A leading conservation charity that Prince Harry helps run has been accused of running an armed militia that beats, rapes and tortures indigenous people in Africa.
An investigation by The Mail on Sunday has found horrific evidence of intimidation in the rainforests of the Republic of Congo by security guards managed and paid by the charity African Parks. Prince Harry served as president for six years until he was elevated to the board of directors last year.
The fast-growing charity, backed by a billionaire who is part of the consortium that owns Chelsea Football Club, manages vast swaths of forests and national parks in twelve African countries in partnership with governments, and prides itself on helping wildlife saves by working with local communities. .
Yet the MoS has uncovered first-hand accounts of atrocities committed against the Baka, an indigenous people once known as pygmies, to prevent them from entering forests where they have harvested, fished, hunted and lived for thousands of years. medicines found.
One man, who claims his head was forced underwater while his hands were handcuffed and his back was beaten repeatedly with a belt, said: ‘Some guards are bad people and their activities should be stopped. What they are doing is cruel and inhumane.’
A community activist told us that a Baka man died after being beaten and jailed without treatment for his injuries. A woman said she was raped by an armed guard while clinging to her newborn baby. And a teenage boy claimed he was groomed for paid sex by another guard. There are claims that medical staff were intimidated to cover up abuse.
The raped mother also says she has not received most of the £1,300 compensation the court ordered her attacker to pay after he was briefly jailed.
The disturbing revelations – combined with the destruction of a traditional culture and the impoverishment of indigenous people – come as Prince Harry promotes his global mission as a social justice campaigner and fighter for equality.
Last weekend, his leadership role at African Parks was championed when he received a Living Legends of Aviation award at a ceremony in Los Angeles as “a humanitarian, military veteran and advocate for mental well-being.” One quote hailed him as an “environmentalist” and said he “has dedicated his life to advancing causes he is passionate about and that create permanent change for people and places…including African parks.”
Click here to watch Ian Birrell’s video report from the Congolese jungle
Ella Ene told her terrifying ordeal to our reporter Ian Birrell
Prince Harry was chairman of the charity for six years until he was elevated to its board of directors
But a Baka man who says he witnessed a brutal attack by African Parks guards told the MoS he wished Harry would use his power to intervene to ‘remove the pain and suffering inflicted on our community’ fuses’.
Harry, who has said Africa is the place ‘where I feel more like myself than anywhere else in the world’, announced his appointment as chairman of the charity seven years ago while he was guest editor of BBC Radio 4’s Today programme. His involvement began with a trip to Malawi to help an elephant project in 2016 and his role changed last fall when he joined the charity’s board of directors.
“What I see in the African Parks model is exactly what conservation should be about: putting people at the center of the solution,” he has said. ‘Conservation can only be sustained if people who live closest to nature invest in its conservation.’
When we presented the findings of our investigation to Harry, a spokesperson for his Archewell foundation said: ‘When the Duke became aware of these serious allegations, he immediately escalated them to the CEO and Chairman of the Board of African Parks, the competent authority. people to handle the next steps.”
Harry was warned last May about “appalling human rights abuses” by park rangers in a letter from Survival International, a campaign group that fights for the rights of indigenous people.
The letter said: ‘The scale and scope of violent intimidation and torture make it clear that this is not aberrant behavior by a few individuals.’ It called on the Prince to ‘use your influence and position to prevent these abuses from being committed by an organization to which you have lent your name’ – and was supported by a direct video appeal to Harry and Meghan from a member of the Baka tribe .
Peter Fearnhead, the CEO of African Parks who was a guest at Harry and Meghan’s wedding in 2018, responded to Survival International by pointing out that the charity ‘will not tolerate such behaviour’ and ‘took swift action’ against confirmed misconduct by her staff.
The Baka communities live in the Odzala-Kokoua National Park, an area of rainforest larger than Yorkshire, which is home to gorillas and forest elephants. A Baka man said: ‘The forest was left to us by our parents and ancestors. Everything we have can be found in the forest: our food, our medicine. We suffer so much without it. They are destroying our heritage and our people.”
The park has been managed by African Parks since 2010, when it signed a 25-year agreement with the Congolese government.
The charity is funded by the European Union, the US and wealthy philanthropists. It has received British help and the People’s Postcode Lottery, based in Edinburgh, has handed it £8.2 million since 2015.
Reporter Ian Birrell with two Baka men who say they were beaten
The revelations highlight tensions in Africa and Asia between the indigenous groups who have cared for forests since the dawn of humanity and armed militias led by conservation groups fighting to save the natural world from miners, poachers and loggers.
Survival International first raised its concerns with African Parks officials eleven years ago. Campaign director Fiore Longo said: “Protected areas are war zones for indigenous peoples. These organizations say they are saving nature, but in reality they are overseeing the abuse and destruction of the very people who have cared for these forests for millennia.
“If Prince Harry and other celebrities really want to save the planet, fight racism, fight for social justice and support human diversity, they must support Indigenous peoples. As the Baka put it: this is not nature conservation, but destruction.’
In a statement responding to The Mail of Sunday’s investigation, African Parks said: ‘We have a zero-tolerance policy for any form of abuse and are committed to upholding the rights of local and indigenous peoples.
“(We) work closely with the Congolese government, local staff and indigenous communities in these efforts. We take allegations of human rights violations very seriously and always investigate such allegations thoroughly.”
The charity said it had attempted to contact Survival International ‘repeatedly to request their input into assessing their claims, which they have refused to provide’.
It added that it had taken “active steps” to address the allegations and had appointed an external law firm to “assess their veracity”, adding: “Any new allegations, including those raised in this article cited will be part of this ongoing review.”