Murder claims grip world-famous gorilla park in the DRC

A hulking eastern lowland gorilla glowers from his jungle lair as a photographer – just metres away – leans in, lifts his camera, and steadies the shot. The aid agency also said that following the ambassador’s visit to the park, they “organised a meeting between the ambassador and representatives of the Indigenous population as well as representatives of national NGOs which advocate for the rights of the Indigenous population.” A German government-funded inquiry Flummerfelt’s preliminary report did nothing to stop the apparent campaign of violence against Batwa villagers. Audio recordings from the inquiry, leaked to Al Jazeera’s Investigative Unit, reveal Muzibaziba telling one witness that Flummerfelt “wrote the report that has smeared our country so much and smeared our park so much”. I am certain that the Kahuzi-Biega park guards will kill us.” Leaked minutes from a meeting of ICCN park guards, held following Al Jazeera’s notification to the ICCN of the alleged death threats stemming from the Commission, gave further detail on plans to hunt down Flummerfelt and his colleague, revealing that efforts to locate the pair were being organised by the recently-ousted ICCN Park Director, De-Dieu Bya’ombe. “They wanted to kill us so that they could erase all of our traces so that no evidence is left, and no leader can stand up and speak for the Indigenous people.” A second Batwa leader, Chief Mbuwa, corroborated Chief Majafa’s testimony, saying that after showing the Commission’s investigators three graves, “they said they weren’t going to visit the rest of the graves where we buried the other villagers who were killed because it was going to rain soon and so they wouldn’t have the time to go see the other graves of other people killed.” In audio recordings of the Commission of Inquiry’s fieldwork obtained by Al Jazeera’s Investigative Unit, the lead Commissioner George Muzibaziba is heard telling Chief Mbuwa that if ICCN guards and Congolese soldiers are forced to leave the area as a result of testimony he provided, then he would have to “take responsibility” for his community being attacked by armed militia groups.