Oct 28 2007
1 Ranger killed & 1 injured in rebel attack
This is Samantha.
A Ranger was killed and another was wounded in an attack yesterday near Kabaraza carried out by the Mai Mai rebels.
I learned this late yesterday. The Rangers were on patrol and were ambushed by the Mai Mai rebels, who are fairly dominant in this area just north of Rutshuru. (See map.)
During these tense times anything can happen. And this just goes to show it.
We have talked about the Mai Mai before - they are Congolese rebels, born as a nationalist movement initially to counter the invasions from neighboring states. They have deteriorated however into yet another militia group, that among other things seek the destruction of the park. They often forge relationships with illegal villagers within the park, and encourage them to poach.
The Mai Mai of course were those responsible for the hippo slaughter last year in Lake Edward, that left the lake red and virtually devoid of hippos. You can get $300 for the hippo meat apparently, and then there is ivory in the canine teeth.
These rebels also carried out the fatal attack on the Tshiaberimu sector in Virunga last May. There are still Mai Mai rebels in Muramba, a stone’s throw from Ishango.
I have just been with Diddy. His wife is in the clinic just down the road from me. She will be operated on tomorrow morning, early. She is in a lot of pain and does not want to wait any longer.
Samantha
Technorati : congo, drc, iccn, rebel, virunga, wildlifedirect
Daily news from the conservation frontline by Innocent and Diddy, and other Congolese rangers risking their lives to save mountain gorillas of the Virunga National Park in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo
Why is there not an international response to these rebels just like the one against the Taleban?
It’s just not fair…..
The Mai Mai have been enormously destructive and now this! I was hoping they’d be subsumed by some other group and eventually forced out. They are the worst sort of human beings, IMO. I’m so sorry for the the loss of yet another brave ranger. I hope the wounded ranger will recover. The world is melting it seems.
s.
Thanks guys. I really really wish I could report some good news. I feel like it is just not getting any better at all. I am strongly hoping that things will turn around soon. Sheryl - you are amazing by the way. Good luck with the pies!
So sorry to hear this………just an awful mess! These people just want to destroy everything don’t they even hippos?????????? Just horrible for these poor creatures……I am just saddened by all this news but thanks for reporting it to us..it does need better attention than what it’s getting!
Sam: Stephanie is our Pie Sale girl. I’ve been lollygagging on vacation in Florida.
s.
I’m really saddend to hear that another Ranger has been killed. It is absolutely just not fair. I wish things would get better. It’s such a beautiful, amazing place. Hope and education is at the heart of the cure to this distruction. I hope things turn around. Lisa
so, so shocking. How are you holding up Samantha?
You are always so good at giving us all the news as quickly as possible from the front line. thank you.
I just read on the BBC website that Mai Mai leader has surrended, is that a positive development? or does it make no difference to getting the all the militia out of the sector?
sorry Sheryl! sorry Steph!
Angelsiren - not sure which Mai Mai leader has been arrested. will search around. there are several…
And now on top of it all a truck driven by a drunk man has unloaded a truck load of volcanic stones into the wall and gate of the house I stay in when in Goma. The wall has fallen away and the iron gate has collapsed, which means you can walk right in. So now i need to sleep in a hotel!
Jesus! I’m so sorry. When the hell is SOMETHING going to right.
Holy shit, is DR Congo at the center of some freakish universal Bad Things Happen vortex? My God. I hope all your belongings are OK, Sam. I can’t even imagine. I hope you have adult beverages on hand.
s.
Sorry to hear about the ranger’s death. There are just too many militants running around. You have Nkunda, the Mai Mai and the FDLR. I pray this will all be resolved soon. But am not sure how it will come about.
Evidently there are too many drunks, too. Sorry to hear about your wall, Samantha. Please stay safe.
I’m happy Diddy’s wife will have her surgery soon. I hope all goes well with it and that she won’t be in too much pain.
Thanks again Samantha for your wonderful reports!
Sam, I cannot believe what I read, it is just one bad news after the other. Hope you and Will are OK.
Samantha, Wow that is a big bummer about your wall and having to now stay in a hotel. I hope things get better soon. We really need some good news, don’t we? Lisa
What can you say to this? I hope you received my money and I hope I can increase my monthly donation soon. Anybody who dies protecting the gorillas and their habitat lived and died for the best of causes. If I die and there’s a justice, I’d vouch for them to Jesus.
Sadly you can’t even blame the rebels really. I think none of the guns are made in Africa and it’s very easy to exploit poor parts of the world by stirring the people into violence and making a killing out of selling guns. They’re worse than drug dealers; once you’ve got the children set in their ways, all they will ever know how to do is kill.
Its amazing and incredibly sad that a very small minority has the power and determination to obliterate animals that have been on this earth for millions of years.
My thoughts and prayers go to the rangers family and i hope for all of you that this will end soon, i hope diddys wifes operation goes well and that she is out of pain soon, please keep safe all.
Dear Samantha
another ranger killed!
are the rangers god armed?
in this situation of war i think is necessary heavy armament for the suirvival of men(for example body armour).
The clash is with rebels (not simply poachers)very armed (with machine gun, grenades…)
I just did a post on manioc so you can see a picture of the wall. The Mai Mai leader who gave himself up yesterday was not the leader responsible for the death of the ranger on saturday. There are more than one basically.
On a good note Diddy’s wife has had her operation. He just texted me that she is in the recovery stage and he is waiting for her to wake up. But I think all went well. He said he took photos of her! I personally said that was mean!
OH MY GOD, ITS ALL BEEN HAPPENING! GLAD DIDDY’S WIFE IS IN RECOVERY. BUT IT JUST SEEMS LIKE “FOR EVERY STEP FORWARD, ITS TWO STEPS BACK.” LOVE TO ALL THE RANGERS FAMILIES, AT THIS HARD TIME. JUST GLAD THEY ARE STILL OUT THERE DOING WHAT THEY CAN, WHO COULD BLAME THEM, IF THEY JUST WANTED TO LIE LOW. THEY ARE STRONG, PASSIONATE PEOPLE TO CARRY ON AS THEY DO IN THE FACE OF ADVERSITY! TAKE CARE, PEACE TO ALL, AND JUST WISH THERE WAS MORE WE CAN DO x
Very sad news indeed.. It’s very frustrating to be on the other side of the world and not being able to much, except donate money, to help you. Could Unesco put international pressure on governments, because the park is on world heritage list? The biodiversity which is still left in Congo’s forests is very important even from the global perspective.
Just watched the Animal Planet show about the plight of the gorillas…it was a wonderful story…I commend Natalie Portman for her role in helping and hope she will do more in Hollywood to get the word out!
Watched the Animal Planet show also it was great. Diddy I hope your wife has no more pain soon. God I just want to cry for the ranger. Who was he??? You know we cant ever forget these guys for putting thier lives on the line here to protect something so, so special. Peace to all…steph
I need to plant an apple tree…pies are doing well…
I have just read on the BBC site that the Mai Mai militia leader Kasereka Kabamba has surrendered.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/7065791.stm
Do you know what kind of impact this is having on the situation?
Hi David. I am not sure yet re impact. Kasereka as I understand was involved in fighting last week in Bunagana on DR Congo/Uganda border, against Nkunda’s men. The Mai Mai you see tend to hook up with the FDLR (the Hutus) against Nkunda. In short, it is all rather confusing. But as far as i can tell his surrender has had no major impact.
Thanks Samantha! I’ll head over to the Manioc blog now to check out your wall. I’m happy all went well with Diddy’s wife’s surgery.
I am going to write Ellen Degeneres and see if she will do something about the gorilla’s and primates in peril — she has such a following — maybe she is ready to deter the press to something she can do that is great — I just love Ellen no matter what!!! Maybe she can expose this horror to the rangers and families and animals in the Park — at least get it out there and talked about a lot so people can sit back and say why isn’t anyone DOING SOMETHING FOR GOD’S SAKE!
Thank you for this reports Samantha, I hope that you and the rangers are safe in this momments of frustration and pain. The same wish for the gorillas and all the wildlife that inhabit the area. I wonder until when does MONUC would so something to really help to stop this madness…
I think history has shown that when the going gets tough, the UN leaves!
Too sad for words. If there were any justice in this world, now would be a good time to emerge.
I am late to receive this news, and SHOCKED! I am saddened to hear of the death of an innocent ranger trying to do good in this world. As with everyone else I wish the injured ranger a speedy recovery.
Michael C~ You are correct in that the guns are manufactured in other countries (at least from what I have read). There are many governments to blame for what is happening. The depth of this chaos is so deep…
Samantha,
Try and enjoy the peace of a hotel. Sorry, about having your space invaded by a drunk driver.
~Mary
Thanks Samantha for your daily reports. Each day I wake up asking God to protect the rangers/families/gorillas/stop the war - to read this latest is heartbreaking. Where is the justice? Peace at last to the ranger who was killed, my condolences to his family, I hope the wounded ranger recovers soon. Good news that Diddy is safe and his wife has had the operation. Wish her a speedy pain free recovery!
Can UNESCO not put more pressure on Governments since the Park is a world heritage site? I wish there was more I could do. I will try to increase my donation very soon. Sorry to hear your wall was knocked down Samantha, enjoy the hotel = when do you think you will be able to move back to your ’space’? Stay safe everyone and God bless you all
Diddy’s wife woke up fine yesterday. Am seeing him later on so will provide a full report, and an update on security. Fighting has broken out again near Rumangabo.
Something’s afoot here in the U.S.: http://africa.reuters.com/top/news/usnBAN952661.html
According to that story, we’re sending military personnel to DRC to train a “rapid reaction” force to deal with rebel outbreaks, and we’re stationing a diplomat in North Kivu. The Washington Post confirms the story: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/26/AR2007102600903.html
s.
Glad to hear that Diddy’s wife is doing well. I think it’s mean that he took photos of her during surgery, too!
s.
Away from internet access for another couple of days, and I just cannot believe what I am reading. It just gets worse. My thoughts are with the family of the Ranger who was killed, as well as with the one who was injured - I wish him a speedy recovery. Is he in a stable condition?
And a speedy recovery to Diddy’s wife as well, I am glad she has come through her op.
Thank you Diddy for clarifying “habituation” - I look forward to your explanation on how it is done (when there is time, given eveything else there is to report on), your usual dedication and patience I presume.
Samantha, I hope your house is soon sorted, a hotel is ok for a day or two, but you can’t beat being in your own place. Take care all of you, and stay safe.
The spam filter ate my post - AGAIN! I’ll recap (grrrr):
Reuters reports that the U.S. will send active and retired military personnel to DR Congo to train a “rapid response” force. The contract should be signed in January 2008 with training to begin soon after. http://africa.reuters.com/top/news/usnBAN952661.html
s.
Part 2 (since the spam filter doesn’t like it when I post two URLs). The Washington Post also carried the story about the military training: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/26/AR2007102600903.html. Another brief mentioned that a U.S. diplomatic office will be set up in Nord Kivu.
s.
The situation is so distressing, thank you Samantha for your updates, hope you are okay. I’ve only been away for about three days and things seem to be going from bad to worse, my dog ate rat poison so I’ve been back and forth to the vet. I hope things get sorted soon the Mai Mai seem to have total disregard for people and animals.
I ran across this piece from Human Rights Watch while I was doing some research regarding the situation. http://hrw.org/reports/2007/drc1007/ It’s some extensive reading but provides a good outline of things. Reading this piece may help us all understand what is going on and also educate us so that when we lobby and make a nusance of ourselves we can have some knowledge behind us. Liss
What about the two rangers. I realize one is gone. But how is the other??? Is he fairing well??? Does anyone know about the gorillas???
Jo, I hope your dog will be okay! Lisa
From the BBC … “Congo peacekeepers stuck in middle” … http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7064497.stm … “Checkpoint culture is deeply entrenched in North Kivu. To move anywhere out of the provincial capital, Goma, requires tolerance, tenacity and time.” … (Last Updated: Friday, 26 October 2007, 22:35 GMT 23:35 UK)
Sheryl,
I read the reuters article. Quite frankly I don’t trust the intentions of the governments on either end.
Sometimes, what the governments want us to believe isn’t the real truth.
Thank you for the links.
You should read the book:
The Congo: Plunder and Resistance
It is full of information…
~Mary
Oh, I just saw this horrible news…so sad. I hope the rangers do not begin to lose hope, but I could not blame them if they did at this point. We continue to pray and root for all of you.
Samantha…I do hope you were not hurt in the incident you described above…sheesh.
[…] the Democratic Republic of Congo, war continues to affect the animal conservation efforts of wildlife Direct. The rangers Innocent and Diddy write of their […]
Samantha, I worked two years in East Congo (2001-2003) and am returning for a visit to Goma on Dec. 20. I’ve enjoyed following your blog and was wondering if I could get in touch with you offline by email. Thanks!