Augustin Kambale is the head of the Bukima ranger patrol post, in the Mikeno sector of Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. His patrol group has gained notoriety in recent years due to the importance of Virunga to conservationists, as it serves as the refuge for 100 of the world's 700 remaining silverback gorillas. It has also been subjected to numerous bloody attacks from rebels camped or residing outside of the park boundaries; since 1996, over 120 Virunga rangers have been murdered by rebels such as the Mai Mai and the forces of General Laurent Nkunda. However, Nkunda signed a ceasefire in February 2007 with the government in Kinshasa, thus allowing for the rangers at Virunga to focus more on their jobs as conservationists.
Virunga National Park is a national park in the Albertine Rift Valley in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It was created in 1925 and is among the first protected areas in Africa. In altitude, it ranges from 680 m (2,230 ft) in the Semliki River valley to 5,109 m (16,762 ft) in the Rwenzori Mountains. From north to south it extends about 300 km (190 mi), largely along the international borders with Uganda and Rwanda in the east. It covers an area of 8,090 km2 (3,120 sq mi) and is listed in the List of World Heritage in Danger since 1994.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo, also known as DR Congo, the DRC, DROC, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo, is a country located in Central Africa. It is sometimes anachronistically referred to by its former name of Zaire, which was its official name between 1971 and 1997. It is, by area, the largest country in Sub-Saharan Africa, the second-largest in all of Africa, and the 11th-largest in the world. With a population of over 78 million, the Democratic Republic of the Congo is the most populated officially Francophone country, the fourth-most-populated country in Africa, and the 16th-most-populated country in the world.
Laurent Nkunda is a former General in the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and is the former warlord operating in the province of Nord-Kivu, sympathetic to Congolese Tutsis and the Tutsi-dominated government of neighbouring Rwanda. Nkunda, who is himself a Congolese Tutsi, commanded the former DRC troops of the 81st and 83rd Brigades of the DRC Army. He speaks English, French, Swahili, Kinyarwanda, Lingala and Kinande. On January 22, 2009, he was put under house arrest in Gisenyi when he was called for a meeting to plan a joint operation between the Congolese and Rwandan militaries.
Contents
He also works with the efforts of WildlifeDirect and British conservationist Rob Muir.
WildlifeDirect is a Kenya and US registered charitable organisation founded and chaired by African conservationist Richard Leakey, who is credited with putting an end to the elephant slaughter in Kenya in the 1980s. Its main office is located in Nairobi, Kenya.
