Remember that magical moment on celluloid when the beautiful blue eyes of Naomi Watts stare into the huge eyes of King Kong for the first time on top of Skull Island? They both feel a sense of connection, as if their longing for a true friend has finally been fulfilled. They instantly connect with each others hearts and a beautiful friendship forms between the beauty and the beast.
Then there is that final shot in the skies when King Kong does all he can to save Naomi and gets repaid by mankind in bullets. That one last moment of silence, that one last contact of eyes as he falls from the heights to the gallows speaks volumes of what we are as a race.
Just the fact that I refer to Kong as ‘he’ and not ‘it’ proves what the movie meant. Yet, the slaughter of Gorillas is a reality. Silverbacks are the true beauty of the African Jungles. They remind us of… us. They remind us where we came from and to me, present the most compelling evidence to Darwin’s theory. The way they can use tools, their amazing intelligence, all masked by a huge exterior. With civil war in Congo between the rebels & the government, the Gorillas are just caught in between.
While there are various reasons for the dwindling numbers, the most startling one I have heard is human jealousy. These huge giants are spread across the borders of Uganda, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo in Africa.
Arthur Mugisha, a former game warden in Uganda and now manager of the International Gorilla Conservation Program tells us that these gentle giants are responsible for tourism industry blossoming in Uganda and Rwanda. Surely this made the others jealous of the wealth tourism is bringing into these countries and they decided to eliminate the biggest attractions of the tourism package — The Silverbacks. Now what sick logic is this? No, don’t get me wrong, I’m not talking about Mr. Mugisha but about those who are so insane to kill animals out of jealousy.
While all the 3 nations have declared that these are conserved animals & allowed conversationalists to perform as a joint action force across borders, still differences remain. Sure, these mountain giants once in a while enter a nearby farm and fill their appetite. But that is because we are encroaching their land and moreover groups have been appointed to even stop that. Mugisha feels that by saving them, Africa can save even human lives.
Surely, when so much is at stake, we can stop the senseless killing. Only 720 of Silverback Gorillas are left on the planet! That is too close to comfort for me. It might already be too late & I hope not, hope that we do not see the fall of these giants because of human greed like we saw the fall of King Kong.
