RADIO NETHERLANDS (Amsterdam) 17 September 10 Uganda: rise in crocodile attacks on humans (Arne Doornebal)
Busuyi: “While I was fishing on the bank in Lake Victoria, I suddenly heard a noise behind me. I turned around and a crocodile came right at me with its mouth wide open.”
Godfrey Mugabi (43) is swarmed by villagers when he narrates his narrow escape. “I tried to push it away, but its huge teeth jabbed into my arm and before I knew it, my whole left arm was gone,” Mugabi goes on.
The Nile crocodile can reach up to six meters in length and weigh a thousand kilograms. Over a hundred fishermen have been eaten by crocodiles over the past five years in the Ugandan district of Mayuge. The Busuyi village on its own has lost fifteen of its inhabitants in recent years. Mugabi survived the attack only because his colleagues started beating the animal with pebbles and sticks.
Further on the shore we meet 28-year-old Yosef Omoit, who was also attacked three years ago. “I tried to lift myself from the water in the boat but the crocodile pulled me back under the water,” he recalls. Yosef still has all his limbs, though the animal tore his stomach open and severely damaged his intestines. “I have quit fishing out of fear,” says Omoit.
Thomas Aram is an Environmental Officer of Mayuge district and the one who keeps records of the attacks.
“A hundred cases is only within our district,” says Aram. “Though deadly encounters between humans and crocodiles also occur in other areas.”
According to the fishermen of Busuyi, the attacks are on the increase.
“The problem is not that crocodiles search for humans, but that humans infiltrate the habitat of the crocodiles more often,” analyses Aram. Mayuge used to be densely forested, making it a perfect hide-out for the animals. But trees are being cut down to make way for Uganda’s growing population.
“If deforestation continues at this pace then Mayuge might lose its forests in the next ten years,” says Aram. Even as Environmental Officer he seems to be powerless in the battle against the influential companies and politicians who are responsible for the deforestation.
A Ugandan woman gets seven children on average, causing one of the fastest population growths in the world. This also leads to over-fishing which brings down fish volumes considerably in Lake Victoria. So predators have to look for alternative meals. “Crocodiles do not attack without any reason,” says Aram. “They have only one target: to kill and to eat their prey.”
Around one thousand crocodiles live in the Mayuge district. When one of them is involved in too many attacks, it is caught and transferred to Murchison Falls National park. Year in year out, the game park attracts thousands of tourists, who love to catch a glimpse of the impressive Nile crocodile.
“For me, the government must shoot all those monsters,” says a bitter Yosef Omoit, while showing us the scars on his stomach.
The fishermen of Busuyi agree. In this village there is no source of income other than fishing. The unfortunate Mugabi cannot fish anymore, after losing one arm to a crocodile. Without government compensation he has resorted to begging. “Do you know any aid organisation that supports crocodile-victims?” he asks desperately.
Uganda: rise in crocodile attacks on humans