… And Then Gods Finally Smiled
The Gods weren’t just against us — they were sitting up there with popcorn, taking bets on what could go wrong next. In October, when…
Batwa “Pygmies”
Batwa “Pygmies” are one of the oldest peoples in Africa. For centuries they roamed the forests looking for fruits and honey, and hunted with bows and trained dogs. Around 1500 they were reached by the migrations of the Bantu peoples. As the Bantu cut down the woods for their agricultural needs, Batwa numbers dwindled over time.
In the 1980s and 1990s they were evicted from national parks in Rwanda and Uganda without compensation, becoming the poorest of the poor. Recently the authorities have shown more understanding and progress has been made. Please be cautious when offered to “see the Pygmies” and avoid exploitation of the Batwa.
Related articles (for those published before 2021 please see Batwa “Pygmies” on our old blog):
Mouthwatering Blend of Batwa Culture and Bakiga Hospitality (Coming Soon)
We are making significant headway towards launching responsible Batwa “Pygmy” boat trips on Lake Bunyonyi! What we initiated in August is now on track to…
Partnership with Batwa “Pygmies”: Not the Easiest but Highly Impactful
Volunteering with Batwa “Pygmies”? Not the easiest thing in the world, yet potentially highly impactful! Londoner Edd had selected it from our long list of…
Trouble for Batwa “Pygmy” Communities: Successes & Failures
Our Batwa friends from Rwamahano happily received six months of accumulated funds this week. They got UGX 2,130,000 (USD 570) that we had saved from…
Trouble for Batwa “Pygmy” Communities: Lake Bunyonyi
We previously talked about Rwamahano, as an example of Batwa “Pygmy” groups we work with. These indigenous people originate from some of the oldest humans…
Trouble for Batwa “Pygmy” Communities: Echuya Forest
This week we accompanied the last group of tourists into the wilderness of Echuya Forest and to the famed ritual tree of the Batwa “Pygmies”.…
SABA Episode #10 — How to Be Good Partners to Batwa ‘Pygmies’?
For the tenth episode of SEE AFRICA BREATHE AFRICA (we are now in the double digits!) I was sent on a mission to visit the…
Is It Right to Come with Gifts for Children?
No and yes and no. On the one hand, there is some serious danger that you will contribute to the culture of begging that can…
Tracking Time
38mm, 1/250s, f/5,6, ISO400 The Batwa are in many ways the Gorilla Highlands region’s forgotten people. The original inhabitants of this part of Africa, the…
Were Batwa Really Dangerous to Gorillas?
The sad story of the Batwa “Pygmies” of the Gorilla Highlands reached its dramatic peak when they were kicked out of national parks. This was in line with the…
