Virunga Wildlife Rangers On the Offensive Against Militias

The Congolese rangers protect the wildlife in Virunga National Park, the most famous inhabitants of which are the 700 remaining mountain gorillas. These rangers are very brave people with possibly the most dangerous jobs in the world. And they don't get paid very much at all.

They've just launched an offensive against the militias that are destroying habitat in order to get charcoal. One of these militias was involved in the Rwandan genocide.

From the official website of Virunga National Park.

The Congolese National Park Authorities have sent the biggest ever deployment of armed rangers to strike at charcoal-making operations run by armed groups deep in the forests of Virunga National Park in Eastern DR Congo. The move, undertaken in collaboration with the UN peace-keeping forces MONUC, follows a report by the United Nations Group of Experts on the Democratic Republic of Congo identifying charcoal from Virunga National Park as a major source of revenue for illegal armed groups. These include the FDLR, the Rwandan militia whose members are held responsible for the Rwandan Genocide in 1994.

Baby Gorilla Rescued from Snare in Rwanda

Back in February, a three-year-old gorilla was caught in a poacher's snare meant for antelope. Fortunately, wildlife staff from the Karisoke Research Center discovered it and it's okay now.

Here's the story from the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund website.

New Rwandan Tax to Help Mountain Gorillas

Great idea! Companies should pay to support the species whose image they exploit...oops,I mean, "borrow." The mountain gorillas are an important asset to the Rwandan economy and I'm glad to see the government realizes that. Hopefully, the money raised really will be earmarked for gorilla protection.

Rwandan companies using the country's famous mountain gorillas' image for marketing purposes will have to pay a tax aimed at financing the endangered species protection, officials announced Monday.

"We are launching this campaign to generate income earmarked for the species' protection," said Fidele Ruzigandekwe, in charge of conservation at the Rwandan Office of Tourism and National Parks.

There are an estimated 720 surviving mountain gorillas in the world. They live in national parks straddling the borders between Rwanda, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

"From now on, any company using the gorillas' image for advertising or any other commercial purpose will have to pay a tax to finance the Volcanos Park and specifically the gorilla conservation programme," Ruzigandekwe said.

The new law is to come into force at the beginning of 2008.

Photo by *Simian*.