The East African Court of Justice ruled against a paved commercial highway through Serengeti National Park in Tanzania. Although a great victory, the ruling contains 'potholes.'
Serengeti Watch supported a court case brought forward by the African Network for Animal Welfare (ANAW), a nonprofit organization located in Kenya, who filed for the case in December of 2010. We provided funding through its Serengeti Legal Defense Fund which paid for research trips to the Serengeti and legal fees for the Kenyan attorney, Saitabao Ole Kanchory.
The suit was filed after the government of Tanzania announced plans to build a 53 Km commercial highway across the northern section of the Serengeti National Park. The highway would replace an existing dirt track. According to a Tanzanian government study the highway would carry up to 800 commercial vehicles a day by 2015, with increasing numbers thereafter. Scientists warned that the highway would bisect a narrow section of the Serengeti ecosystem that was critical to the annual wildebeest migration. Therefore, the proposed highway would cause the migration to collapse due the fragmentation of natural migration patterns.
The lawsuit sought a permanent injunction against the proposed highway on the grounds that it was in violation of the East African Community Treaty, of which Tanzania and Kenya are signatories. The Treaty calls for "the promotion of sustainable utilization of the natural resources of the Partner States and the taking of measures that would effectively protect the natural environment of Partner States." The applicant sought to bar Tanzania from "upgrading, tarmacking, paving, realigning, constructing, creating or commissioning" the existing track.
Serengeti Watch and ANAW contended that opening a paved highway to the general public would cause irreversible damage to the Serengeti. The highway would impact: migratory species such as zebras and wildebeest; wildlife poaching; air quality and noise; soils; flora and fauna; road safety and increased accidents as well as many more unforeseen issues. ANAW cited conservation organizations that had issued warnings about the impact of the highway, including the UNESCO World Heritage Committee.
The case also contended that the government of Tanzania was in violation of various international treaties. Chief among these, a UNESCO treaty declaring the Serengeti a "World Heritage Property" of "outstanding universal value.
The court agreed with the plaintiff's argument that the highway would have irreversible negative impacts. It affirmed that construction of the highway would be a violation of the East African Community Treaty. In doing so, the court order cited Tanzania's own Environmental Impact Study and relied heavily on statements issued by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee.
"A permanent injunction is hereby issued restraining the Respondent from going forward with its initial proposal of constructing or maintaining a road of bitumen standard across the Serengeti National Park subject to its right to undertake such other programs or initiate policies in the future which would not have a negative impact on the environment and ecosystem in the Serengeti National Park." Read the court verdict.
After the verdict ANAW's Executive Director, Jophat Ngonyo, said: "This was not a win for ANAW; nor for our lawyer, Saitabao Ole Kanchory, not for Serengeti Watch, not for our expert witness John Kuloba, but for the millions of animals in the Serengeti-Mara ecosystem. It is a win for nature and God's creation. Nature has won today."
A road upgraded is still in the pipeline:
Although, the case sought to prevent any form upgrading, the court did not specifically bar this, only the development of an asphalt road. The government of Tanzania says it will instead upgrade the existing dirt track to an all-weather gravel road. The track is in a zone designated to wilderness area, reserved for park vehicles and walking safaris.
Roads for public use not addressed:
The EACJ said that roads in the Serengeti should be "reserved for tourists and park personnel and not the general public," its injunction did not specify this. Tanzania still has the ability to open roads for the public, including commercial use. In fact, in a recent press article, government officials have emphasized their intention to build a highway that would inevitably cross the park.
Roads outside of the park not addressed:
The entire Serengeti ecosystem includes areas within the Serengeti National Park and outlying areas such as the Masai Mara. Wildlife migration takes place across all these regions. There are plans for paved roads in migration areas outside the park that will impact the migration. The court case did not address this issue either. Click HERE for more details.
An uncertain future:
Many observers warn that the gravel road will inevitably become a highway carrying more commercial traffic. There will be increasing pressure to connect the paved roads on either side of the park with a commercial link through the park. Richard Leakey, for one, said that a highway is "inevitable."
- See more at: http://africageographic.com/blog/the-serengeti-highway-battle-won-the-war-with-the-courts-continue/#sthash.Qv0Cwn7K.UqzSRTjT.dpufOn Thursday, July 10, 2014 6:31:17 PM UTC+3, Juma Mzuri wrote:
TANZANIAN'S FOR THE SOUTHERN ROUTE
Serengeti apart from being the natural home to probably the largest and most diverse animal population in the World; is also an ecosystem that has the most important migration in the wildlife kingdom.
Having a(n) highway through it is a selfish and inhumane act against animals that otherwise cannot voice their objection and how negatively it will affect the balance. (Including to us human beings)
However the Southern route would greatly protect that balance in the Serengeti, and also serve and bring great development to a larger human population throughwhich it will pass in the several villages, town and farm producing areas. Surely, we humans as the "advanced" specie should be more the wiser and humane in our deeds. SAK, Tanzanian Design Architect practising in South Africa.
Salim Akari Kombe
Arusha, Tanzania
On Monday, July 7, 2014 12:39:23 PM UTC+3, Gikaro Ryoba wrote:Ikumbukwe kwamba mahakama yamekataza kujengwa kwa barabara ya lami kupitia serneti lakini ile barabara ya vumbi itaendelea kuwepo na kutumika. Sana sana tunawakomoa watu wetu kwa kusafiri kupitia barabara mbaya ya vumbi badala ya kuweka lami. Sioni mantiki ya kukataza kuweka lami wakati barabara ya vumbi inayopita serengeti bado inatumika. Pia sioni ni jinsi gani ecosystem ya Serengeti itaharibiwa na lami wakati barabara ya vumbi ikiwepo na inatumika. Wataalamu wa masuala ya ekolojia labda mtuelimishe katika hili.On Monday, July 7, 2014 12:02 PM, Juma Mzuri <juma...@gmail.com> wrote:
--For me, the Serengeti is one of the seven wonders of the world. Nowhere have I felt more strongly the essence of the Africa of my childhood dreams. It is the last intact, fully functioning savanna wilderness ecosystem in the world. Vast herds of zebra and wildebeest migrate north from their calving grounds in the southern part of the ecosystem in February to the [Masai Mara National Reserve] of Kenya for the dry-season months of July and August.The largest herds of savannaelephants in Africa roam its grasslands.The Serengeti—especially during this migration—gives one a sense of Africa when the world was young. The sheer immensity of the short-grass plains is awe-inspiring. To be surrounded by hundreds of thousands of wildebeests, zebras, and gazelles, stretching as far as the eye can see—and the sounds and the smell—this is the essence of Africa.It stays in your heart forever.The park is also important economically—it generates tens of millions of tourist dollars annually—and most people have it on their "bucket list" as a place to see at least once in their lifetime. Tourists come to the Serengeti to witness the migration, but also to see the large numbers of predators that the wildebeest and zebra support, including lions, hyenas, cheetahs,etcDavy Mwaura,
Kenyan Law graduate from Tanzania's Tumaini University.
On Wednesday, July 2, 2014 9:49:08 AM UTC+3, Abdalah Hamis wrote:Mpango wa ujenzi wa barabara ya lami inayounganisha mikoa ya Arusha na Mara utaendelea kama ilivyotangazwa na Serikali isipokuwa katika eneo la kilometa 53 lililoko katika Hifadhi ya Serengeti.Hayo yalisemwa na Meneja wa Wakala wa Barabara Tanzania (Tanroads) Mkoa wa Arusha, Mhandisi Deusdedit Kakoko alipokuwa akizungumzia hukumu ya Mahakama ya Afrika ya Mashariki iliyozuia ujenzi wa barabara hiyo. "Serikali imekwishatangaza kuwa kipande cha barabara ambacho kinapita Hifadhi ya Serengeti chenye urefu ya kilomita 53 hakitajengwa kwa lami, hivyo naamini ujenzi wa maeneo mengine hautakuwa umeingilia uamuzi wa mahakama hiyo," alisema Kakoko.Alisema kama Serikali ilivyoahidi, barabara hiyo itajengwa kwa Mkoa wa Arusha, kutoka Kigongoni wilayani Monduli hadi Loliondo, Makao Makuu ya Wilaya ya Ngorongoro hadi geti la Crence na baada ya hapo kutakuwa na barabara ya changarawe katika eneo la hifadhi hadi lami itakapoanza tena eneo la Mugumu, Serengeti.Hivi karibuni, Mahakama ya Afrika Mashariki ilitoa hukumu ya kesi iliyofunguliwa na Mtandao wa Kutetea Haki za Wanyama (ANAW), ukipinga ujenzi huo kwa madai kuwa utakuwa na athari za kimazingira, hivyo kuzua sintofahamu.Hukumu hiyo ilitolewa na majaji watatu wa Mahakama ya Afrika ya Mashariki, Jean-Bosco Butasi, Isaac Lenaola na John Mkwawa katika kesi namba 9/2010.Hatua hiyo iliisukuma jumuiya ya wasomi wa Wilaya ya Ngorongoro kuipinga hukumu hiyo na kuweka wazi msimamo wake wa kuungana na Serikali kutaka kujengwa kwa barabara hiyo.Makamu Mwenyekiti wa jumuiya hiyo, Onesmo Ole Ngurumwa alisema barabara hiyo ina umuhimu mkubwa kwa wananchi wa Loliondo ambao wamekuwa na shida ya usafiri na kulazimika kusafiri zaidi ya kilomita 400 katika barabara ya vumbi kwenda makao makuu ya Mkoa wa Arusha.
On Monday, June 30, 2014 10:50:54 PM UTC-7, Abdalah Hamis wrote:Arusha — Conservation groups here are waiting for the next move by the government after it failed to convince an East African court of the merits of building a new road through Serengeti National Park.In a bid to stop the highway road construction, the Africa Network for Animal Welfare (ANAW) based in Nairobi had filed a case in December 2010 with the East African Court of Justice (EACJ) in Arusha, seeking to stop the Tanzania government from building a highway across the Serengeti citing the migration routes of the great herds of wildebeest and zebras. The Park is a UNSECO Site.Reading the judgment, Deputy Principal Judge Isaac Lenaola said that, given the ecological concerns, the plan to build the bitumen standard road across the park was unlawful, the road, originally planned to be built in 2012.The Tanzanian government planned to develop a 54-kilometre section of unpaved road across the Serengeti Park to connect the northern tourist hub of Arusha to Musoma on Lake Victoria.ANAW argued that the proposed highway would have "deleterious environmental and ecological effects" on the delicate Serengeti ecosystem and the adjoining protected areas such as the Maasai Mara game reserve in Kenya. These would include disruption of animal migration.The Serengeti/Maasai-Mara ecosystem is famous the world over for the spectacular annual wildebeest migration and draws thousands of tourists and nature lovers from overseas.In addition, conservation groups, including the Wildlife Conservation Society, based in New York, and the Zoological Society of London said the highway would cause collisions between animals and traffic and may stop the animals' yearly movement to the Maasai Mara National Reserve in neighbouring Kenya.In its recent ruling, the First Instance Division of the East African Court of Justice (EACJ) ruled that the planned tarmacked road from Loliondo-Kleins Gate/Tabora B to Mugumu/Natta would damage the park's ecosystem, and that construction of the road would violate East African Community rules on the preservation and sustainable use of natural resources.In March 2011, the German government made an important announcement - It acknowledged that there were legitimate development needs of communities around the park. So in order to avert a road across the Serengeti, it offered funding to build local roads and other projects for these communities. Equally important, it offered to help build a southern route around the Serengeti.
On Sunday, June 29, 2014 12:44:24 AM UTC-7, Sam Muigai wrote:I am thankful to the Serengeti Watch for their work. I am going to Tanzania in July to witness the great migration. It will be my second safari (I went to South Africa last year).
I wish more people had a chance to visit the few places in the world where animals thrive. It is a life changing experience, especially as we are increasingly becoming urban.
In the best of circumstances, wild life is a struggle between surviving predators and finding food. Yet the beauty of animals is so extraordinary that, for one, I would be willing to sacrifice some of my comfort to keep them on this planet.
On Tuesday, June 24, 2014 8:22:41 PM UTC+3, Yona Fares Maro wrote:EXACT COURT RULINGFollowing is the exact wording of the final court document from the EACJ (East African court of Justice):"Having so stated, the final orders that are appropriate in the unique circumstances of the matter before us are the following:i)A declaration is hereby issued that the initial proposal or the proposed action by the Respondent to construct a road of bitumen standard across the Serengeti National Park is unlawful and infringes Articles 5(3)(c),8(1)(c),111(2) and 114(1) of the Treaty.ii) A permanent injunction is hereby issued restraining the Respondent from operationalising its initial proposal or proposed action of constructing or maintaining a road of bitumen standard across the Serengeti National Park subject to its right to undertake such other programmes or initiate policies in the future which would not have a negative impact on the environment and ecosystem in the Serengeti National Park.iii) Each party shall bear its own costs.It is Ordered accordingly."FROM SERENGETI WATCH:
Thank you to all our fans who donated to the Legal Defense
Fund for ANAW.But remember the fight is not over yet! The ruling only says that a bitumen (paved road) can not be built. An all weather gravel (murram) road that allows any type of commercial traffic is still a threat both in the park and outside as the migration does not stay within the park boundaries. We must make sure the Tanzanian government adopts the Southern Route. The German government offered help over two years ago with this. The Tanzanian government has now asked them for a feasibility study. Another giant step forward.But we must remain vigilant and we have much work to do to help those around the park to understand and conserve wildlife and to also help them to benefit from tourism.
On Tuesday, June 24, 2014 11:19:27 AM UTC+3, Prof. Mokiti Tarimo wrote:Totally I agree with your concern that the JK Government may have different opinion and act differently. But it is repulsive by the world community. We need to conserve the animals that the first President was very keen on wildlife conservation. Recall his words on Arusaha Manifesto of n1961 as opposed to J Kikwete ideas.Please see underneath.Where should we stand
J Kikwete idea and or intentionsToday is the first International Serengeti Day. Since my January 6th post, The Road to Ruin, there has been a lot of activity, but very little gained in the campaign to stop the proposed Serengeti Highway. Speeches, petitions, newscasts, fund-raising, donations, organized protests and global pleading have not swayed President Kikwete's stance to move forward with construction of the highway. He refuses to call it a highway because "it will not be a tarmac road." Of course, the devastation to the Serengeti remains the same regardless of the road's surface. Not even a valid offer by the World Bank to fund an alternative southern route has changed Kikwete's mind.Jk Nyerere ideas and standIn 1961, Tanzania's first president, Mwalimu Julius Nyerere issued a statement, the now famous "Arusha Manifesto", regarding Tanzania's commitment to wildlife conservation. His statement became an unofficial guideline for the United Republic of Tanzania and is included in "The Wildlife Policy of Tanzania", drawn up by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism."The survival of our wildlife is a matter of grave concern to all of us in Africa. These wild creatures amid the wild places they inhabit are not only important as a source of wonder and inspiration but are an integral part of our natural resources and of our future livelihood and well being.In accepting the trusteeship of our wildlife we solemnly declare that we will do everything in our power to make sure that our children's grand-children will be able to enjoy this rich and precious inheritance.The conservation of wildlife and wild places calls for specialist knowledge, trained manpower, and money, and we look to other nations to co-operate with us in this important task the success or failure of which not only affects the continent of Africa but the rest of the world as well."- Mwalimu J.K. Nyerere 1961,
Prof TMC Tarimo Biodiversity conservationOn Mon, Jun 23, 2014 at 3:06 PM, 'Nico Eatlawe' via Wanabidii <wana...@googlegroups.com> wrote:
I hope it is too early to celebrate as we do not what JK government will do next bearing in mind that the budget has already been set aside for the construction. I have been reminded by what Nyerere once said when Mandela was first released from prison when people started chanting "Free Mandela". Nyerere said that mandela was not free but out of prison. So nature might have won but thegovernment may still act differently especially if foreign interests are involved.We will see!On Monday, 23 June 2014, 10:42, 'ELISA MUHINGO' via Wanabidii <wana...@googlegroups.com> wrote:
--A big jail must be constructed where Tanzania will be jailed. However the unlawful action must proceed. we will be waiting another case to request the road demolition (but) after is is constructed.On Friday, June 20, 2014 3:40 PM, Yona Maro <oldm...@gmail.com> wrote:
--THE ANIMALS OF THE SERENGETI HAVE WON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!EAST AFRICAN COURT OF JUSTICE RULES UNLAWFUL FOR TANZANIA TO PUT HIGHWAY THROUGH SERENGETI!!!!!!!!"In a milestone development the East African Court of Justice has declared that constructing a bitumen road across the world famous Serengeti National Park is unlawful. The Judges have restrained the Tanzanian Government from constructing the road. The judgement in essence confirms that the prestigious Serengeti ecosystem is an invaluable world heritage site and that deserves optimal protection and restraint from high impact development that can interfere with the functions of the ecosystem to humankind.ANAW fully respects Tanzania's sovereignty and its need for national development. However, by taking up this matter, ANAW was in actual fact protect a resource that would be of future benefit no only to Tanzanians or East Africans but also the entire humanity."This was not a win for ANAW, not for our lawyer, Saitabao Ole Kanchory, not for Serengeti Watch, not for our expert witness John Kuloba, but for the millions of animals in the Serengeti-mara ecosystem. It is a win for nature and God's creation. Nature has won today", Josphat Ngonyo, ANAW's executive director said after the win.We send congratulatory messages to all our partners in Serengeti Watch and all sympathizers who walked with us over the entire period that the case was in court"BRAVO EVERYONE!!!!! ~ Announcement from ANAW on their FB fanpageOP ED
We are BEYONE excited - we have worked on this page diligently for 4 years to make sure this highway did not happen. Thank you so much to our donors, volunteers around the world, our directors, supporters and especially Frankfurt Zoological Society and the German government for keeping up the pressure for the Tanzanian government to accept the Southern Route.The Tanzanian government - after years of silence on the offer by Germany to fund better roads for the locals outside of the park and to do a feasibility study for the Southern Route and the World Bank offering to fund it - finally accepted the German offer a few days ago. Perhaps a foreshadowing of today's verdict????THANK YOU ANAW for your hard work!THANK YOU FANS FOR YOUR DONATIONS TO HELP ANAW!HOWEVER - we must remember the Serengeti is not safe yet - we have much work to do to stay vigilant. We also have much work to do in education the people around the Serengeti about conservation and to work to make sure they start getting a portion of the income from tourism. These have always been our goals.SO PLEASE DON'T OPEN THE CHAMPAGNE BOTTLES and walk away just yet. Please stay with us to continue saving the Serengeti!!
We still have much work to do.--
Yona Fares MaroInstitut d'études de sécurité - SA
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