マサイマラ国立保護区の危機

２００７年１２月２７日のケニアの大統領選挙戦の後、選挙詐欺との疑いが起きて、全国各地で無差別な暴動、放火、殺人が勃発しています。この１ヶ月でケニア中で１０００人以上の死者が出て、家などが焼かれて家なしになった人たちも５０万人以上も出ています。野党ODMの国会議員が何者かに暗殺された後、アナンが同席してキバキ大統領とライラの会見がありましたが、全然問題を解決しない話でガックリでした。キバキは影響を受けている地区に３２この警察署を作る」などと傷に絆創膏を張るだけの問題解決法しか報道せず、根本的な問題解決方法はいっさい報道なし。その２日後にまた違うODM国会議員が警察に射殺されるという事件も続いています。ナイロビのスラムではパンガ（山刀）で群衆が人を切り刻んで家を焼き払ったりされているのに外国人や上流ケニア人社会の生活には「暴動がある場所にいかないように気をつける」など以外は、実際的な危害はありません。しかし、このケニアの失態による影響で経済は大打撃を受けています。ケニアの大切な紅茶産業ではカレンジン族の土地でカレンジンが暴れていて、切り花産業のナクルとナイバシャではキクユ族の土地なのでキクユがルオー族を殺し、観光業はお客が来ないので９０％近くのビジネスがなくなり、海岸地方のホテルや多くの公園のサファリロッジも客より従業員が多いので営業を閉鎖してる状態です。ケニアから観光客は消えました。

観光客が来なくなったマサイマラ国立保護区はパークフィーが激減し、レンジャーたちの給料や密猟対策の資金がなくなって、マサイマラの保護区管理に危機がきています。マサイマラの西側を管理する施設「マラコンサーバンシー」は海外からの寄付などの頼らず今まで保護区の入園料のみで密猟対策や道修復などの保護区管理を続けていました。しかし、その収入源である観光客が来なくなった今、レンジャーたちも解雇され、保護区を密猟者から守りきれなくなりつつあります。２００２年から９７０人もの密猟者を逮捕してきたレンジャーたちも解雇され、今、マサイマラは密猟者が攻め込む事が可能な土地になりつつあるのです。今まで政府のお金や海外からの寄付に頼らずに入園料だけで活動をするという自立したスタンスを取っていたマラコンサーバンシーは、危機に立たされています。肉食獣による家畜被害の損害賠償も払うことがままならない中、マサイが家畜を襲った肉食獣の報復の為、つい先日もライオンのオスが槍で殺されました。たった１ヶ月で保護区を守る資金が観光客の激減によってなくなってしまい、レンジャーもこの広大なサバンナのパトロールも出来なければ、密猟者を捕まえるオペレーションも不可能だし、密猟罠を回収することだって出来ません。観光客がいなくなって閉鎖することが可能なロッジとは違い、観光客がいなくなっても保護区の野生動物を守るレンジャーたちは仕事をし続けていかなければいけないのです。

マラコンサーバンシー（保護区管理施設）がマサイマラ国立保護区を守る為に、現在、世界的に有名な環境保護リーダーの人類学者リチャード・リーキー博士とマラコンサーバンシーで、「マサイマラを救おう！」というキャンペーンを初めています。マサイマラへの観光客は良くて半年、悪ければ１年は戻って来ないと予測されています。マラコンサーバンシーとその他大勢のマサイマラを大切に思っている人たちは、その期間の保護区管理資金 USD150,000 を集めようとしています。マサイマラに遊びに来た事のある人、そして、今後マサイマラでサファリをしたいと思う人。どうかマサイマラの動物を守るレンジャーたちをサポートしてください。密猟者たちは観光客が来なくなり、レンジャーたちも出動出来なくなり、密猟も今後エスカレートしてしまうでしょう。そんな状況にならない為、マサイマラに実際に来れなくてもレンジャーをサポートしてくれる人たちを探しています。現在のケニアには暴動があり怖くて観光に来れないかもしれませんが、実際に現地に来なくてもレンジャーをサポートしてあげることでマサイマラの保護に参加することは出来ます。マサイマラへ遊びに来ていた人たちは世界各国から来ていました。日本からもこのキャンペーンに協力していただける方がいることを祈っています。

詳しい事情はこのサイトを参考。
http://wildlifedirect.org/blogAdmin/richardleakey/2008/01/30/crisis-looming-in-the-mara-please-help/

こちらも。
http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5iXzbL_oXFquiE1pf0XN1vR_OSSPg

マラコンサーバンシーへの寄付はこちらでお願いします。
http://wildlifedirect.org/blogAdmin/maratriangle/

このメールをより多くの人に送るのにご協力ください。

マサイマラ国立保護区を守る為のキャンペーンや資金集めに協力してくだされる団体があったら、マラコンサーバンシーまで連絡ください。

Mara Conservancy
P O Box 63457
Muthaiga 00619
Nairobi, Kenya
Tel : +254 20 3749 632/6, 3749655/1/4/6/8
Fax : +254 20 3749636/3740754/3740721
Email: mara@triad.co.ke

Home Page

http://www.maraconservancy.com/

もし日本の口座が必要な場合は、以下の口座への寄付も可能です。必ず「Mara Conservancy」と記入して下さい。

日本の寄付口座：

「マサイマラ巡回家畜診療プロジェクト」
三菱東京ＵＦＪ銀行　
大森支店　普通預金
口座番号：　１２９９７８７

郵便振替口座：
「マサイマラ巡回家畜診療プロジェクト」
口座番号　００１００-０-６６７８８９

Original Article by Dr. Richard Leaky
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Crisis looming in the Mara - please help (http://wildlifedirect.org/blogAdmin/richardleakey/2008/01/30/crisis-looming-in-the-mara-please-help/)

Sadly my beloved country Kenya has been in the news a great deal in the past few weeks, and the news has not been good. We have problems and these were triggered by the outcome of the Presidential election where the result was close, and where there is plenty of evidence for rigging. The dispute led to violence which has deteriorated into inter-ethnic fighting in certain parts of the country. Tragic scenes and news fill the media and a sense of doom, gloom and fear is palpable. The violence is not directed against foreigners or tourists in any way and much of Kenya is untouched by it. The main airports are functioning normally and the National Parks, the Game Reserves and the wildlife sanctuaries are perfectly safe from this fighting.

The sense of normality in the wildlife areas is unfortunately deluding. Foreign tourists and the tourism industry has all but collapsed. Many, many people are losing their jobs and critical funding for the protection of the wildlife areas has essentially dried up. Revenue from tourism has been providing the bulk of the funding for conservation, and without these funds, patrols and essential activities will cease. In these circumstances we can expect a real upsurge in poaching; for bush meat and commercially valuable species such as rhino and elephant.

I am obviously deeply concerned and feel that we must find a short-term solution to maintain these wildlife areas until normality returns to Kenya and tourism picks up again.

One of the most critical wildlife areas is the Trans Mara, a part of the Greater Maasai Mara and northern Serengeti ecosystem. This area has been run by private management (the Mara Conservancy) for the local authority, the Trans Mara County Council. The management arrangement has been a remarkable success but it is entirely dependent upon tourism which has now stopped. The small buffer of US $50,000 that the Mara Conservancy saved from last year’s visitors has been used up through January. We now need to act quickly to ensue that we can raise another US $50,000 for February and so on until this crisis is over. The wildlife in the Trans Mara is spectacular; the area is one of the jewels in the list of Kenya’s great natural attractions: it has to be saved.

Hundreds upon hundreds of thousands of visitors have enjoyed their visits to the Mara and everyone wants it to remain for the benefit of future generations. Apparently, for as little as US $150,000, the management of the Trans Mara can be sustained; poaching checked and essential services (fire breaks etc.) can be operated. As this area is the gateway to the Greater Maasai Mara/Serengeti ecosystem, this will have real and significant impact for conservation. WildlifeDirect believes this help must be found. This can be achieved by 1,500 people donating one hundred dollars, or 15,000 giving ten dollars. For those hundreds of thousands who have been privileged to see the Mara, surely a modest gift now can secure the spectacle for your next visit or for your children, grandchildren or friends. If you have been to the Mara or know people who have, pass this on and through your network of friends and colleagues, we can quickly reach this target. Each of us can make the difference in a very real and timely way.

Donate for this cause through Mara Conservancy blog

http://wildlifedirect.org/blogAdmin/maratriangle/

Related Articles

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NAIROBI, Jan 24, 2008 (AFP) - The crisis in Kenya's tourism industry caused by the post-election violence there and the subsequent collapse in tourism could mean more people turn to poaching, conservationists warned Thursday.

Environmental NGO WildlifeDirect.org warned that the world-renowned Maasai Mara Game Reserve 'is under severe threat from widespread poaching following the collapse of tourism in Kenya's post-election crisis.'

'Wildlife is going to be hit hard,' Brian Heath, head of the Mara Conservancy Trust, was quoted as saying in the statement.

Since the December 27 presidential election deteriorated into violence, close to 800 people have been killed across Kenya.

Images of people hacking each other to death and reports of women and children being burned alive in a church dealt a huge blow to the tourism industry, Kenya's main source of foreign currency.

Around 90 percent of accomodation bookings for January were cancelled, hitting the country's economy during the tourism high season.

The NGO, chaired by conservationist Richard Leakey, explained that many people were expecting to turn to poaching for bushmeat trade if they lost their jobs in the tourism sector.

'My community benefits directly from tourism as gate revenues pay for the wildlife conflict compensation scheme,' explained Parmois Siampei, a Maasai administrative officer for the Mara Conservancy and local community member.

Leakey called a fund-raising campaign through conservancy blogs to save the Masai Mara reserve. 'Africa's parks cannot survive on tourism revenues alone, especially during times of political instability.'

Related Articles

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Kenya: Masai Mara reserve under threat
Posted on Monday 28 January 2008 - 13:41
AfricaNews editor
Profile
1910 messages
Wildlifedirect.org, photo: Fred Hoogevorst

One of the world's most extraordinary wildlife reserves, Kenya's Masai Mara, recently voted the 7th Wonder of the World, is under severe threat from widespread poaching following the collapse of tourism in Kenya's post-election crisis.

However, Dr Richard Leakey who chairs the environmental NGO, WildlifeDirect.org, believes he has a solution capable of insulating the Masai Mara and other reserves from the relatively fickle tourism industry that they now depend on.

Dr Leakey’s organisation hosts conservation blogs designed to raise funds from millions of supporters, from around the world, for African wildlife.

“Last year we raised over US$350,000 to protect mountain gorillas in war torn DR Congo through blog donations. Surely, we can do the same to save the Masai Mara through the Mara Conservancy blog,” he said. “Africa’s parks cannot survive on tourism revenues alone, especially during times of political instability”.

Dr Leakey, who is credited with ending the slaughter of Kenya’s elephants in the 1980s, is convinced that online support is an ideal way of guaranteeing the future of conservation across the continent.

“We have a responsibility to protect this extraordinary wilderness, not just for Kenyans, but as custodians on behalf of the entire world. If we do nothing, we are in danger of losing it forever,” he said.

The 1,500km2 Masai Mara Triangle is managed by the Mara Conservancy Trust, and completely financed by the entrance fees of the 70,000 visitors who enter this unique ecosystem every year. The reserve is the Kenyan extension of the Serengeti plains of Tanzania, and is the top attraction in Kenya’s $900 million tourist industry.

Kenya’s post election crisis has triggered a 90% collapse in visitor numbers to parks and reserves. That has forced hotels to close, triggered thousands of job losses and has had countless other indirect impacts that are still being calculated.

The damage to the local economy now means many people are expected to turn to poaching wildlife for the bushmeat trade, causing irreparable damage to the ecosystem. With its millions of animals, the Masai Mara is especially vulnerable; over 900 poachers were arrested in recent years. In 2007 alone nearly 500 wire snares were collected, 15 animals rescued and 46 animals were found either dead in snares or recently butchered. The tourism crisis has lead to reduced manpower for surveillance which will lead to an immediate rise in poaching.

“Wildlife security is going to be hit hard,” said Brian Heath, CEO of the Mara Conservancy Trust: “We expect a sharp increase in poaching. The Mara’s wildlife not only attracts thousands of tourists but poachers too, primarily for bushmeat.”

The local Maasai community is also suffering. “My community benefits directly from tourism as gate revenues pay for the wildlife conflict compensation scheme,” said Parmois Siampei, a Maasai Administrative Officer for the Mara Conservancy and local community member. “Over the years this has led to a strong relationship between the Maasai and the Mara Conservancy Trust. We are uncertain how long this goodwill can last given the collapse of this compensation scheme.”

The Mara Conservancy blog on WildlifeDirect.org appeals to online visitors to make donations to protect the wildlife of the world’s 7th Wonder to ensure that its survival is guaranteed.