Posted on 29 January
2011 - WWF is mourning the deaths of three
Virunga National Park rangers and five Democratic
Republic of Congo soldiers who were working
with them last week, after a rocket propelled
grenade attack on their vehicle near Mabenga.
Three others were critically
injured in the ambush attack, which occurred
during an early morning patrol aimed at
securing a road through the park, famed
as the leading remaining refuge of the critically
endangered mountain gorilla. The attackers
are believed to have been FDLR Rwandan militia,
an illegal movement believed to include
perpetrators of the Rwandan genocide of
1994.
Park rangers and regular
army units have been working together to
secure the area within the national park
known to be heavily frequented by FDLR militia
and had recently destroyed two FDLR camps
that were also centres for the illegal and
destructive charcoal trade.
“The events of this
week have left us all deeply saddened,”
wrote Virunga Park Director Emmanuel de
Merode on the park’s website this week.
“Virunga National Park has suffered more
service deaths amongst its rangers than
any protected area on earth.
“ Despite this sobering
fact, Virunga’s dedicated rangers still
get up every morning ready to risk everything
to protect the mountain gorillas and other
beautiful flora and fauna of the park. And,
during the long civil war, many rangers
did so for little or no pay.”
A fund has been set
up to help support the widows and children
of rangers killed protecting the park.
“Although one might
think a ranger’s biggest fear is death,
what most rangers fear most is that their
widows and orphaned children will be abandoned
and left destitute in a society that cannot
care for them,” wrote de Merode.
“This ever-present fear
has a profound impact on ranger morale and
exacts a terrible burden on their families
as well. With over 140 rangers having now
been killed in the line of duty since 1996,
we must find a way to care for those left
behind.”
The Virunga Widows’
Fund can be found at www.gorilla.cd
WWF is a long term supporter
of the management of the park through the
Congolese Wildlife Authority (Institut Congolais
pour la Conservation de la Nature, ICCN).
