Every now and then, the occasional mouse is seen moving about in the Chiwale Village communal graveyard in Chikwawa District, oblivious of the fact that in one of the graves lies the body of a skillful and dedicated man the country has, since October 20 2022, been struggling to replace.
The name of that man, who once stood as the fortress between heartless poachers and wildlife in Majete Game Reserve in the Shire Valley district, is no other than Bendius Amasi, who died at the hands of poachers when he was at the productive age of 31.
The game ranger, who died on October 20 2022 and came from Chiwale Village, Traditional Authority (TA) Kasisi in Chikwawa District, was killed by poachers.
What ‘crime’ did he commit? His unwavering commitment to the preservation of wildlife.
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When he came face to face with the ‘enemies’ of wildlife, he was patrolling within Chedwiti area in the game reserve.
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When Chikwawa Police Station detectives took Amasi’s body to Chikwawa District Hospital for examination, their fears were confirmed: Results indicated that death was due to excessive blood loss as a result of deep stab wounds.
He was killed in a year when another African Parks ranger, who was working at Liwonde National Park, was killed when rangers stormed a village that borders the park to recover rhino horns.
African Parks manages Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve, Liwonde National Park and Majete Wildlife Reserve in the country.
Unfortunately, these were not the only incidences recorded that year. A game ranger at Majete was hacked to death by poachers when he, and a colleague, was patrolling in the southeastern part of the reserve—that is, Chingalumba and Chandeta areas.
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Today, that dedicated ranger’s body is buried in Chavalamisengo Village, TA Kasisi, Chikwawa District.
It lies peacefully in a village that is close to the place he worked and loved dearly; Majete Wildlife Reserve.
Unfortunately, the country’s graves are strewn with bodies of those that died in the course of preserving the country’s wildlife.
Take, for instance, circumstances that, in May last year, led to the death of ranger Ivano Banda at Liwonde National Park.
He died while participating in an activity that was meant to be part of efforts aimed at mitigating cases of human-wildlife conflict in an operation that was jointly conducted with the Department of National Parks and Wildlife (DNPW).
It all started when, on May 18 last year, community members alerted Liwonde National Park management to the presence of a buffalo outside of the park.
“The buffalo had escaped from the park due to theft of electrical wire along the park boundary fence by individuals who were searching for wire for illegal snaring inside the park. A hunter from DNPW, assisted by African Parks, was dispatched to kill the buffalo to prevent further human-wildlife conflict.
“Ranger Ivano Banda had joined the operation to assist in killing the buffalo. Banda was tragically attacked and killed by the buffalo. The animal was wounded and DNPW are in pursuit of it as well as one other buffalo that has escaped the park,” African Parks management indicated in a statement that time.
It was an unfortunate end to the life of Banda, who joined Liwonde National Park in 2019.
In the words of management, he “was well-respected as a hard worker known for his bravery in adverse situations”.
Worrying trend
Unfortunately, such cases are not declining, with forestry officers also in the line of illegal charcoal makers’ fire.
In the latest case, illegal charcoal makers have allegedly killed Louis Munyenyembe, a dedicated man who was working for the Mzimba Forestry Office.
Mzimba Police Station Officer-in-Charge Sydon Mpina indicated Tuesday that they had launched a manhunt for those they suspect to have been behind the death.
He added that they suspect that Munyenyembe was killed during the morning hours of Monday this week.
“Officers are on the ground, gathering information,” Mpina said.
The district’s police spokesperson Peter Botha corroborated the information, adding that Munyenyembe died at the hands of unlicenced charcoal makers when he was patrolling sites in the St Francis area.
“There is a route that is used by people who make charcoal illegally. His body was found close to Kaphuta River, which people cross when heading towards Chimkusa area, which is closer to St Francis. We suspect that people who make charcoal illegally are behind this,” Botha pointed out.
Medical results released by Mzimba medical personnel indicate that Munyenyembe died due to loss of blood after being hacked in the head.
He came from Mahowe Village, TA Nthalire, in Chitipa District.
The development has, as expected, devastated Mzimba District Forestry Officer Masozi Shaba.
“His murder is a big blow to the department, more so because he was young and hardworking. This is, indeed, a very big loss to the office and, indeed, entire nation,” Shaba said.
The death of the 37-year-old man who dedicated his life to natural resources, sometimes putting life on the line so that the country’s forests and inhabitants of those forests could be saved, means the country has lost one more soldier of love.
The death of those tasked to protect wildlife in the country worries DNPW Director Brighton Kumchedwa, who said rangers often face the risk of death or serious injury when they encounter poachers.
“Gauging by sentences meted out on some poachers, it is clear that game rangers are sometimes not considered. This is despite the fact that some rangers bleed heavily when they get injured in positions far from hospitals.
“Therefore, there is a need to protect game rangers. Poachers should also stop maiming and sometimes killing game rangers because they [game rangers] do a good job in the country,” Kumchedwa explained.
African Parks Country Representative Samuel Kamoto is equally worried at rising cases of attacks on game rangers and those that protect other natural resources.
“Attacks on game rangers and those that safeguard natural resources are counterproductive as they compromise protection for wildlife, some of which African Parks has worked hard to reintroduce in Malawi.
“Wildlife has to be protected and valued because it promotes balance in the ecosystem, adds beauty to the country and has the potential to become a big income earner for the country, putting it in a position to generate the much needed foreign exchange,” he indicated.
According to Game Rangers Association of Africa, 95 rangers were killed in the line of duty between June 2021 and July 2022.
The association further indicates that “at least 565 African rangers have been killed in action since 2011”.
On its part, the International Fund for Animal Welfare indicates that 295 of the rangers that died during that period were killed by militia groups, terrorists and bandits in coordinated attacks or by poachers while protecting wildlife and wild places.
So, the grim reality, if the Mzimba incident is anything to go by, is that forestry officers are increasingly in danger.
It is a painful reality compounded by the fact that, according to Ministry of Natural Resources statistics, 80.5 percent of Malawi’s total primary energy supply comes from firewood, charcoal and agri-waste.
It is surely a precarious situation.
