Democratic Republic of Congo
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CONGO: "We remain marginalised", indigenous people say
Despite government efforts to provide public services to all citizens of the Republic of Congo, indigenous communities (also known as Pygmies) continue to be discriminated against, the community's representatives have said.
"It is difficult; we don't have a health centre, no school, even though we are near the capital," said Jean Dominique Dambo, the leader of the indigenous people in Dzaka, a village near Ouesso, the main town in the Sangha region in northern Congo.
Nationwide, indigenous people are estimated to number 300,000, or 10 percent of the country's population.
Dambo said: "Over there, not far from our village, the people are getting free treated mosquito nets and other goods while we are not informed about it; I am sure they forgot about us."
He said recent health campaigns by the government targeting mothers and children in Ouesso excluded the indigenous people in the area.
"When we are sick, we use herbs; in complicated cases, we go to the town, sometimes it's too late and some die," Dambo said.
Exclusion from health services has made the community susceptible to various ailments.
"Many diseases, especially HIV cases, are common among these people as they have little access to medical care because of extreme poverty," he said.
Other communities in the Congo, like the dominant Bantus, disparage Pygmies because of their way of life.
"We cannot live with people who do not like us and who make fun of us," Louis Yambi, 27, an indigenous man in Ouesso, said.''
In schools, indigenous children are often ridiculed by their peers as being filthy and smelly, Yambi said.
"In my class no one wanted to sit with me," Jean Mobio, 20, said, adding that he had to leave school and move to the forest. "To them, I didn't have the right, I wasn't like them."
Florent Niama, the government's director-general in charge of social affairs, said the protection of these people's rights was a concern to the authorities.
He said the government's recent health campaigns, supported by several UN agencies, were not discriminatory, as all ethnic communities had been targeted. Despite government efforts to provide public services to all citizens of the Republic of Congo, indigenous communities (also known as ... more -
DRC: Health crisis looms as doctors’ strike continues
Thousands of patients in health care centres in the Democratic Republic of Congo capital Kinshasa are being deprived of urgent medical care after a strike by doctors and health workers entered its fifth day.
“We are afraid because the doctors who have people’s lives in their hands are not there,” said Faustin Badiaumu, whose sister was in the intensive care unit at Kinshasa General Hospital.
“My sister is in a critical condition after an operation,” Badiamu said. “We are very worried because she is not getting appropriate treatment.”
“There is no doctor here,” Hortense Ikota, head nurse in charge of emergencies at the hospital said. “We do not know what to do.”
Kambamba Mbwebe, a doctor in the 2000-bed hospital, said the doctors had to strike “so they could be heard”.
According to Mbwebe, doctors want the government to issue pay rises and various administrative changes to the health sector. Mbwebe said doctors were earning just US$200-400 a month, leaving many struggling to pay rents, and some facing eviction from their homes.
“It’s unacceptable that ministers, government officials and members of parliament earn more than $4,000, buy new cars while we [doctors] suffer,” he said.
The Kinshasa General Hospital registers over 3,000 consultations daily with 2,000 sick people being admitted.
The government, meanwhile, claims to have responded to the doctors’ demands.
“We did not ignore any of the doctors’ claims. Quite to the contrary, many of the issues were resolved between January and August 2008,” Makwenge Kaput, the minister for health, said, explaining that unpaid bonuses had been paid and salaries raised.
The government was also looking at solutions to stop the strike, which had spread to other health centres across the country. Thousands of patients in health care centres in the Democratic Republic of Congo capital Kinshasa are being deprived of urgent medical... more -
96 Indigenous Slaves Freed in Congo
A three-month campaign in by the World Peasants/Indigenous Organization (WPIO) has resulted in the release of 96 people who had been held as slaves in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
During the "Ten for One Peace Campaign," 50 people who were working as forced miners for companies in Lulimba were freed, along with 46 people from 12 indigenous families who had been enslaved for generations.
The son of a pygmy* man owned by a mining company, Burhabale Cisangani was born into slavery.
Orphaned at age 7, he was forced to do hard labor in the Lulimba area of Congo for masters who made him work even when sick and forbade him to marry. For 28 years, this was the only life he knew.
But this spring, Mr Cisangani became a free man, thanks to the courageous efforts of the World Peasants/Indigenous Organization (WPIO), a partner of The Advocacy Project (AP) based in Uganda.
Earlier this year, a team of twenty-five WPIO activists spent three months visiting 240 families and a number of companies in five territories in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) during their "Ten for One Peace Campaign." The campaign resulted in the release of almost 100 people who had been held as slaves.
"Victims of slavery have been routinely destroyed by sexual exploitation and other human rights abuses," WPIO Director Freddy Wangabo wrote in a recent release of the campaign's results. "More collective sacrifices and responsibility are needed for the interest of humankind to protect pygmies... and the other poorest communities in the country."
In some areas of the DRC, wealthy people and traditional leaders (mwami) are known to capture pygmies and other poor, indigenous people and force them into slavery. The captured people are known as badja and are considered the property of their masters. According to the WPIO, the tradition of enslaving pygmies goes back many years and is linked to a social hierarchy that treats pygmies as "animals without tails."
In this context, the traditional human rights advocacy strategy of shaming the perpetrators has proved ineffective, because pygmies are not valued by the rest of society. Instead, the Ten for One Peace Campaign uses teams of influential locals, including teachers and religious leaders, to intensively lobby individual slave-owners one at a time.
In the course of a week during the campaign, ten people speak to a slave-owner, with the final speaker being a WPIO representative who asks for the badja's release. At the same time, WPIO staff and volunteers speak to the badja, informing them that they are supposed to be paid for their work, that they are allowed to send their children to school, that they can own cows and livestock and work for themselves. *continues* A three-month campaign in by the World Peasants/Indigenous Organization (WPIO) has resulted in the release of 96 people who had been h... more -
CONGO: Government sets sights on infant mortality
The Republic of Congo’s government has launched a nationwide weeklong campaign of action aimed at tackling the country’s high rates of infant, juvenile and maternal mortality.
“I seize this opportunity to fight maternal and infant mortality, my primary concern,” Health and Social Affairs Minister Emilienne Raoul said at the launch of the campaign in the town of Ouesso, some 800 km north of the capital, Brazzzaville.
According to a 2005 demographic and health survey, 781 of every 100,000 births resulted in the death of the mother. The same survey showed the infant and juvenile mortality rates to be 75 and 117 per thousand respectively. The survey also showed that there had been no improvement in these indicators since 1990.
Across the country during the week of action, impregnated bed nets are to be distributed, while children are to be treated for parasites, given vitamin A supplements and pregnant mothers given birth kits.
The government used the occasion of the week of action to give birth certificates to 2,012 as yet unregistered children in indigenous communities.
“Our children have this right because they are citizens just like the Bantu,” said Paul Ngama, head of one such family.
Indigenous communities, sometimes referred to as Pygmies, account for about 10 percent of Congo’s three million inhabitants. The Republic of Congo’s government has launched a nationwide weeklong campaign of action aimed at tackling the country’s high rates of... more -
UN probes Indian abuses in Congo
The UN has found that its peacekeeping troops from India may have engaged in abuse and exploitation while serving in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said he was deeply troubled by the findings. Mr Ban said the Indian government had assured the UN the allegations would be thoroughly investigated and if proven action would be taken. One UN official said there may have been abuse of young girls and boys by at least 100 Indian peacekeepers.
A UN statement said an internal investigation "revealed prima facie evidence" that the Indian troops in the UN's Congo mission Monuc "may have engaged in sexual exploitation and abuse". The cases occurred over a period of several years, a UN official told Agence France-Presse and the troops were now back in India. The UN statement said Mr Ban "reiterates, in the strongest possible terms, that such behaviour, if substantiated, is wholly unacceptable". No further details were released of the allegations.
But UN officials say the cases occurred in North Kivu province, where peacekeepers have been policing a truce between the government and militiamen. The UN has found that its peacekeeping troops from India may have engaged in abuse and exploitation while serving in the Democratic Re... more -
Protect Gorillas From Deforestation!
http://www.care2.com/c2c/share/detail/844698
PLEASE sign, forward & X-POST this petition.
Protect Gorillas From Deforestation - The Petition Site:
Target: Congo's Ministry of Environment
Sponsored by: Care2.com
Great news for one of the world's most endangered animals: researchers have discovered some 125,000 western lowland gorillas that were previously uncounted in the Congo Basin. Until now, scientists believed there were only about 50,000 of these endangered gorillas left.
But this exciting new population estimate does not mean gorilla numbers in the wild are now safe. The western lowland gorilla continues to come under threat as timber companies move into the Congo Basin, home to more than a quarter of the world's tropical forest. Without careful management of the forest resources, western lowland gorillas and other gorilla subspecies will remain severely endangered.
Now more than ever authorities need to stem rampant deforestation, to preserve the habitats of the great apes and to support long-term sustainability of the region's natural resources.
Please urge Congo's Ministry of Environment to deny all deals that were signed illegally under the country's moratorium on new logging contracts.
ACTUAL PETITION:
"We are happy about recent news that researchers have discovered some 125,000 western lowland gorillas that were previously uncounted in the Congo basin. Until now, scientists believed there were only about 50,000 of these endangered gorillas left.
But this exciting new population estimate does not mean gorilla numbers in the wild are now safe. The western lowland gorilla continues to come under threat as timber companies move into the region. Logging and land clearance for farming are eating away the Congo Basin, home to more than a quarter of the world's tropical forest. Without careful management of the forest resources and strict enforcement of protected areas, the western lowland gorillas and other subspecies of gorillas will remain severely endangered.
Now more than ever it is essential to preserve the habitats of the great apes and support reforestation.
In 2002, with the Democratic Republic of Congo partially under the control of rebels, the country issued a five-year moratorium on new logging contracts to try and stem rampant deforestation. But the measure went largely unheeded and companies continued to sign new deals.
We ask that officials review the government-sponsored working group's recommendation on August 6, 2008 to cancel more than three quarters of its logging deals for not meeting necessary standards. But we are concerned that these recommendations did not go far enough. Sixteen of the 29 titles received a favorable opinion from the working group, despite being obtained in clear violation of the five-year moratorium on new logging contracts.
We urge you to comply with the five-year moratorium, and deny all logging contracts that were signed under moratorium.
Thank you for protecting the future of endangered gorillas and the biological diversity of the Congo basin."
http://www.care2.com/c2c/share/detail/844698
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/269086042 http://www.care2.com/c2c/share/detail/844698 PLEASE sign, forward & X-POST this petition. ... more -
Children of Congo: From war to Witches
Over five million people have died during the past decade as a result of the war in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Few people are aware of the unimaginable scale of human suffering, death, and destruction that has occurred in this vast country deep in the heart of Africa. In the aftermath of this brutal war, children have endured the brunt of the suffering. This 67 minute film documents the plight of thousands of street children living in Kinshasa and confirms the wide-spread accusations of child witchcraft, torture and child prostitution. The film also examines the efforts to reintegrate demobilized child soldiers, displaced refugees, and orphaned children following the eruption of the massive Nyiragongo volcano, near the city of Goma in Eastern Congo. These heroic efforts are finally bringing some measure of hope and stability to the lives of the Congolese people.
A shorter version of the film (56 min. 40 sec.) is also available.
Trailers for Children of Congo: From War to Witches can viewed at the following two websites:
http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individu...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzaiNldlr5s Over five million people have died during the past decade as a result of the war in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Few people... more -
Children of Congo: From War to Witches (trailer)
Over five million people have died during the past decade as a result of the war in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Few people are aware of the unimaginable scale of human suffering, death, and destruction that has occurred in this vast country deep in the heart of Africa. In the aftermath of this brutal war, children have endured the brunt of the suffering. This 67 minute film documents the plight of thousands of street children living in Kinshasa and confirms the wide-spread accusations of child witchcraft, torture and child prostitution. The film also examines the efforts to reintegrate demobilized child soldiers, displaced refugees, and orphaned children following the eruption of the massive Nyiragongo volcano, near the city of Goma in Eastern Congo. These heroic efforts are finally bringing some measure of hope and stability to the lives of the Congolese people. Over five million people have died during the past decade as a result of the war in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Few people... more
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Over 2,200 cases of rape show failure of a UN deal to deliver peace.
'More than 2,200 cases of rape' last month in DRC
More than 2,000 rape cases were recorded last month alone in Democratic Republic of Congo's (DRC) violent North Kivu province, a new report said on Tuesday, highlighting the failure of a United Nations-backed deal to deliver peace.
Many more women and girls were raped but did not report it, the document added, saying that, since the signing of a Jan 23 deal between rebels, militia and government, 150000 civilians had fled their homes amid continuing "horrendous violence".
The report by the Congo Advocacy Coalition, a collection of 64 international and local aid agencies and rights groups, is the latest damning indictment of an agreement meant to finally pacify North Kivu, a province in the mineral-rich east.
Although DRC held successful elections in 2006 aimed at drawing a line under a decade of war and chaos, violence simmers in much of the east, where rebel and chaotic army units roam, often looting and targeting civilians.
United Nations peacekeepers, European diplomats and the African Union helped broker the deal, but women and girls have been particularly affected by the failure to implement it.
"More than 2 200 cases of rape were recorded in June 2008 in North Kivu province alone, representing only a small portion of the total," the report said.
Staggering statistics
Stigma and the inability to reach doctors due to continuing violence often mean that many rapes are never recorded.
DRC's conflict has been the source of staggering statistics -- an estimated 5,4-million dead, mostly from war-related hunger and disease, since the last war began in 1998, sucking in six neighbouring countries.
And, according to the new report, this continues.
About 150,000 people have fled violence since the agreement, adding to the one million already displaced. According to the UN, the deal itself has been violated 200 times in 180 days.
"Acute malnutrition rates have reached an alarming 17% in some areas, well above emergency levels," the report said, adding that armed attacks on aid workers trying to help those displaced were also increasing.
DRC is home to the UN's largest peacekeeping mission and there are 10.000 blue helmets in North and South Kivu, the provinces worst affected by the violence.
But the operation is thinly stretched across remote and rugged terrain and peacekeepers are seldom able to stop attacks.
The report calls for more commitment from all sides to the deal. But those experiencing the reality are cynical.
"The leaders of the government and the armed groups met in Goma and said they would bring us peace, but instead they kept fighting," an elderly displaced man told the report's authors.
"We are losing hope. We just want peace so we can go home." -- Reuters 'More than 2,200 cases of rape' last month in DRC ... more -
World's largest protected freshwater site declared
An area of the Democratic Republic of Congo containing the largest body of fresh water in Africa has been added to the Ramsar Convention’s list of Wetlands of International Importance, making it the largest region ever to be designated as such.
At more than six-and-a-half million hectares, the Ngiri-Tumba-Maingombe area is twice the size of Belgium and has one of the highest concentrations of biodiversity anywhere in the world. It is also a major carbon sink.
"WWF is delighted that Ramsar has recognized the importance of this extraordinary wetland and the efforts of the Democratic Republic of Congo to protect it," said James P. Leape, Director General of WWF International. "This is a significant step forward for the welfare of communities who depend on this wetland for their livelihoods and for the wildlife that lives there."
Recognition by the Convention, which was signed in Ramsar, Iran, in 1971, means that there is now a framework to conserve the wetland, which is under threat from illegal logging, fishing and poaching, and a decline in water levels that is most likely attributable to climate change.
In addition, proper management will help to maintain the ecosystem services that the site already provides, and ensure that its defences remain robust in the face of unpredictable environmental changes;
“The Ngiri-Tumba-Maindombe area contributes to the regulation of flooding and regional climate and ensures that the quality of the water remains good enough for millions of people who depend upon it,” said WWF project Manager Bila-Isia Ingwabini.
Wetlands, however, do not merely provide water for drinking and sanitation. The commercial value that can be derived from them is noteworthy. It is hoped that prudent and measured extraction of resources, including palm oil, groundnuts and fish, will contribute to sustainable economic growth for nearby cities such as Kinshasa and Brazzaville.
Globally, the total economic value of wetlands is estimated at more than $70 billion. An area of the Democratic Republic of Congo containing the largest body of fresh water in Africa has been added to the Ramsar Conventi... more -
Black Market - Darkness of the Animal Trade
Wildlife trade's dark side:
What do elephants, rhinos, great apes, bears, big cats, sharks, parrots and marine turtles have in common? They're all threatened by the illegal wildlife trade.
View images of the trade in bushmeat that international conservationists are hoping to curb. WARNING: SOME ANIMAL IMAGES ARE GRAPHIC. http://www.msnbc.com/modules/interactive.aspx?id=Wildli...
Great Apes:
http://www.msnbc.com/modules/interactive.aspx?id=Wildli...
An appetite in China for traditional medicines, and hunger in Africa for protein from apes and other wildlife, dubbed bushmeat.
There’s heavy bushmeat hunting in Central and West Africa, says Russ Mitermeier of Conservation International, and heavy poaching for meat and medicinal uses in Southeast Asia and China.
"In Central Africa alone, about one million tons of wild meat is hunted every year," estimates Liz Bennett of the Wildlife Conservation Society. "That is equivalent to 9 billion 1/4 pound hamburgers each year. It has been estimated that that includes some 28 million bay duikers; 16 million blue duikers; 7.5 million red colobus; 1.8 million red river hogs; 34,000 leopards; 15,000 chimps; and 6,250 lowland gorillas."
A 2008 report by the wildlife monitoring group TRAFFIC found that the lack of meat in refugee rations in Tanzania is causing a flourishing illegal trade in bushmeat, including chimpanzees.
Two dozen refugee camps are near wildlife areas, making it easy for poachers. The bushmeat is covertly traded and cooked after dark -- and referred to as 'night time spinach' inside many refugee camps.
'BLACK MARKET' : A Multimedia Interactive: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25677681/ Wildlife trade's dark side: ... more -
Virunga Gorillas: How to Help
PHOTO: An orphaned gorilla curls up with her caregiver.
After the July 2007 killings of endangered mountain gorillas, possibly by people involved in the illegal charcoal trade, a mobile antipoaching force stayed close to gorillas in Virunga National Park. But the Democratic Republic of the Congo's parks authority, ICCN, must keep the animals safe when these guards are needed elsewhere.
Many groups are working to protect the gorillas and support the people fighting for their survival.
WildlifeDirect
Nairobi-based WildlifeDirect, founded by anthropologist Richard Leakey, helps outfit wildlife rangers in Virunga National Park and supplement their government salaries. The group's website hosts blogs where rangers and others post news and pictures from the field. Online donors can specify where their funds go—for patrol rations, medical kits, or support for the families of rangers killed on duty.
Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International
Founded by the gorilla researcher murdered in 1985, this organization helps care for young gorillas like the one whose mother was killed in July.
Frankfurt Zoological Society
FZS has trained and equipped hundreds of rangers; it also provides aircraft to help the ICCN monitor gorillas and direct antipoaching forces from the air.
International Gorilla Conservation Program
This coalition works with the governments of Uganda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Rwanda.
Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project
Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project field vets make routine health visits to habituated gorilla groups in Rwanda, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in partnership with park rangers, guides, patrols, monitoring agents, and scientists from various organizations.
Wildlife Conservation Society
The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) is one of the only organizations in the world working to protect all four gorilla subspecies—each of which is threatened by extinction. For nearly half a century the WCS has initiated and supported gorilla research and conservation projects throughout Africa.
Zoological Society of London
In addition to helping supplement rangers' salaries, the ZSL works with D.R. Congo's park authority to help manage Virunga National Park as a whole. PHOTO: An orphaned gorilla curls up with her caregiver. ... more -
African Bloggers
Bloggers in Africa fight government censorship to go above and beyond the role of mainstream journalists.
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'Gorillas in the Mist' National Park victim of severe illegal forest cle...
"Over the last two months, nearly 4,000 acres of prime mountain gorilla habitat has been cleared by illegal settlers in Africa's Virunga National Park, a World Heritage Site and site of Dian Fossey's groundbreaking gorilla research. World Wildlife Fund is calling on government officials there to take immediate action to protect the park.
Located in DRC on the border with Rwanda and Uganda, Virunga National Park is home to more than half the world's 700 remaining mountain gorillas - one of the most critically endangered species on the planet.
According to information received by WWF, the Wildlife Conservation Society and their conservation partners, most of the destruction took place from early May to June. Several thousand people moved in to the area to farm illegally in Virunga, with support from influential local individuals who sold plots of land within the national park. The forest was clearcut and turned into timber or charcoal before crops were planted.
WWF and its partners are working to improve the livelihoods of local people around Virunga through community projects - destroying the park is not a solution and in the long- term will cause even more suffering to people as well as gorillas
WWF is urging the Congolese and Rwandan governments to take measures to enforce the UN World Heritage Convention that protects this unique site. WWF is also calling on the international community to fund park patrols, the peaceful evacuation of illegal settlers, and the restoration of destroyed areas.
"What is happening in Virunga is a disaster," says Marc Languy, coordinator of WWF's program in the Albertine Rift. "Thanks to conservation efforts during the past decades, the mountain gorillas have survived civil unrest and war in the region. Loss of habitat is however the worse threat to this species. It is also a loss for the local communities as the forest provides many ecological and economical services to the neighboring population, and many local people benefit from gorilla tourism revenues"."
By Jan Vertefeuille
Read more about issues affecting gorillas:
http://www.worldwildlife.org/gorillas/
http://www.worldwildlife.org/gorillas/
www.iccnrdc.cd/
www.wildlifedirect.org/blogAdmin/gorilladoctors
http://gorilla.wildlifedirect.org/2008/05/16/video-tshi...
http://getinvolved.conservation.org/site/PageServer?pag...
http://www.wcs.org/international/Africa/gorilla
http://www.igcp.org/gorillas/gorillas.htm
http://mgvp.32ad.com/default.aspx
http://gorilla.wildlifedirect.org/2008/05/16/video-tshi...
http://www.gorillas.org/
http://gorilla.wildlifedirect.org/2008/05/16/video-tshi...
http://www.conservation.org/fmg/pages/videoplayer.aspx?...
www.uwa.or.ug/ "Over the last two months, nearly 4,000 acres of prime mountain gorilla habitat has been cleared by illegal settlers in Africa�... more -
Understanding 'Respect and Honour' - wildlife rangers
"I had to guide you all to a link that really hit home with me. I knew that the World Press Photo had recently chosen it's winners for best photo in various categories and posted video interviews of each winner on their website. I had even watched the interview of Platon, the photographer who shot a portrait session of Vladimir Putin for Time Magazine. I thought that was a really cool story, but it did not compare to the impact that Brent Stirton had on me with his shot of a dead mountain gorilla in the Eastern Congo.
His story of the original assignment for Newsweek magazine covering the rebel fighting in the DRC morphed into a story of gorilla conservation tied inextricably to the the resilience of the human spirit that made me truly inspired and near tears. I was also hugely impressed by his efforts and ingenuity to secure a shot showing the epic effort of these Rangers who's job it was to extract the murdered Silverback Gorilla from deep in the volcanic jungle.
This is what the World needs to see more of.
In the face of unimaginable hardships and uncertainty, that a group of underpaid and overworked Rangers, who have massive risks to their own life on a daily basis, would continue to stand up to the violence and death imposed by the rebel factions fighting for genocidal ideals. These men are true Heroes and so is Brent Stirton for showing us this story in such a respectful and honourable way, and at no small risk to his own life as well. I have no words of praise worthy enough for this." "I had to guide you all to a link that really hit home with me. I knew that the World Press Photo had recently chosen it's w... more -
UN Security Council mission to study African wars
The UN Security Council is on a mission to Africa to look at the continent's wars and see how they might be ended.
The mission is due to have its first discussions with Somalia's government and its opponents, then go to Sudan and several other countries at war.
It has decided it is too dangerous to hold its Somali talks on Somali soil - they will be held in Djibouti instead.
The Security Council is also hoping to broker the first official direct talks between the Somalis.
BBC World Affairs correspondent Mark Doyle, who is travelling with the mission, says there is less optimism about the situation in Sudan.
The mass displacement of civilians in the country's troubled western province of Darfur is still unresolved, and the peace agreement between the north and south of the country is in the midst of new tensions.
The mission will also visit the Democratic Republic of Congo, where millions of people have been displaced by fighting in the east of the country. The UN Security Council is on a mission to Africa to look at the continent's wars and see how they might be ended. ... more -
China Signs It's Biggest Contract in Africa
China has just signed its biggest contract in Africa, a multi-billion dollar deal with the Democratic Republic of Congo. Roads and railways in exchange for minerals. China has just signed its biggest contract in Africa, a multi-billion dollar deal with the Democratic Republic of Congo. Roads and rai... more
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(Remembering) The Congo Gorilla Family Murders
Virunga National Park -- Russell A. Mittermeier, president of Conservation International and chairman of the Primate Specialist Group of the IUCN’s Species Survival Commission. “If we can’t stop these attacks, our closest living relatives will disappear from the planet.”
Ndeze, as park rangers named him, survived the July 22 attack by unknown assailants on the Rugendo gorilla group that killed Senkwekwe, the dominant silverback, and three adult females (another adult female is missing and presumed dead). Ndeze was carried by his brother from the slaughter; both were later found by members of the Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Program and Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature (ICCN). They had to tranquilize the brother to rescue the infant, who would have died from lack of care.
Ndeze is now being cared for at a primate rehabilitation center in Goma, Congo, called the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International rehabilitation center. He joined another infant orphaned six weeks earlier in an attack on a different group in the park that killed another
adult female.
Conservation International has agreed to provide money from its Primate Action Fund foradditional guards in Virunga to protect the mountain gorillas, which until the recent attacks had been a rare success story for the great apes of Africa, whose numbers have been falling elsewhere across the continent by Ebola virus, illegal trade and deforestation.
* Find how you can help save these gentle giants, please visit these organizations dedicated to saving this incredible species.
www.iccnrdc.cd/
www.wildlifedirect.org/blogAdmin/gorilladoctors
http://gorilla.wildlifedirect.org/2008/05/16/video-tshi...
http://getinvolved.conservation.org/site/PageServer?pag...
http://www.wcs.org/international/Africa/gorilla
http://www.igcp.org/gorillas/gorillas.htm
http://mgvp.32ad.com/default.aspx
http://gorilla.wildlifedirect.org/2008/05/16/video-tshi...
http://www.gorillas.org/ Virunga National Park -- Russell A. Mittermeier, president of Conservation International and chairman of the Primate Specialist Group ... more -
Bonobo Conservation Initiative
Their mission is to promote conservation of the bonobo and its tropical forest habitat. Bonobos are found in only one country: the Democratic Republic of Congo (former Zaire), a resource-rich region ravaged by years of war.
Biologically speaking, bonobos are the closest you can get to being human without being human. Bonobos and people share 98.4% of the same genetic make-up (DNA).
In contrast to the competitive, male-dominated culture of their close relative the chimpanzee, bonobo society is peaceful, matriarchal and more egalitarian. Bonobos live in large groups where harmonious coexistence is the norm.
Female-female contact, or "GG-rubbing," is actually the most common. Unlike other apes, bonobos frequently copulate face-to-face, looking into each others eyes.
When bonobo groups meet in the forest, they greet each other, bond sexually, and share food instead of fighting. Likewise, almost any conflict between bonobos is eased by sexual activity, grooming, or sharing food. Their mission is to promote conservation of the bonobo and its tropical forest habitat. Bonobos are found in only one country: the De... more -
"We must kill all Tutsis"
Thousands of people were massacred during the genocide of 1994 in Rwanda. Now, in the crucible of the ensuing war in neighbouring Congo, the fugitive killers are training their children to carry on the Hutu mission of extermination. Thousands of people were massacred during the genocide of 1994 in Rwanda. Now, in the crucible of the ensuing war in neighbouring Cong... more
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Democratic Republic of Congo
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Democratic Republic of Congo
