemned the use of World Heritage status against the community, stating that they are not recognised as legitimate custodians of the land. The group called on UNESCO, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and the World Heritage Committee to affirm Indigenous Peoples’ rights and end the so-called voluntary relocation programme.
Survival International’s Director Caroline Pearce accused UNESCO of being a “hidden partner” in the illegal evictions, arguing that for decades the World Heritage Committee has portrayed the Maasai as environmental threats. She said UNESCO continues to describe the displacement as “voluntary” despite mounting evidence of coercion.
The protests underscore growing tensions between conservation policies and Indigenous rights, with campaigners warning that international heritage designations are being used to justify the dispossession of traditional landholders.
