109 chimpanzees and 107 monkeys are now safe and sound in a sanctuary caring for the orphaned primates that fell victim to poaching and wildlife trade in eastern DR Congo, where peace has been a precious thing here.
KINSHASA, March 3 (Xinhua) -- 109 chimpanzees and 107 monkeys are now safe and sound in a sanctuary caring for the orphaned primates that fell victim to poaching and wildlife trade in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
Every chimpanzee resident here in the Lwiro Primate Rehabilitation Center, known by its French acronym as CRPL, a refuge in the eastern DRC, was brutally taken from their forest home by poachers.
Peace has been a precious thing here in this sacred land where the primates rule, as the already endangered species have been traumatized by poaching and armed conflicts every now and then.
Itongwa Luc, a veteran care-giver who witnessed the rehabilitation center's founding in 2002, has been the guardian angel for the infant primates rescued from the hands of brutal poachers and wildlife traffickers.
Screenshot of rescued primates in the Lwiro Primate Rehabilitation Center, a sanctuary caring for the orphaned primates in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). (Photo by Zanem Nety Zaidi/Xinhua)
"These primates really suffered. They were saved from the hands of poachers, which is why we keep them here," said Luc. Tracked down by dogs, as the adult chimpanzees are shot down by poachers, the infant chimpanzees are always left alone to face the traffickers and possibly the oblivion on their own.
As poaching increased drastically during the Second Congolese War (1998-2004), the center was built with the hope of creating a safe place for orphaned primates to recover both physically and physiologically from their ordeals, and hopefully putting an end to the illegal wildlife trade.
Six meals a day, world-classing veterinary care, Luc and his colleagues are running out the clock on the daily basis, 24/7, to make sure that their primate friends feel at home.
"We get up really early for their breakfast, and we make them porridge at night, which is mixed with cornflour, soybeans, sorghum and milk," he said, adding that he has "no regrets" for going the extra mile.
In DRC, lying on the Congo Basin, which is proud of its world-known diversity, rescue centers like CRPL are turning to ecotourism, sustainable travel, as a way to raise funds and awareness, while keeping the land and animals as intact as possible.
Screenshot of rescued primates in the Lwiro Primate Rehabilitation Center, a sanctuary caring for the orphaned primates in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). (Photo by Zanem Nety Zaidi/Xinhua)
"It's a very magical experience to be able to be in the forest and spend time with the gorillas. I would like to come back in the future to see other primates in other parks in the country, such as Virunga National Park," told Xinhua Jean-Baptiste Guillaume, a tourist from France, who was on his tour in the center.
But at the sanctuary, the work for the precious life merely begins, and the battle for pulling the wildlife from the edge of oblivion is far from being over.
"We intend to send them back to nature, but there are still risks due to the presence of poachers and still ongoing wars, which is why we keep them here until they return to a safe environment," said Luc.
