USA/FILE: Attack on park director highlights the dangers in Eastern Congo, says "Virunga" film director

Record ID: 354719

  • Title: USA/FILE: Attack on park director highlights the dangers in Eastern Congo, says "Virunga" film director
  • Date: 17th April 2014
  • Summary: VIRUNGA NATIONAL PARK, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO (FILE) (REUTERS) DIRECTOR OF DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO'S VIRUNGA NATIONAL PARK EMMANUEL DE MERODE WALKING VARIOUS OF RIVER DE MERODE AND PARK RANGERS WALKING PAST CAMERA
  • Embargoed: 2nd May 2014 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Usa, Congo
  • City:
  • Country: Congo, Democratic Republic of
  • Topics: Crime,Environment
  • Reuters ID: LVA2EJWPVT438J0RLG4HX37GON5R
  • Story Text: Filmmaker Orlando von Einsiedel on Thursday (April 17) described the attack on the director of Virunga Park as symptomatic of what's happening in the Eastern Congo.
    Emmanuel de Merode, one of Africa's leading conservationists and head of Africa's oldest national park located in the Democratic Republic of Congo's Virunga Park, was shot four times on Tuesday (April 15) on the road linking the park's headquarters in Rumangabo to Goma, the capital of North Kivu province.
    "We've just come here to New York to launch the film. I literally heard the news as I got off the plane here. And so, the first 48 hours here have been really difficult, but what is incredibly reassuring to hear is that the operation that he underwent to remove the bullets went well," said von Einsiedel who will launch the documentary "Virunga" at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York this week.
    "We're always worried about everyone on the ground in Eastern Congo or protecting the park. It's dangerous. But, you just always hope that it won't happen and, you know."
    The bullets missed vital organs and his life is not in danger, doctors at the Goma hospital where he was admitted told a Reuters witness.
    "He's doing okay. We spoke to him on the phone yesterday and he was already cracking a couple of jokes, so. . . It was a very close call and he's not out of the woods yet, but we're all positive and wishing him well," said von Einsiedel.
    De Merode, a Belgian prince, was appointed director of the Virunga National Park - home to the critically endangered mountain gorilla - in 2008 and lives at the park headquarters.
    He chose to remain there during fighting between the Congolese army and M23 rebel forces that raged through the park for 20 months until November.
    Virunga National Park was established in 1925 as Africa's first national park and has been a UNESCO-designated World Heritage Site since 1979.
    The densely forested hinterlands around Goma are home to a number of rebel groups that compete for control of land and Congo's vast natural resource wealth.
    Park rangers are regularly killed in clashes with militias in the park.
    "Over 140 rangers have died protecting the park. A couple of months ago a ranger died. And Emmanuel, I suppose what's happened to him, he's very well respected internationally and what's happened to him has sort of put a real spotlight on what's happening in the region," explained von Einsiedel.
    "This film is part of that process of sort of putting a spotlight on what's going on in the ground in Eastern Congo in Virunga National Park. If there's any remote silver lining of what happened to Emmanuel it's that more people will be engaged in this story," he added.
    The motive behind the attack on de Merode was not immediately clear.
  • Copyright Holder: FILE REUTERS (CAN SELL)
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