Virunga National Park

Virunga National Park: In a lush clearing a giant silverback lies on his back, scratching his belly, a couple of youngsters play in the undergrowth, and a baby gorilla rides on his mother shoulders. Mburanumwe gently grunts at the silverback, to assure him we are friend not foe, according to Deutsche Welle. Militia groups have operated within the park boundaries, poachers have decimated gorilla and hippopotamus populations and over 100 park rangers have died defending the park and its animals. By 2012 the fighting had gotten so bad Virunga was officially closed to tourists. Then, late last year, M23, the strongest rebel group in the region was defeated, and this year the administrators re-opened small pockets of the park to tourists and In the dense jungle of Virunga National Park, ranger Yaya Mburanumwe swings a sharpened machete to clear a path through the undergrowth. Mburanumwe is leading a group of six people to meet the parks undisputed stars, the mountain gorillas. It this experience that the park is hoping to sell to tourists. But despite its incredible natural beauty and diverse animal life, Virunga Park is a hard sell. Conflict and corruption have plagued the region for over two decades. An estimated 5.4 million people have died in the Democratic Republic of Congo since 1998 and the park has borne witness to much of the violence. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.