Yonge
Nawe: Highlights of 2004
27 December 2004
As we reach the end of another
year it seems appropriate to look back to the highlights of 2004 for Yonge
Nawe. It has been an eventful year for the organisation, with notable
project successes in all of our programme areas. We are excited with
an upturn in public participation and community interest in our work, but
we remain concerned about the lack of progress on various environmental
and development issues in Swaziland: 2005 will be a busy year!
The Least Explored Link
In the summer of 2004 Yonge
Nawe released a publication highlighting the hitherto unexplored links
between Environment, Occupational Safety and Health and HIV/AIDS.
The report was the culmination of a project funded by the Canada Fund which
had sought the views of health and environment experts, as well as employee
representatives. The report identified links, such as physical and
biological hazards, where companies could have a real impact on the health
of their employees by improving basic workplace conditions. For copy
of the publication, please contact Yonge Nawe or visit www.yongenawe.com.
Wildlife Conflicts
In July, Yonge Nawe organised
a forum at the Mountain Inn to discuss the findings of the organisation’s
draft research report into Conflicts in Natural Resources Management in
the Wildlife Sector in Swaziland. The research catalogued numerous
cases of human rights abuses in communities surrounding protected areas
and privately owned game farms, perpetuated by game rangers who are afforded
immunity from prosecution by the Game Act. The report also highlighted
major governance anomalies with the wildlife sector, including the fact
that the Game Act is being administered by the same private company who,
by managing three wildlife reserves in Swaziland, has a major stake in
the industry for profit!
Attendance at the Mountain
Inn Forum was encouraging, with representation from government, communities,
park owners, victims and law enforcers. Following the event, there
has been sustained media coverage of Yonge Nawe’s Wildlife Conflicts campaign,
and we were pleased to see discussion of the problem during the recent
‘People’s Parliament’. There have also been demands for changes to
the current situation from traditional authorities, MPs and affected communities.
Cries in the Wild
To ensure sustained coverage
of the shocking stories from the wildlife conflicts research, Yonge Nawe
produced a series of television documentaries titled "Cries in the Wild";
these have been aired on Channel Swazi since September. The three-part
series contains interviews with victims, local community members and traditional
authorities, and poses a number of questions to the viewer, such as "why
are criminal cases involving game rangers never brought to court?"
Communities Speak Out
In September Yonge Nawe held
a community workshop for the residents of Nhlambeni and surrounding areas
to discuss issues of pollution from a local paper mill. The workshop
was attended by Chief Matatazela Dlamini and over 130 residents who demanded
that their voices be heard by the company. The meeting was organized
with the support of the Nhlambeni Indvuna and five local schools: eNhlambeni
Nazarene, Damaseko and Emthonjeni Primary Schools; and Masundvwini and
Emthonjeni High Schools. Environmental issues raised by local residents
at the workshop included polluted drinking water, noxious air emissions
and harm to livestock. A large number of objections were prepared
by locals for submission to the Swaziland Environmental Authority.
Friends of the Earth International
A real highlight of the year
was in October when Yonge Nawe was admitted to the prestigious family of
Friends of the Earth International (FoEI) at the Biannual General Meeting
of the federation held in Zagreb, Croatia. This means Yonge Nawe
can now use the name "Friends of the Earth Swaziland". All Yonge
Nawe campaigns and issues are now flagged globally and highlighted by the
FoEI members in over seventy countries worldwide. This ensures access
to wider international platforms and solidarity by all members globally.
This acceptance is so important for a small country like ours whose pressing
issues get overshadowed and struggle to feature in international agendas.
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