Searching for Bonobo in Congo

Trading Development for Nature Conservation Up the Congo

April 18, 2010 – 10:17 pm

A local chief at the recent Lokandu ceremony to mark the beginning of road work.

When is it OK to “trade” development for conservation? Whenever it works. Which is whenever there is the will, the money and the organization for both.

What usually happens? Development at the price of nature conservation.
What doesn’t work? Conservation without development.

When does development work for conservation? Development is immediate, but conservation is for the long haul. Not easy to measure. And the case I am going to describe below is a bit counter intuitive because we are now financing repair of the very same road where previously we decried road work as facilitating uncontrolled forest exploitation. What is different now?

We are repairing an existing part of the road without extending it – that is different. We are only repairing the road for easier bicycle and motorcycle traffic, not for four wheel traffic – that too is different. But more important: the road work comes “with a park”. At the same time and in association with filling the holes and laying the narrow bridges there will be participative delimitation of a protected area destined to become a national park.

The area shown is the northern part of Maniema Province on the west side of the Lualaba River. The solid red lines are the roads that are being rehabilitated. Further west is the proposed national park.

All of this happens with lots of fanfare, public announcements and public acclaim. Hopefully the hoop-la will help secure its success. Below are some pictures of the beginning of the road work financed by DAI (Development Alternatives International). DAI is also supporting the work involved in the participative delimitation of the protected area.

In March our TL2 dugout took the dignitaries from the provincial capital of Kindu up to Lokandu for the ceremony to mark the beginning of road work.

One of the gathered chiefs welcomes the provincial Minister of the Environment.

Mama Chefitaine, Chief of the Bangengele, opens the ceremony.

“And here is where the park will be”, the Provincial Minister of the Environment gesticulates.

“We are in favor”, the crowd cheers as the Administrator of the Territory queries them.

“Let the road work begin.” The Minister of the Environment cuts the ribbon.

The unction is poured; the work is blessed.

John is hoisted up on the shoulders of the crowd. At least temporarily, he is the highway messiah.

Thanks to Guy Rondeau for the photos from Lokandu.

By Terese Hart | Posted in About the project, Kindu | Comments (3)

Martyrs for the Wilds of Congo

April 4, 2010 – 7:35 pm

These Garamba Park guards and warden were wounded fighting the Lord’s Resistance Army in Garamba in 2009.

How can the sacrifice of today’s heroes guarantee “the tomorrows” for Congo’s forests, wild savannas and the Parks meant to protect them? This was the unspoken challenge at the Abraham Conservation Award Ceremony in Kinshasa on the 29th of March 2010.

The park guard Kanyangara was caught in an ambush when investigating a poached hippopotamus.

We gathered to honor 8 park guards who lost their lives in Congo’s Parks in attacks by the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), in clashes with military poachers or ambushed by rebels. May their deaths not have been in vain.

Nancy Abraham, sponsor of the awards, in a thoughtful moment before the ceremony.

We also celebrated the bravery of park guards wounded while fighting for their park and the courage of local chiefs who brought their citizens together to support the wilderness of traditional lands. We also paid tribute to villagers who united against Maimai poachers in a remote area where “law” and “gun” are synonymous.

The speakers included (from left) the DCM of the American embassy, Nancy Abraham, the Minister of the Environment, the Special Representative of the Secretary General of the UN in DR Congo, and the head of the Congolese park institute.

How can we assure that the initiatives of these heroes are carried forward? How can we assure that they are effective?

The country director of the World Bank puts Kanyangara’s post humus award around his widow’s neck.

The ceremony celebrated the courage and dedication of 19 Congolese:

Late warden Mayumba Pela of Garamba National Park – Killed by the LRA
Late park guard Atolobako Vukoyo of Garamba NP – Killed by the LRA
Late park guard Takipi Mamvotama of Garamba NP– Killed by the LRA

The audience stands in remembrance of the park guards killed in the service of Congolese Parks.

Chief warden Iyomi Iyatshi – Wounded fighting the LRA
Park guard Atakuru Surandi – Wounded fighting the LRA
Park guard Langosti Pipili – Wounded fighting the LRA
Late park guard Atikpo Mutombi of the Okapi Reserve – Killed in a clash with poachers

Atikpo Mutombi was shot by elephant poachers in a clash in the Okapi Reserve in September 2009.

Late park guard Kambale Vilavu of Virunga National Park– Killed in a Maimai ambush.
Late park guard Udongo Okelo of Virunga National Park – Poisoned by poachers
Late park guard Kanyangara Muhima of Virunga National Park – Killed when ambushed by poachers
Traditional Chief (groupement) Muombi Lubula of Kahuzi Biega National Park – Ran community patrols when ICCN could not enter his region of park.
Chief (groupement) Oscar Biringanine Marhegane of Kahuzi Biega NP – Arrested twice for denouncing military and political authorities who exploited the park.
Traditional Chief (chefferie) Mwami Mopipi Mukulumanya of Kahuzi Biega NP – Led his rebellious population away from uncontrolled resource exploitation and back to support the Park.
Late park guard Asukulu M’meme of Itombwe Reserve – Killed by unidentified armed men when on mission to investigate the killing of a gorilla.

In August 2009, Asukulu was tortured then killed when investigating the killing of a gorilla in the Itombwe Reserve.

Traditional Chief (chefferie) Konji Wa Kyalwe of Upemba National Park – Protected elephants on his land despite elephant-human conflict.
Traditional Chief (chefferie) Matchozi Ulimwengu of the TL2 landscape – Campaigned tirelessly against bonobo poaching and for the formation of a protected area on her land.

From left Chief Konji from Upemba and Chief Jeanne Matchozi from TL2. Next to her, Kapere also from TL2.

Guillaume Kapere Mulangi of the TL2 landscape – Denounced and disarmed Maimai poachers despite no presence of armed officials to support the effort. He worked with the support of two others:
Engesombe Bayombe of the TL2 landscape and
Alacho Kahenga of the TL2 landscape.

Thank you, Guy Rondeau, for the photography of the ceremony!

By Terese Hart | Posted in Kinshasa | Comments (5)

Kindu-gate: Sorcerers Mess with the Money

March 22, 2010 – 8:03 pm

When, at the end of February 2010, thousands of dollars went missing from the safe-box kept in the governor’s office in Maniema (some say 75,000 USD, others say more), there was a good explanation. The explanation was presented officially in an understated manner by the provincial Minister of Sports, Art and Information who addressed the local press.

Maniema’s Minister of Sports, Art and Information, Toussaint Kawaya

He spoke of an episode “rocambolesque” which in translation means “incredible”.

The Provincial Accountant gave more details. At midnight she heard the voice of her little brother, but opened the door to see only soldiers who took her to the bridge leading to the governor’s office. They bewitched her with some leaves and mysterious drops and suddenly she and they were in front of the safe-box. She had no sooner opened it for them than she was magically all alone on the bridge again and screaming for help.

The credibility gap is increased by this being the second time the accountant has been bewitched to the detriment of government cash in the safe box. Some of the local legislators thought that this was once too often and the accountant is now in prison. The opposition legislators rose up in the provincial assembly demanding the governor’s impeachment. In fact this disappearance of funds just added to their pile of previous accusations of major embezzlement, tribalism and mis-management. The provincial assembly, however, is deeply divided , so much so that on the first of March the gavel unleashed havoc. The elected deputies were pulling punches, knives and jumping out of windows.

Slinging words and slinging fists in the Provincial Assembly

The speaker of the Assembly climbs through the window and escapes with police escort.

Shots were fired that night around the houses of certain members of the opposition. Windows were shattered. Not good. The central government called the governor and top opposition to the capital Kinshasa to be heard by the Minister of the Interior. That is where they still are, and we are still waiting to know the fate of Maniema’s government.

But these things take time. Remember Watergate? There, too, party politics was involved. It was in June 1972 when five men were arrested at 2:30 a.m. while trying to bug the offices of the Democratic National Committee at the Watergate Hotel and office complex.

And there were plenty of lies and even some rather incredible explanations that came from the Republican White House. In December 1973 an 18 1/2 -minute gap in one of the subpoenaed tapes was found. Chief of staff Alexander Haig suggested that “some sinister force” may have erased the segment. The white house secretary, Rose Mary Woods, more mundanely offered that her foot may have slipped on the wrong foot petal.
Both were proved wrong by electronics experts who determined that the erasure was done quite deliberately in 5 or 6 segments.

A beleaguered president on his way out

It wasn’t until August 1974, more than two years after the Watergate break-in, when Richard Nixon resigned from the presidency of the United States under threat of impeachment.

I actually think it will be much easier for many of us to remember the good that Didier Manara did as Governor of Maniema .
1. He was the first governor of Maniema ever to put in place a closed hunting season and
2. He supports the proposition of a national park along the Lomami.

The governor under better circumstances

For right now, let’s think of this as two steps forward and one step back.

By Terese Hart | Posted in Kindu | Comments (6)

For Elephants in Congo the War Goes On

March 13, 2010 – 8:15 pm

Four elephants of Virunga National Park were killed by soldiers of the 12th brigade of the Congolese Army near Rutshuru in 2005.

D.R. Congo’s internal wars officially ended in 2005, but for Congo’s elephants war goes on.

An international appetite has ivory prices soaring. Other appetites are whetted: National governments who want to sell legal ivory stocks, smugglers who want to move illegal ivory across borders, poachers who want to avoid risk, but still supply smugglers. For well-armed military, poaching risk is low. In Congo, battalions of military surround national parks, the last arenas of the war and the last remaining homes for Congo’s elephants. The military are the main poachers of Congolese elephants and the slaughter is keeping pace with the rising ivory price.

At the CITES meetings this week in Dohar, Quatar, the international status of the elephant will be decided. Should Ivory trade be allowed? Is it the responsibility of countries like Zambia and Tanzania, who want to sell ivory stockpiles, that the last elephants of DR Congo are being poached from parks to masquerade as legally sold? These are not unprotected parks; they are just out-gunned parks. Later this month the widows of eight DR Congo park guards and wardens will receive awards in honor of their husbands who lost their lives over the past year defending parks.

From three World Heritage Sites in DR Congo, 250 elephants are known killed in 2009 alone and >75% were killed by Congolese military. The rhythm of slaughter from the war years is being taken up again.

Read the press release from Congo to inform the Cites Conference of the plight of Congo’s elephants and all elephants in Central Africa.

Read how the ivory debate is science versus politics.

Elephants four years ago in the Okapi World Heritage Site; are they still there? ©Copyright_Reto Kuster_E-Mail kuster.reto@gmx.net