Uganda Reopens War Torn Rwenzori National Park

By Jennifer Wanjiru

KAMPALA, Uganda, June 11, 2001 (ENS) - The government of Uganda has announced that the closed Rwenzori Mountains National Park bordering the strife ridden Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) will reopen on July 2. The opening will pave the way for mountaineers to have access to Africa's third highest peak - the scenic 5,100 meter (16,575 foot) Mt. Margherita.

"We have ensured that all our national parks now have security contingents and radio communication," said Laban Mawungu, a marketing official of the Uganda Wildlife Authority.

But tour operators are still cautious about taking tourists to this Afro-Montane rainforest.

Rwenzori Mountains National Park (Photos courtesy Visit Uganda)

The park, one of the biggest tourist attractions in this east African nation, was closed in 1997 following increased insurgency by rebels of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) opposed to President Yoweri Museveni's National Resistance Movement (NRM) government, in power in Uganda since 1986.

Although the park was set to reopen in 1999, the opening was delayed after the 1999 massacre of tourists by suspected Rwanda guerrillas in another Uganda Park, the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest.

Rwenzori Mountains National Park was inscribed on the list of World Heritage in Danger in 1999 by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The region's glaciers, waterfalls and lakes make it one of Africa's most beautiful alpine areas. The park protects many natural habitats, endangered species and an unusual flora including the giant heather.

But tour operators have been skipping the Rwenzori Park after the government of Uganda said it could not guarantee security for tourists who travelled there.

Tour operators now say the reopening of the park will help the Uganda tourism industry start the slow process of overcoming the damage done by insecurity on its western border.

"It will be great to have Uganda reopen Rwenzori provided there is enough security," said Naftali Kinyua of East Safari Tours. "A visit to Uganda without going to Rwenzori is no longer fulfilling."

Rwenzori Mountains National Park

The officials are optimistic and upbeat that soon Rwenzori Mountains National Park will regain its position in Uganda's western tourism circuit. Uganda has spent the equivalent of US$37,500 repairing walkways on the mountain trails.

"This is one of the best mountaineering sites in the region," says Mawungu. "With Rwenzori, it is not just a question of climbing to the top. It has many ranges, many swamps and bogs. It is not overused, and it is very scenic."

Due to increased insecurity along the DR Congo border, the Uganda tourism industry, which contributes 20 percent to the country's gross domestic product, has been grossly affected.

The last incident was in March when suspected ADF rebels killed 11 people and burned 53 vehicles in the western Uganda town of Kasese. A few days later they attacked in northern Uganda's Murchison Falls National Park, killing 11 people.

Lying along the western border of Uganda, the scenic Rwenzori Mountains are known as the Mountains of the Moon and are recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. But despite its tourism potential, the tour operators are at worst reluctant and at best cautious to take people to the park.

"We cannot send tourists there without assurance of security," said Stewart. "We will have to see first."

Before mountain gorilla tracking became Uganda's number one tourist attraction, the Rwenzori walking trails had attracted more tourists than any other activity. "Walking trails on the lower slopes does not call for mountaineering experience, although the higher you go the fitter you need to be," says Mawungu.

Gazetted as a National Park in 1991 and located on the western arm of East Africa's Great Rift Valley, the misty "mountains of the moon" are 120 kilometers (75 miles) long and 48 kilometers (30 miles) wide.

Rwenzori Mountaineering Services provides guides and porters to climbers.

"We want to help restore the place of Rwenzori in Africa's tourism industry," said Mawungu.

Talks are now underway between Uganda and the DR Congo government to restart diplomatic relations that broke down during the reign of the late President Laurent Kabila. The tourism sector is hoping that this will help restore security along the DRC-Uganda border.

With the Uganda Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebels tamed after President Museveni overran their camps in DR Congo, there is general optimism amongst the local wildlife officials that Rwenzori will again be a secure place for tourists to take a break in Africa wild.

Then the fabled mist covered range will once again be a tourist attraction, not a killing field.