An urgent resolution condemning the recent facts of pastoralist’ land evictions in Loliondo, Tanzania was adopted by the European Parliament on 12 March.
With this resolution, MEPs strongly condemn the “illegal displacement of local rural communities, the destruction of their villages and traditional way of life, and the violation of their basic human rights” and actions that do not recognise the legitimacy of customary tenure arrangements that provide statutory rights for individuals and communities
They call on the Tanzanian government to immediately implement the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO)’s Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security (VGGT).
They ask the Commission to ensure the alignment of its land policy guidelines with the VGGT, and to report to Parliament on expenditure under development programmes and the EU budget related to land governance, with a view to ensuring that those programmes promote human rights.
This resolution was based on inputs received from local pastoral organisations in Tanzania, with the support of the Coalition of European Lobbies for Easter Africa Pastoralism (CELEP).
Photo credits: ICCA consortium.
