Keesing's Record of World Events (formerly Keesing's Contemporary Archives), Volume 23, June, 1977 , , Ugandan, Tanzanian, Page 28410 © 1931-2006 Keesing's Worldwide, LLC - All Rights Reserved. Jun 1977 - Progressive Disintegration of Common Services

In view of the effective suspension of the East African Airways operations, it was announced in Kenya and also in both mainland Tanzania and that separate national were being established (the Ugandan Government having already set up its own — Airlines–in 1975).

On Feb. 4 it was announced in Kenya that a government-owned airline, known as , had been set up on Jan. 22 to operate international and local air services with leased aircraft, and the majority of the EAAC's 3,600 employees in Kenya (out of a total workforce of 6,000) were expected to be absorbed in the new Kenyan airline. Most of the East African Airways fleet had been grounded in Kenya, including four Super VC-l0 airliners.

In Zanzibar, the Government at the same time formed its own airline, Zanair, and applied for a seven-year licence to operate flights within Tanzania and also to Kenya.

On April 18 it was announced in Dar-es-Salaam that Tanzania was setting up its own national airline to be known as .

On April 19 the Kenyan Minister of Power and Communications, Mr Isaac Omolo Okero, announced that his Ministry was taking over the Community's Directorate of Civil Aviation and Meteorological Department because there was ―no possibility‖ of co-operation with Tanzania which, he said, was holding 33 Kenya-registered light aircraft, or with Uganda, which had decided to allow Kenyan aircraft to land only at Entebbe (and not at other airports in Uganda).

On Feb. 4 Tanzania decided to close its border with Kenya for all traffic by ships, aircraft, cars and lorries, and also seized numerous Kenya-registered cars, buses, other vehicles and light aircraft, as a result of which all tourist traffic across the border was disrupted.

In a statement issued on Feb. 6 the Kenyan Government expressed its ―serious concern‖ at ―the alarming developments at the Kenya-Tanzania border caused by systematic harassment of Kenyan nationals and foreigners‖ crossing the common frontier; President Nyerere for hit part stated on Feb. 8 that the border had been closed in retaliation for ―a series of Kenyan moves to demolish the institutions of the East African Community‖, by ―unilaterally‖ breaking up the EAAC, ―nationalizing‖ the harbours, ―seizing‖ four jointly owned ships on Lake Victoria and grounding the East African Airways fleet.

Despite the closure of the frontier, tourists and drivers of Kenya-registered vehicles stranded on the Tanzanian side of the border were allowed to cross into Kenya.

On Feb. 11, on the other hand, the Tanzanian Government imposed a permanent ban on tourists entering Tanzania by road from Kenya-which meant that visitors wishing to see the wild-life parks in Tanzania would have to fly to that country and make their tours in buses rented inside Tanzania (and not in Kenya, as previously).

At the same time difficulties arose for the two countries nationals on the ―wrong‖ side of the border.

Some 700 Tanzanian employees of Fast African Airways were permitted to leave Kenya for Tanzania after being ―dismissed‖ by the Kenyan Government (which in Tanzania's view had no authority for such dismissals), while it was reported from Kenya on Feb. 12 that more than 3,000 Tanzanians living in Kenya had applied for Kenyan citizenship.

Kenyans living and working in Tanzania were on Feb. 10 reported to have been obliged to carry pass books.

All Tanzanians working in the Kenya region of the Fast African Harbours Corporation were told by Mr Gituma (the corporation's deputy director) on March 13 that they would have to vacate their jobs immediately to make way for Kenyans ordered out of Tanzania. Mr Gituma also said that Tanzania had frozen the corporation's bank account and ordered Kenyans and Ugandans to return to their respective countries.

In Tanzania, the EAHC's establishment in Dar-es-Salaam was, according to a report on March 14, closed by Tanzania and its workers were ordered to take compulsory leave.

On April 18 the Tanzanian Government also announced the ―permanent‖ closure of its border with Kenya.

The Kenyan Government thereupon, in a statement issued on April 19, said that it failed to understand Tanzania's action, as border closures were normally applied only when countries were at war with each other, and it accused Tanzania of trying to force the dissolution of the Community and the sharing out of its assets.

President Nyerere said on April 25 that as a result of the Community's disintegration, which he called ―a matter for shame, not for pride‖, many projects under Tanzania's 1975–80 five-year development plan would have to be postponed, and that his country had no alternative but to begin planning for the running of services previously provided by the institutions which had collapsed. Nor was there, he said, any certainty about the future of those of the Community's services which were still operating.

Earlier, on Feb. 10, it had become known in Nairobi that a new Kenyan railway system, to replace that of the EARC inside Kenya, had been formed, its first board meeting being held on that day under the chairmanship of Mr Kingangi Njoroge.

The respective standpoints of Uganda and Tanzania were defined by the two countries’ Presidents during February.