Contested Territories: Land Law, Indigenous Rights and the Politics of Conservation in Tanzania

By Danica Damoah '26

Guest Writer, Brown University

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Introduction: Maasai People 

If you have ever come across a social media clip of an East African Safari, amid the vast landscapes and signature wildlife, you may have spotted striking figures adorned with beads and beautiful red shúkàs (colorful cloths). These are the Maasai, one of the most recognizable Indigenous communities of the region. While they are synonymous with warmth and a scenic environment, the Maasai of Tanzania have been facing a legal battle with their government over land, a less-than-idyllic dispute.

The Maasai are a Nilotic ethnic group who migrated from the Nile Valley and settled across large swathes of land in northern, central, and southern Kenya, as well as northern Tanzania. (1) Their name directly translates to “speakers of Maa,” which is the native language of the tribe. (2) Despite Maa being central to their identity, many modern-day Maasai are also fluent in Swahili, the national language of both Kenya and Tanzania. By tradition, the Maasai are pastoralists, with their livelihoods historically centered around cattle. (3)

History of Settlement 

According to Maasai oral history, their ancestors began migrating south from the lower Nile Valley in the 15th century. By the 17th and 18th centuries, they had settled across large parts of northern Tanzania and southern Kenya. (4) It was during this period that they would later experience their first significant instance of land dispossession in the early 20th century, under the British colonial administration through the Maasai-British Agreements of 1904 and 1911. In 1904, the British sought land for railway construction and thus negotiated with the Maasai to vacate the central Rift Valley in exchange for two reserves. However, by 1911, a new agreement meant that the Maasai were forced to relocate to only one reserve, which caused extreme hardship due to the loss of lives and livestock. (5)

After the Maasai were alienated from their ancestral home in the Rift Valley, the British then established different game reserves such as the modern-day Serengeti National Park leading to the systematic displacement of Maasai into the Ngorongoro Crater Conservation Area (NCCA) and neighbouring Loliondo, where they have now been living for generations. (6) Ironically, these areas formed as a result of displacement would become central to the present land disputes, nearly a century later. 

Legal Cases (Maasai v United Republic of Tanzania)

1. Case: ‘Reference No. 10 of 2017’ at the East African Court of Justice - 2017

Despite many years of smaller-scale informal disputes between the two parties, the first case officially lodged concerning the land conflict was filed on September 21st, 2017 at the East African Court of Justice, under the title ‘Reference No. 10 of 2017’. 

The applicants were four Maasai village councils who alleged that, despite holding ownership and customary rights to land near the Serengeti National Park, the government had wrongfully claimed the land as part of the park and was forcibly evicting them from it. (7)

The respondents to the claim were the Attorney-General of the United Republic of Tanzania. They first asserted that they believed the case to be ineligible to be tried at the regional court as it had not exhausted the Tanzanian legal process, and then responded to the claim that whilst they openly evicted people, they had done so with dignity, and all their evictions had taken place within the boundaries of Serengeti National Park (8)

While this case would not elicit an immediate response for either party, it would mark the beginning of a formal legal standoff between them, with both parties maintaining their innocence.

2. The First Instance Division grants Temporary Interim Protections - 2018

As the court continued to deliberate on whether or not the respondents were at fault, they offered a temporary reprieve for the Maasai people on September 25th, 2018. 

Here, the First Instance Division of the East African Court of Justice ordered the United Republic of Tanzania and its agents to refrain from conducting any further evictions, seizures of livestock, and destruction of property until the case was fully adjudicated. The Court also warned that continuing these actions would constitute contempt of the Court. (9)

This move would bring hope to the Maasai tribe as it offered them provisional safeguarding from evictions until the release of the final verdict, whilst signaling an acknowledgement of their vulnerability to the state. 

3. Official Dismissal of 2017 Case - 2022

In 2022, after five years of considering the evidence (including expert testimonies and character witnesses), the Court finally came to a decision on the case titled ‘Reference No. 10 of 2017’. 

The East African Court of Justice alleged that while they were not rendering a decision on whether the United Republic of Tanzania had the right to evict locals or not, it believed that there was insufficient evidence to prove that the 2017 evictions took place on village land and not in the Serengeti National Park. 

Therefore, the Maasai people lost the case. In making this decision, the Court cited contradictory statements from the witnesses and a lack of proof as huge deciding factors. (10) Although this first case would be a setback for the Maasai, it would not be the end of the legal struggle.

Aftermath of Initial Court Proceedings 

In the last few months of the EACJ deliberations on the 2017 case, the government would continue to conduct its evictions under the guise of boosting tourism and economic opportunities. 

Notably, on June 6th, 2022, the Tanzanian Ministry of National Resources and Tourism would announce that they were demarcating 1,500 square kilometers of village land as a game reserve and would prohibit the primarily pastoralist Maasai residents of Loilondo and Ngorongo from living on the land, using it for grazing, or even entering to seek water. This incident would also mark a severe escalation in the tactics used by the government, as two days after the June 6th announcement, there would be an influx of security forces in the area who used force such as teargas and rubber bullets on bystanders in order to demarcate the land. (11) This was also done before the October 2022 dismissal of the first case and therefore was in clear violation of the EACJ Interim Orders of 2018. Even so, no direct action was taken against the officials who sanctioned the action or the forces that carried it out. 

Despite the overwhelming disappointments of the year 2022, 2023 offered a better future for the Maasai people when a judicial review conducted by the Tanzanian High Court found that the demarcation was illegal. This was a result of findings which proved illegalities, a lack of due diligence, and consultation, as well as violence involved in the process of demarcation. (12) This was the first in a rather hopeful turn of events. 

Later on, the Appellate Division of the East African Court of Justice ruled that the judgment in the earlier ‘Reference No. 10 of 2017’ was unjust, ordering a re-trial and vindication for the applicants (13). This was a long-awaited overturn of what had been a highly consequential decision for the Maasai people. 

Current Situation

While the slew of recent judicial victories for the Maasai people has provided them with increased legitimacy to their claims of forced displacement as well as the credibility necessary to continue their fight, it has not been enough to circumvent government actions against their lands and indigenous communities. 

As recently as 2024, only a year after the Appellate Court overturned the initial verdict, there was a continuation of evictions in the areas around Ngorongoro and Serengeti. However, with the assistance of civil society organizations, human rights groups, and coalitions like the Maasai International Solidarity Alliance (MISA), there has been increased international pressure and attention. Even resulting in resolutions being passed in the European Parliament, which condemned the actions of the Tanzanian Government. (14)

With the case set for a retrial, there has also been open dialogue with the government, where President Samia Suluhu Hassan has both met with 150 Maasai delegates at the State House in December of 2024 and committed to investigating the matter. That said, the future of this dispute is uncertain, and the Maasai continue to campaign for reforms that will assure their safety and security. (15)

Conclusion

This case highlights the deep symbolic value of land to indigenous communities of sub-Saharan Africa. It also calls attention to the need for clearer legal protections for indigenous people to safeguard their homes and livelihoods. In Tanzania’s pursuit of prosperity, the Maasai struggle is a stark reminder of the risks involved when development neglects the livelihoods of indigenous communities. 

Endnotes

1. Maasai Tribe Facts, Language, Religion, Culture, Diet & Clothing. n.d. https://www.masaimara.travel/maasai-tribe-facts.php

2. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Maasai | History, Language, Location, & Facts.” Encyclopedia Britannica, June 28, 2025. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Maasai

3. Wild Voyager Team. “Origins of the Maasai Tribe.” Wild Voyager, December 6, 2023. https://www.wildvoyager.com/blog/origins-of-the-maasai-tribe/

4. Maasai Tribe - Maasai History, Clothing, Culture - Kenya. n.d. https://www.siyabona.com/maasai-tribe-east-africa.html

5. Masai Mara National Reserve Staff. “Masai-British 1904 and 1911 Agreements - Masai Mara NR.” Masai Mara National Reserve, June 27, 2025. https://masaimara.ke/masai-british-1904-and-1911-agreements/

6. Minority Rights Group. “Beyond Just Conservation: A History of Maasai Dispossession.” Minority Rights Group, February 10, 2025. https://minorityrights.org/beyond-just-conservation-a-history-of-maasai-dispossession-2/

7. Reference No. 10 of 2017. East African Court of Justice. n.d. https://www.eacj.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Reference-No.-10-of-2017.pdf

8. Ibid.

9. “Court Grants an Interim Order Restraining the Government of Tanzania from Evicting Residents in the Land Bordering Serengeti National Park.” East African Community, September 26, 2018. https://www.eac.int/press-releases/1225-court-grants-an-interim-order-restraining-the-government-of-tanzania-from-evicting-residents-in-the-land-bordering-serengeti-national-park

10. “East African Court of Justice Delivers Judgment on Loliondo Case.” The Pan African Lawyers Union (PALU). n.d. https://www.lawyersofafrica.org/court-delivers-judgment-on-loliondo-case/

11. Human Rights Watch. “Tanzania: Maasai Forcibly Displaced for Game Reserve.” Human Rights Watch, May 1, 2023. https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/04/27/tanzania-maasai-forcibly-displaced-game-reserve

12. Admin. “An Important Victory for the Maasai: High Court of Tanzania Rules Pololeti Game Reserve Illegal.” Land Is Life, September 30, 2024. https://www.landislife.org/an-important-victory-for-the-maasai-high-court-of-tanzania-rules-pololeti-game-reserve-illegal-1550/

13. “Press Statement – Maasai Communities Vindicated by the Appellate Court.” The Pan African Lawyers Union (PALU). n.d. https://www.lawyersofafrica.org/press-statement-maasai-communities-vindicated-by-the-appellate-court/

14. “Maasai Fight for Survival: Land Grabs, Evictions, and the Struggle for Cultural Identity in Tanzania.” Cultural Survival, March 6, 2025. https://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/maasai-fight-survival-land-grabs-evictions-and-struggle-cultural-identity-tanzania#:~:text=In%202024%2C%20civil%20society%20organizations,Court%20ordered%20suspending%20further%20evictions

15. Zumdahl, Bethany. “Tanzanian President Meets with Maasai.” Maryknoll Office of Global Concerns, February 19, 2025. https://maryknollogc.org/2025/01/09/tanzanian-president-meets-with-maasai/