This blog post first appeared on another Medium page on March 21st, which we had to pull down because… well… we’re technology challenged!
21st March is the International day of Forests, and we couldn’t imagine a better day to inaugurate our blogging aspirations. We’re going to start with a story of awful conflict because, really, who’s afraid of shit?
This conflict began with an article published by BBC, the link is here. If you’re into rhinos and conservation, chances are you’ve already read this piece and have a point of view on it. It’s how shit works!
The piece was strongly worded, sensationalist to say the least, factually incorrect in many parts (not all; we’re not claiming it’s all made up), and simply not up to BBC’s standards of ethical journalism. It drew massive and instant push back from the conservation community across the country; some went public with their ire, others chose the expedient route of silence. Finally, the Government of India responded with a 5 year ban on BBC in Indian tiger reserves.
Then, there was this appeal for a ban on the park by an agency who’s taken an even more strident approach than BBC did! They’re dropping big names and making all sorts of claims. What motivates these ill-informed campaigns and ambassadors?
At Elrhino, Kaziranga is in our heart, soul and sinews. It’s the universe that we are dedicating our productive years to. There’s no way we would stay unaffected. We started to receive forwards about this almost as soon as this article went public. I imagine people expected us to have a point of view. One of the things I’ve tried to teach myself is not to communicate in a state of agitation — you can’t unsay things, and the damage just isn’t worth the spontaneity. So here we are, a full 40 days after the shit hit the ceiling. In Assam, we have a phrase, “lahe lahe”. It has no precise English translation except “slow and languid”. That’s how we move, it’s a culture thing.
Let’s talk about the shit, then. The forests of Kaziranga are some of the safest in the world for the large cornerstone species, and many case studies have been written about this. I won’t bore you with the details. Are they safe because our forest guards are running amok shooting people at will? Sounds ridiculous, I know, but that’s the argument being forwarded by the above authors. This is such a deep issue and only my first blog post, I don’t even know how to begin to tell this story. But I’ll try and break it down into a few points:
1. The rhino and elephant are deeply embedded in the mythology of the region and are revered as special beings, superior to man. The social fencing that these community members provide is Kaziranga’s most precious asset. Our community members treat the safety of these animals as their personal mission, and it is poetic to watch the mutual respect they share. This is being tested as land is becoming scarce. Man and animal populations are increasing, migrant populations are coming in, but the forest shrinks every year (she is being swallowed by the the mighty Brahmaputra rive, yet another hugely revered being. Yes. We revere a lot). Which means they’re getting competitive about space, and animosity is beginning to seep in. It’s not all love and roses (or incense, in a more culturally appropriate rendition) any more.
2. Poaching is on the rise, just like all crime, everywhere. We live in shitty times, and it’s only getting shittier, we know it. The poachers’ ammunition is becoming increasingly sophisticated and our forest guards have nothing that even begins to rival what their enemies carry. On an average then, all things being equal, the odds of a poacher getting shot are much slimmer than that of a guard getting shot. It doesn’t take Einstein to figure that out.
3. So who is this dreaded forest guard, the man who has the shoot-on-sight orders? He’s a deeply committed, underpaid, under protected, under equipped man with very little to reward him for undertaking this job where his life is at stake. This scenario is getting better, but the odds are still insanely stacked against our forest guards and frontline staff. It’s difficult to articulate the call that brings this man to face his potential death — it’s like asking a soldier what draws him to war. These are warriors. They do what they have to do to keep their turf safe — for animals and for humans. To claim that they shoot to kill indiscriminately is a violation of everything that they work for. And we’re proud to stand up for them and beside them. They keep us and our natural capital safe.
This is not a sweeping rejection of every claim that the article makes. Mistakes happen, as they do everywhere, and unintended death from bullets have been rare, but have happened. The war against poaching isn’t pretty, the stakes are high, and as you would have read from links, an innocent young boy got caught in the worst possible scenario. To not deny these is NOT equivalent to accepting these accidents as the norm. This is not a justification of killing, but an attempt to take a balanced view of things, shift the discourse away from binaries towards grey areas, and to stand up for the values that drive us.
Have I made my point? I’m not sure. This is my first blog piece, and I’m on terribly uncertain ground. But we’ll figure it out, one post at a time.
Do we have a call to action, then? Yes we do. Follow this publication, we’ll be back in touch with specific ways that you can get involved with our frontline community and staff at Kaziranga, and we’ll bring you plenty of shitty and not-so-shitty blog posts along the way.
