ZimParks spokesperson Tinashe Farawo admitted that there has been an increase in human-wildlife conflict not only in Hwange, but other communities near various parks this year as compared to last year.
“Unlike last year, the number of people killed by wild animals increased in the first quarter of this year,” Farawo said.
“Twenty three people have so far been killed by wild animals — 12 by crocodiles, eight by elephants, two by hippos and one by buffalo.
“Only last week, a village head was killed by elephants while trying to scare them away from his fields.
“Last year, 60 people died from attacks by the animals the whole year.”
He said ZimParks has received 1 000 distress calls which they responded to by either capturing the problem animals or shooting them.
Zela, in its application last year, had warned of an increase in such incidences, as well as likelihood of poaching and pollution of water sources in the park, the world’s largest natural mammal colony.
“Already, loss of both human and animal life has occurred as a direct result of the inevitable emigration from the National Park by the various animal species fleeing their former habitat.
“There is acute risk of irreversible ecological degradation including unmitigated loss of animal and vegetative species, reduction of animal habitats of many rare species including black rhino, pangolin, elephant, and wild (painted) dogs,” read the court challenge.
Before the matter could be heard at the courts, the government after a cabinet meeting, bowed down to pressure and announced a blanket ban on mining in all the country’s national parks. The Chinese firms had planned to mine in the park in a joint venture with the state-owned Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation.
Following the government ban, presidential spokesperson George Charamba attacked environmental campaigners on his Twitter account, accusing them of “pseudo scholarship”.
He vowed that government is free to change land use and humans should preside over wild animals as national parks “are not God-ordained”.
“This pseudo-scholarship, which seeks the respectability of law wants to convince us some parts of Zimbabwe, or any nation on this earth for that matter, is God-designated as a Game Park, as an inviolate haven for wildlife. What frothing idiocy!!!! Hwange, then Wankie National Park was from as far back as 1928 designated a Game Park by HUMANS, not by GOD!!” said Charamba.
“And of course when human needs come second-rate to needs of wildlife, humans will find ways — including destructive ones — to restore EQUILIBRIUM, muchida musingadi!!!! (whether you like it or not!!!!) One way of doing that is simply to remove the competitor for land, in this case WILDLIFE!!!
“SOCIETIES do determine LAND USES at every stage in the EVOLUTION of those SOCIETIES!! Some part of land goes towards agricultural uses; host water bodies, are dedicated to urban conurbation creating concrete jungles, are assigned to mining, to game, etc, etc!!!!” Charamba said.
True to his word, barely eight months later, the government ordered the return of one of the Chinese companies — Afrochine, to prospect for coal in the Hwange area.
This was done through a Government Gazette published on April 16 this year, which reads; “the Mines and Mining Development minister, with the authorisation of the President, has… issued special grant No 8477 to Afrochine Smelting (Private) Limited, for a period of three years…”
The Gazette did not, however, specify the area of the coal mine, which up to now remains a mystery.
No comment could be obtained from Afrochine by the time of going to print.
But conservationists said the return of the Chinese firm borders on disregard of the environment.
“If it turns out that the prospecting will be done in the park, Center for Natural Resource Governance (CNRG) will directly engage government to uphold the well-received Cabinet decision banning mining in national parks. We will also take the legal route.
“We must avoid all activities that agitate wild animals, including changing of their migration routes,” said CNRG director, Farai Maguwu.
However, Farawo said exploration work can be done in the parks “to ascertain our mineral endowments”.’
“There is nothing wrong with exploration work being done in parks. As a country, we would need to know the minerals that we have underground,” Farawo said.
Environment minister Mangaliso Ndlovu said every miner, whether doing mining in a park or outside, should engage in sustainable mining.
“I have not read the government gazette (awarding a special mining permit to Afrochine), so I cannot speculate. I am not sure if they will be mining in the game park. But every miner has to do an EIA, whether mining in a game park or anywhere else,” Ndlovu said.
Mines minister Winston Chitando had not responded to questions sent to him by The Standard by the time of going to print, despite promising to do so.
It remains to be seen where the mining ventures will be undertaken in Hwange.
Zimbabwe, currently in the throes of recurrent power deficits, is highly depended on coal and hydro-power for electricity.
This has seen the Chinese-dubbed Zimbabwe’s “all weather friends” establishing coal-fired power plants, among other ventures they are involved in like mining chrome, diamonds, gold, and other precious minerals.
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