🏯 S5 #5 | Fortress Conservation in the Congo w/ Martin Lena & Linda Poppe (Survival International) 🏯
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📢 "We were talking to German politicians and government officials about the problem of conflict and the problem of how these park rangers are trained and have a lot of weapons, which seems very militant. And they were realizing the problem...
...They were seeing that this is probably not the best thing to do, to support security forces in an area which is already so problematic.
But their thinking was,
“if we don't give them the money, then we have created this this military force. We have hired people, we have trained them...
...Now, if we stop supporting them, what are they going to do? They'll maybe take the training and their weapons and make it worse.”
They were just kind of thinking out loud, but they were seeing that the projects that they supported have created structures which are very likely to increase conflict...
...And it seems quite obvious because of the conflicts with indigenous peoples. So, I'm not going to say that it's a peaceful area and there is not a need for people to defend themselves..."
📝 On this episode, my guests are Martin Lena and Linda Poppe of Survival International. They join me to discuss “fortress conservation” in the Congo, the issues facing Kahuzi-Biega National Park, and the recent victories of Survival International there.
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