from ALLOYCE KIMBUNGA in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania
Tanzania Bureau
DAR-ES-SALAAM, (CAJ News) – TANZANIA stands accused of stripping some indigenous Maasai citizens of their right to vote ahead of the local elections in November.
Avaaz, a global campaign network and non-profit organisation, has alleged that some 100 000 Maasai citizens have been erased from the voter rolls.
This comes after earlier allegations that thousands of indigenous Maasai were being removed from their areas of residence to make way for safari tourism.
“Now, they’re taking it a step further by stripping the brave few that remain at home in the Ngorongoro district of their right to vote,” Avaaz stated in a petition.
“Stripping the Maasai of their voting rights is the latest horror in a years-long government campaign to marginalise, displace, and impoverish the Maasai pastoralists in Tanzania,” it said.
Avaaz pledged solidarity with the Maasai and promised to ensure they were back on the rolls before the elections.
“Our community has held the line against the erasure of the Maasai people before,” Avaaz stated.
“We ensured that the voices of Maasai elders were heard in the global press, we funded documentation and local resistance, and we’ve spoken up against the Tanzanian government’s barrage of discriminatory policies,” it said.
The Avaaz petition is titled, “Stop erasing the Maasai”.
– CAJ News