Country: Zimbabwe

Group: Doma

Date Finalized: 12 October 2022

Team: Anthony Un (lead), Austyn Evans, Kelsey Dwyer, Aria Robinson, Noelle Collings

Content Warning: Discrimination

Approximate Time Period: 1980-present

The Doma, also known as the Dema, Wadoma, or vaDoma, are a mostly nomadic hunter gatherer group living in the Northernmost area of Zimbabwe. The Doma were likely one of the first populations living in the territory of what today is North Zimbabwe. The Doma number around 16,000, approximately .03% of the country’s population. The Doma are significantly isolated from other populations (Minority Rights Group, 2018).

There is significant evidence that the Zimbabwean government has forced Doma people from their land. The government of Zimbabwe has been investing in the creation of Safari and National Parks to generate revenue. The Land Acquisition Act and other legislation allows the Zimbabwean government to use any rural land for these parks. Several of these parks, such as Chewore National Park and Dande North Safari Areas, fall on land traditionally used by Doma for hunting (Minority Rights Group, 2018). These reserves have strict bans on hunting as restricted conservancies. This has led to the harassment of Doma hunters on the grounds (Cultural Survival, 2016). Unable to continue their traditional nomadic lifestyle, Doma have settled into small homesteads comprising a fraction of their previous range (CNBC Africa, 2016).

Unable to hunt in their traditional lands and lacking the resources or knowledge of farming practices, Doma rely on illegal poaching, fishing, and government assistance (CNBC Africa, 2016). Some Doma have moved to local villages to seek new livelihoods (Mupanedemo, 2017). Independent of government action, urban sprawl from villages is currently expanding on to Doma lands. Moreover, many Doma communities are at risk of starvation and lack water and health facilities (Minority Rights Group, 2018). Given the past and continued efforts by the Zimbabwean government to remove Doma from traditional lands, it is clear that the Doma are experiencing forced displacement.

The data quality for this writeup is rated as a 2/3 for a lack of concrete numbers and dates regarding those affected.

References

  1. CNBC Africa. (Sept 12, 2016). Zimbabwe’s Doma children on the margins of society. Retrieved from https://www.cnbcafrica.com/2016/zimbabwes-domas/
  2. Cultural Survival. (2016). Observations on the State of Indigenous Human Rights in Zimbabwe Prepared for United Nations Human Rights Council. Retrieved from https://www.culturalsurvival.org/sites/default/files/media/uprforzimbabwe2016.pdf
  3. Minority Rights Group. (2018). Doma. World Directory of Minorities and Indigenous Peoples. Retrieved from https://minorityrights.org/minorities/doma/
  4. Mupanedemo, Freedom. (April 30, 2017). Doma People: When Permanent Settling Becomes Inevitable. The Sunday News. Retrieved from https://www.sundaynews.co.zw/doma-people-when-permanent-settling-becomes-inevitable/