In a brief
short news, the website called ‘ayyaantuu.com’ posted the burning of UNESCO
registered Yayu Forest of Iluu Abbaa Boor, Oromia on its facebook account.
According to the information, the forest fire was raging for the last two weeks
without getting any attention from Government or public officials. It is said
that the government has blocked all media outlets from reporting about the
forest fire while it was supposed to try to extinguish the fire. Effort (the
business wing of the ruling party) is also reported as a culprit of
deforestation as part of its coal mining activity in the area. This reminds me
about how the government of Ethiopia burn down the forest of Boorana and Gujii
zones back in 2000.
In the year
2000, a forest fire happened in the then Boorana zone of Oromia (Gujii and
Boorana zone of today). In addition to the forest fire of Boorana, there was
also a huge forest fire in Bale zone. In Boorana zone the forest fire occurred
in Areero and Manqubsa (Nagelle) forests. While in Gujii zone the forest fire
happened in Shakiso, Adoola, wadera and Bore forests. The fire was intense in
Areeroo, Nagelle and shakkisoo. It almost completely burnt out the forest of
manqubsa(nagelle), and devastated the Areeroo
and shakkisoo forests.
There are
multiple reasons for the burning of the forest that time. The government of Ethiopia claims that OLF
guerilla fighters reside in the forest. The other reasons were the mining
process of shakkisoo and the then investment activity. It is true that OLF
fighters take shelter in the forest but this can’t be the reason to burn it.
And this was the main reason that Areeroo and manqubsa forests were dealt with.
The mining
activity of shakkisoo was the other reason. Mineral exploitation, especially
Gold mining and exploration needs to clear the forest. In addition to these,
the company needed a place to ditch toxic waste.
Extinguishing
this fire took more than three months and it was the arrival of the rainy
season that helped to extinguish the fire completely. But at the early stage of
the fire, there was no attention from the government or officials, only
agricultural department was making an effort to extinguish the fire. Just like
yayu forest fire of today, there was no media coverage during the early stage
of the fire. Luckily there were many NGOs in the zone and they get the word out
to international media.
It was
after it gets international media coverage that the government organized a team
from Federal agricultural office and the military and dispatched them. But the
issue was no more a regional or national issue; it became a global issue as
main international media outlets started giving analysis of the effect of the
forest fire. They put it clearly that it affects not only east Africa, but also
global. Some estimated the forest fire can affect 50 million people directly in
the sub-continent.
It was
after this that professional fire fighters arrive from South Africa. The South
African started to monitor the fire from air. They monitored the whole southern
Ethiopia from Bale to Arba minchi, while the fire fighters were stationed in
Shakkisoo.
Nationally,
it gets momentum and media outlets started covering about the forest fire.
University students started arriving from different universities and colleges.
Regionally, the people and government workers put a great effort to put out the
fire.
But what is
very interesting was what the farmers (local people) say. They say it is
Impossible to extinguish this fire. What they say was, while people put out the
fire day time, there is somebody or group who put on the fire during the night.
When people extinguish the fire day time at one place, the next morning they
find an intense fire at the same location.
The TPLF
led Ethiopian government doesn't totally care about the natural resources in
Oromia. The UNESCO registered Yayu forest is facing the same fate of the
Boorana-Gujii forests. The land or the soil underneath the forest might be
needed for some purpose. It may be used to fulfill investment interest of TPLF.
It is said that the deforestation and burning of Yayu forest of Oromia is to build Tigray. The huge coal deposit beneath the forest is the main reason to burn down the forest. It was also said that the big tigrean companies like EFFORT has already moved to the area to make as much money as they can.
It is said that the deforestation and burning of Yayu forest of Oromia is to build Tigray. The huge coal deposit beneath the forest is the main reason to burn down the forest. It was also said that the big tigrean companies like EFFORT has already moved to the area to make as much money as they can.
If there is no media coverage at local or national level, and if there is no government effort to extinguish the fire at local, regional or national level, for sure there will be a conspiracy to deal with the forest, so that the land can be available for some other purposes. The soil under the forest is favorable for any mechanized agriculture. This fits the government policy of leasing land for foreign investors or Tigrean based national investors.
yayu forest
It is not
late for the Oromos to save their forest of Yayu. Oromos in diaspora must make
an effort to put the news in the hand of international media. We have to get
the news to concerned international bodies, which of course UNESCO itself is
the main. Other international conservation based organizations must also get
the information. It is only these organizations and the international media who
can influence the Ethiopian government to make an effort to extinguish the
UNESCO registered Yayu forest fire of Oromia.
Some
countries and international organizations blindly help the Ethiopian government
without analysis of what the Ethiopian government is doing to its natural
resources. It is not fair to provide support before ensuring whether the
government is doing its job in the interest of the people, which in this case
is protecting the natural forest of the country. One good example is the
participation of Norway and United Kingdom in the project of climate resilient green economy
(CRGE) in Ethiopia in which they agreed to provide multi-layer support. To the contrary, the Ethiopian government is not in a position to protect and conserve the existing natural forest. It is difficult to recovery from climatic change or adapt to the change in any means through
CRGE unless the existing natural forests are protected.
By Adugna Dinka (re_appear1@yahoo.co.uk)
