If designating areas as World Heritage Sites endangers the survival of Indigenous peoples in African countries, UNESCO and IUCN’s outdated, colonial, and top-down approach to conservation must be dismantled immediately, the writer says.
In the early morning of August 18, the safari cars that usually creep along the Ngorongoro-Serengeti highway, slowed by their sheer numbers, encountered a different challenge. Thousands of Maasai men and women, draped in red-patterned Shuka cloth and waving grass, a symbol of peace, were blocking the highway.
In response to international condemnation, the government falsely claimed that Maasai were volunteering en masse for resettlement at two relocation sites –Msomera village in Handeni district and Kitwai A and B villages in Simanjiro district. Adding to this assault on their political rights, Government Notice 673, issued on August 2, 2024, delisted 11 wards, 25 villages, and 96 sub-villages in Ngorongoro Division, affecting more than 110,000 people, all without obtaining their free, prior and informed consent. The blatant violation of their rights sparked the August 18 protest, where Maasai residents demanded the reversal of GN 673 and the restoration of their electoral rights by the National Electoral Commission.
It took an extensive global campaign to shift their stance. Unesco’s website carries the government’s February 2024 report on the conservation status in the NCA, providing the false narrative that the relocation of communities is voluntary, adheres to international best practices and includes compensation measures. Yet, it also notes concerns from communities, acknowledging the need for a human rights-based approach.
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