Mbuti
Mbuti Resist Expulsion from their Forests
An Mbuti group in the eastern D.R. Congo has successfully forestalled government attempts to establish a nature reserve that would have prevented their traditional uses of their forests. Instead, they are working with several major NGOs to develop an effective preserve that will include their indigenous rights to use sustainably the forest products. The Guardian […]
The Mbuti and Ayn Rand
Last week, Eric Michael Johnson described the way the Mbuti censured the abhorrent behavior of Cephu, a story told originally by Colin Turnbull in The Forest People, one of the classics of modern anthropology.
Mbuti Bark Cloth and Babies
Meni Mbugha, a Congolese man, has launched a career in Kinshasa designing fabrics based on the traditional art of the Mbuti, which they draw on bark cloth fabricated from trees. He learned about the traditional bark cloth art from his interactions with the Mbuti, and in return he is attempting to assist them in more […]
Unicorns, and the Mbuti, Are Troubled by Violence
The Mbuti living in the Ituri rainforest are suffering from violence fostered by illegal mining in their region and the armed rebel gangs who profit from it. According to a news story last week in Aljazeera.com, titled “The Struggle to Save the ‘Congolese Unicorn,’” the violence not only affects the Mbuti and the other residents […]
Patterns of Mbuti Forest Life [video review]
“There are no fixed patterns in the Mbuti way of life—whenever the mood takes them, they move deep into the forest and set up a hunting camp.” The narrative that accompanies a marvelous film about the research of famed scientists Terese and John Hart also provides a great deal of information about the Mbuti way […]
Mbuti Refugees Flee Threats of Violence
A group of Mbuti have left their forest homes and taken refuge in a primary school in Oicha, in eastern DR Congo, where locals resent them for interrupting classes for the kids. The 60 or so Mbuti fled their forest homeland due to the depredations of the Allied Democratic Forces—National Army for the Liberation of […]
Mbuti Cherish the Forest—Does Anyone Care?
The man’s words are haunting: “We are Mbuti, children of the forest …. We were created in the forest, and the forest is where the spirits of our ancestors still live. The forest gives us all that we need.” Chief Mundeheykwa continues by describing the uses the Mbuti have traditionally made of forest resources—branches and […]
M23 Rebels Capture Goma
Early last week, a rebel group known as M23 invaded Goma, a city of one million people in the eastern D.R. Congo, capturing it as the national army did nothing but melt away. The well-armed UN forces in the metropolitan area watched the invaders advance since their mandate did not give them the responsibility of […]
New Rounds of Fighting May Target the Mbuti
Another crisis has been threatening the Mbuti living in refugee camps outside Goma, in eastern Congo, as the rebel group M23 prepares to attack the city, the capital of North Kivu Province. M23 indicates they will attack if harassment of Tutsi people in Goma is not stopped by the DR Congo government. The Mbuti in […]
Mbuti Cite the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Many citizens of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) believe that having sex with a Mbuti woman can cure a backache, or intercourse with a young Mbuti virgin can heal diseases. These superstitions prompt Congolese men to rape the pygmy women in the Goma area, where many have resettled due to the violence they have […]
