Archive for the ‘Rugendo Family’ Category
This a major breakthrough. Honore Mashagiro has been arrested for allegedly masterminding the mass killing of Mountain Gorillas in June and July Last year. He was in a position of great responsibility, and allegedly used his authority to promote the destruction of forest for charcoal to make money. This threatened the gorilla habitat, so when the rangers tried to protect the forest, he allegedly orchestrated the gorilla massacres to discourage them. Many of you will remember those terrible days when we discovered the burned remains of Safari, and the the bodies of the rest of the Rugendo family, including Senkwekwe, the silverback.
Senkekwe, shortly after the Massacre in July last year The charges against Mashagiro were brought against him by the state, through ICCN, the wildlife authority, and is testimony that the rule of law can be brought into effect, even when it concerns powerful people. It is definitely a moment of hope for all of us, but obviously we await the outcome of a trial before saying any more. Results like this take time, but it is so important never to give up. We don’t yet have all the details, but will update you in the coming days.
This is Jean Bosco. As you know I am the Community Conservation Officer for the southern sector of Virunga National Park.
After the massacre of the Rugendo family in July we carried out a project in communities to raise awareness about protecting Mountain Gorillas, through the use of films and talks. We did this in schools, churches and the military camps of the 9th brigade. In our team there was of course Director Norbert Mushenzi, my boss, and 3 guys from WWF including Grand-pere (which means Grandfather in English), Gerard and Modogo.
Director Norbert Mushenzi opened the talks. The first session took place near the military camp at Rumangabo.
I also participated in each session. This one is in a church.
People listened. By watching the film and listening to our talks the communities were able to better understand the importance of gorillas as part of our national heritage. We talked about the way of life of gorillas, and how they behave in the family unit. Mountain Gorillas are different to other animals for us.
These are children at a school who live near the Gorilla Sector.
Grand-pere from WWF spoke. He also spoke in Lingala at this military camp because many of the military here are from the west of the country.
Here again are members of the military and their wives. They enjoyed the films and asked us to come back.
And this one is at a church in Buvunga, 2km north of Rumangabo park station.
Justin, a trainee, talks to the congregation.
The people who took part and watched the films all condemned the July killings.
Jean Bosco
This is Samantha.
Yesterday I met with Maitre Matthieu, the lawyer hired by ICCN - the DR Congo Wildlife Authority (ie the Rangers) - to carry out the judicial proceedings against those suspected of involvement in the July massacre of the Rugendo family and the trafficking of the infant female Mountain Gorilla in September that was found dead.
Here is a summary of my meeting.
Rugendo Massacre 2 suspects have been detained since August and are being held in Goma. The case went to the Tribunal des Grandes Instances - the highest court in the province of North Kivu - in October. The first hearing was scheduled for 8th October. At this hearing Maitre Matthieu requested a postponement until 14th November, to allow for more investigation to take place.
This investigation, as you can well imagine, is being hampered by the current security environment. With armed militias and government forces engaged in conflict, it is not conducive to an investigation of this magnitude. The area for a start where the killings took place is inaccessible due to rebel and military presence. People are also scattered as they flee from the fighting.
The law under which these suspects will be tried is Number 69-041 of 22nd August 1969, entitled Nature Conservation. In Article 8 it states that those found guilty of killing Mountain Gorillas - a highly protected species according to the law - can get up to 15 years in prison. For other animals such as elephants, leopards, lions and okapi it is up to 10 years.
It is this same 1969 law that created what we today know as ICCN - the Congolese Institute for the Conservation of Nature.
So in short, Maitre Matthieu and ICCN want to carry out more investigations. I cannot say any more for fear of compromising these investigations.
Once the case goes to court the 3 judges of the Tribunal des Grandes Instances have 2 weeks to deliberate and hand down a sentence.
Maitre Matthieu explains the law to me
Trafficking of Infant Mountain Gorilla There are also 2 suspects in prison in Goma, who were actually caught with the dead infant Mountain Gorilla that was allegedly going to be trafficked in September. This investigation is also ongoing, and progress is being made but again, I cannot report on anything otherwise it may affect the outcome. These men, and their accomplices, can also get up to 15 years in prison for trafficking of a Mountain Gorilla, if found guilty.
So that is where the legal proceedings are at right now. DR Congo’s judicial system is clearly under-resourced, and judges and judicial system workers grossly underpaid. So things simply do not move as quickly as they would in the US say. And then of course there is the current conflict to boot.
But proceedings are underway. Investigations will continue. And I hope we see an outcome soon for the Mountain Gorillas.
Samantha
Thank you for all your comments yesterday about my family. I hope one day you can meet them all!
Innocent wrote about his favorite gorilla 2 weeks ago, Kadogo, and now I want to do the same.
Mukunda is my favorite Mountain Gorilla.
Here is Mukunda, born in 1995.
Mukunda used to be in the Humba family, but moved mid-2005 to the Rugendo family and is now the leader of this group after the July massacre.
When Mukunda was in the Humba family he was very good at protecting all the individuals. Sometimes, when he felt there was another family nearby that maybe posed a threat, he would leave the family to go and confront the potential threat. I like this.
This is very brave, and not common, especially because he is not even a Silverback but a BlackBack.
Mukunda is a natural protector.
One day about 3 years ago Innocent and I were observing the Kabirizi family, when out of the blue Mukunda appeared. We recognized him, and as he went to leave we decided to follow him. After tracking him for a while, we noticed that he re-joined the Humba family - but he had clearly come to see if Kabirizi, the formidable Silverback, was planning an interaction with Humba or represented a menace in any way.
Mukunda means Brown. In Africa we have some brown and some black people. When he was born he was browner than usual ie lighter, which is why we gave him this name. When a Mountain Gorilla is born he is quite brown, like a chimpanzee, and the hair gradually becomes darker with age.
A brave Blackback.
In August 2005 Mukunda, for a reason I do not know, moved from the Humba family to the Rugendo family. We hope he is continuing to protect his family during these difficult times. He now has a bigger responsibility than expected at this stage in his life. But I feel confident he is doing the best he can.
Diddy
After the interviews yesterday that we did with CBS and Anderson Cooper, we cannot help but reminisce about the Rugendo family and the day of the massacre in July.
It was such a terrible moment in our lives. That day will never be forgotten. Yesterday really brought all of this back. We have been distracted with the latest fighting. But we want to remember Senkwekwe and his family.
We also think constantly about the survivors and how they are faring in the middle of the fighting, which continues today up at the patrol post of Bukima in the Gorilla Sector.
The boss, Senkwekwe - calm, peaceful, unaggressive and a joy to be around.
This is me, Innocent, back in April with him.
Bavukahe, an infant female, survived the attack. But today she is the only female in the group and is not of reproductive age.
Baseka, a young blackback. We hope he is not suffering today.
Kongomani, a playful blackback, managed to escape the killers in July.
Machibiri & her infant Ntaribi. Machibiri’s bones were found 3 weeks after the massacre, and Ntaribi is presumed dead. She would have been too young to survive alone.
Mukunda, a Blackback, also a survivor and last time we knew he was leading the group. We hope he is doing a good job.
Neza, shot and killed for no reason.
Noel - a male infant, is still alive and escaped with a gash on his arm that was treated by the Gorilla Doctors.
Mburanumwe, an adult female, shot and killed.
And finally, Safari and Ndeze. Safari was also murdered. Ndeze is now orphaned in Goma. This photo was taken shortly after Ndeze’s birth in February. You can see more of Ndeze here and here.
Go here to read about the history of the Rugendo family. The family used to be 12 and is now 5: 6 dead, 1 orphaned. Thank you for your support and donations. It is truly amazing. Diddy & Innocent
I just got back in from spending the day with Director Mushenzi, Diddy, Innocent, Augustin Kambale (from Bukima patrol post) and… CBS 60 Minutes.
Anderson Cooper and his team have come for a few days to Goma to cover the plight of the Mountain Gorillas following the July massacre and the current fighting that is preventing the Rangers from protecting this imperiled species.
Filming was done up at Kibati, at the foot of the Nyragongo volcano just outside of Goma.
Because of fighting we were not able to take the crew to Rumangabo. But the setting was beautiful. Diddy looks on…
Emmanuel from WildlifeDirect interviewed first. He has been working here since 1993.
Director Norbert Mushenzi was also asked for his perspective on what is happening at the moment.
Innocent, Augustin and Diddy spoke at length about their experiences with the gorillas, and what it was like on that terrible day in July when the Rugendo family was massacred.
Other Rangers were also filmed.
I have no idea when this program will air, but I will let you know when I do. Anderson Cooper is interviewing Rob Muir from FZS tomorrow and Paulin if he can make it here from Kinshasa. He was also in Rwanda yesterday, and met with the Gorilla Doctors and DFGF(I).
It is a significant opportunity for the Rangers to make their voices heard. This blog is excellent for that - but CBS 60 Minutes is quite frankly huge for them. These brave men have worked in total isolation for so many years, and it is them that we must support if we are to prevent the Mountain Gorillas of DR Congo from disappearing forever.
I just dropped Diddy off at the clinic and met his wife. She was up and about and looking well so that is excellent news.
Fighting is still going on. Yesterday it was 5 miles from Rumangabo park station. Today I think it is a little calmer. But tomorrow it will probably start again. Who knows.
Samantha
Rwimo just rang me from Jomba. The Rangers there have located a solitary Silverback called Ruziraewoda. He went missing in January, and we think he crossed over into Uganda. So this is exciting news. We can add one more gorilla to our census data. Ruziraewoda was born into the Rugendo family, and became a solitary some years ago when he turned silver. He, like other gorillas, do not know international borders - so they cross as they please, and sometimes come back again. Rwimo also told me that the Rangers continue to track the Mapuwa family every day, who are near Jomba, and the Rugendo family, who are near Bikenge. They still have the two weapons and two GPS’ that the rebels gave back, but nothing more. None of the equipment that was stolen by the rebels at Bikenge has been given back either - the guns, the radios, the cell phones, rations etc. We suspect in fact that the rebels are allowing the Rangers to follow Mapuwa and his family because they want to try and bring in tourists from Rwanda. Jomba is right next to the Rwandan border, and in our neighboring country tourists pay $500 per day to see gorillas. I know it sounds strange, but this is what we believe. The good news is that the rebels will protect the gorillas if they see them as a source of revenue. No other gorilla families have been located and identified in the Mikeno sector. So out of the 73 habituated gorillas, we have located 17, and of course Ruziraewoda is an added bonus. We are still concerned. The Rugendo family is still very vulnerable, because they do not have a Silverback leader. I am also worried about the Munyaga family. They often have interactions between the 3 Silverbacks of the family, and it is important to keep track of these. Interactions make families move also - sometimes large distances. There could also have been interactions involving Humba or Kabirizi. We still know nothing of either of these 3 families. And the orphan in the Kabirizi family Mutazimiza needs to be monitored by Dr Jacques, who of course has not been in for over 3 weeks now. Noel in the Rugendo family is still healing from her cut that she got in the July massacre and Dr Jacques needs to take a look at that.
Noel, born 24 December 2003. Photo taken in August during census. Still so many questions. Rwimo will be back at Rumangabo tomorrow. We have no idea about the ceasefire that was meant to end this weekend between the rebels and the army. Bukima and Bikenge are still controlled by the army, who still won’t let our Rangers in. Jomba by the rebels. But it can’t go on like this forever so we are still waiting. Diddy
Correction: The silverback is called Ruzirabwoba. Sorry, I made a typing error.
I have just spoken to Rwimo who told me that the Rangers have positively identified the 12 individuals in the Mapuwa family near the patrol post of Jomba. He said that all the individuals are fine and healthy and were seen today.
This is a picture of the Silverback Mapuwa taken at the end of August when Innocent and Diddy completed the census. You can tell it is Mapuwa because of the scar on his right nostril that he got during an interaction with another Silverback.
Rwimo also said that the Rugendo family - who are 5 - are out of the park and in the fields near Bikenge. But they have been seen by Rangers and are also doing well.
This is all the information I have right now but I hope to get more tomorrow about Mapuwa, Rugendo and the other families, and also what is going on with the security. Communication is still very bad.
Thank you everyone.
Norbert Mushenzi
One of our guards returned late last night, and only just with his life. When he tried to go out with the rest of his small team to locate the gorillas they came under attack by armed men. This means that it is impossible for anyone to be in Bukima, and so it also means that none of our guards are able to be in the Gorilla Sector. The fighting continues with little advancement; each time our military push forward, they are pushed back again. The only family we were able to locate was the Rugendo Family, who have left the park and are in the fields of the local population. This is not a safe position for them to be in, not only because of the heavy fighting but also because the local people will be angry with them for taking their crops. We do not know how long this war will last. If it ends today we could hope that the gorillas will survive, but if the war continues, then what is their fate? Diddy
Today we went with UN and UNESCO to visit the Rugendo Family. UNESCO were continuing with their enquiries and so we took them to the places where each family member was shot dead. We also retrieved the rest of the remains of Micibiri, but there is still no trace of her infant.
The most important thing today for Innocent and I, was to check on the status of each member of this family since the attack. Over the next few days we are going to identify the individuals of all the habituated families in the Mikeno Sector, and not only to identify which individuals remain in which families, but also to see which individuals are ill, for example if they have a cold, diarrhoea, etcetera.
Above you can see me with Baseka and the two juveniles, Noel and Bavukahe. I noticed that Baseka has a cold as he coughed for a total of six times during our visit. Hopefully it is not too serious and will pass with time, he will most likely eat from the inside of the Clementis vine and his cold will then soon disappear. We also wanted to see how Noel is doing with his wound, and to see if it has begun to heal. There is a scab that has formed over the wound and so we do believe it will heal well, although he has not yet begun to walk correctly using his hand, which you can see below in the video.
Overall, the group is no longer showing signs of frustration, and seems to have returned to their normal state. When we arrived today most of the vegetation was destroyed in the area which showed that the blackbacks had been playing. After the attack they were very frustrated, and each time we approached they would flee, and flee, but since we arrived today the blackbacks continued to play, and so are calm in our presence and seem to be back to their normal selves. Below in the video you can see Baseka and Kongomani playing, with Kongomani on the left and Baseka on the right. Maybe because Baseka has a cold he is not feeling so strong, and at the end of the video you can hear the cry of Baseka when Kongomani hurts him in play, as if to say, ‘we were only playing, why did you have to hurt me?’ We were only with the family a short time as now there are only 5 individuals, so it did not take long to identify them all and to check on their status. Tomorrow with the Kabirizi family it will take much longer because it is such a large family. Once we got back to camp we put the bones that we found today with those from yesterday.
The remains will be taken to Rumangabo where Macibiri will be buried. Diddy |
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