The seat of the national drying
Published in «Svobodnye Novosti» (Free News) Newspaper,
#34,
September 07–14, 2001
«The ministry never kicks against prickly bushes; if the administration of the president took the decision to fell the Pushcha there is nothing to comment upon. The regime exists for the purpose of making a state official feel himself as a mouse under the broom».
«The situation in the Pushcha is so difficult today that it is necessary to sacrifice own »principles« and to allow international experts to make independent estimations in regard to the future of the world celebrity. We shouldn't hinder or prevent them. The main problem is that we could be too late, because today or even yesterday is already late».
Unfortunately, the «human erosion», which destroys our nature, does not spare reserved places either, not even if they are as well-known as the Belovezhskaya Pushcha. Here vandal tendencies and forest-subjugation grow longer roots with each year, and become exploitation plans, in consent with satan. The objectives of the World Mankind Heritage Site are quickly overwritten by the economic interests of the presidential administration. The authority does not rely on culture, science, and love for nature here, but focuses on logging, tourist hunting, and on getting foreign currency.
In No 28 (July 27 — August 3) of the «Free News» paper, we have placed an SOS in regard to the fact that the sanitary cuttings of the forest plots in the national park have started. The Initiative Group «Green Belarusian Association» has distributed this material to all the independent mass-media. The facts spread the smell of saws, of resin covered splinters, and the bitter smoke of the lost heritage — of the last primeval forests of our Native land, of our planet. Today Valery Dranchuk, the leader of the group, founder and chief-editor of the «Belovezhskaya Pushcha„ Newspaper continues the discussion on this topic. Recently, as it is already known, the Belarusian
— Valery, what end do you see to this intense economic activity? What is going on in the Pushcha now?
This kind of activities in the Belovezhskaya Pushcha does not come to an end, and perhaps they haven't stopped since Hercen's times. Only the forms of business vary. This business will proceed and the barbarity will spread out before the times of the alse's gangster authority will come to an end in our country. I consider that the matter of the existing reserves preservation, as well as, by the way, preservation of other national values is totally linked with politics. Especially in what concerns the Belovezhskaya Pushcha. Here a high authority has always got a food and had a good time, took as much as possible and destroyed as much as it wanted. The communist Kremlin elite felled less amount of trees. But for own pleasure, for the sake of a guaranteed hunting «satisfaction», it bred as many animals as it could, which in turn consumed Pushcha's vegetation. The Prime Minister V.Kebich, when liquidating the Protected Game Ground, has not given the Pushcha back to scientists. He agreed to the deal, to creation of the national park, and thus lowered even that small protection level and left the opportunity for the Pushcha to be robbed more. And so it happened. This transformation was unsuccessful in one particular aspect, namely in making Mr. Kebich president. But this came true for Mr. Lukashenko and the consequences became even more serious.
So what now? After our Initiative group raised the alarm in connection with the clear sanitary cuttings within the Belovezhskaya Pushcha a game of the authorities started. The Ministry of Environmental Protection created a
— Do you know the members of commission? Who is the chairman?
There are more than twenty members. I know the majority of them. The former director of the Experimental Botany Research Institute within the National Academy of Sciences, Professor Victor Parfenov headed the commission. Arrival of the commission at the «crime scene» — the Pushcha — was just a show for the majority of the people. Do you understand? If you wake Victor Parfenof up in the middle of the night, he will say without hesitation for what reason the Pushcha is felled. Since he knows that he is not young, that times are how they are, that the authority is how it is, that science has ended up in the street, he understands that this is only a matter of politics. For him, scientist and academician, and for the majority of people, everything is clear for a long time. Mr. Parfenov, by the way, was the supporter of a «pure» Pushcha reservation, instead of the national park as a convenient screen for implanting economic and industrial activity. He headed the scientific council of the Pushcha for many years. He knows the people, the problems and this entire protected hunting kitchen. Once during a session, probably four years ago, he sat down by me and said very honestly and with a weary voice: «Look at the protocols with prescriptions for ten years, they consist of the same activities. We keep talking and talking, but there is no light ahead. If nothing will be done, the end for the Pushcha will come in ten years. It will turn into such an impoverished wood … Newspapers like yours are the only hope. Look there„, he said pointing to a man, which sat at some distance from us. “This is Evgeny Smoktonovich. He is a competent expert, a forester by descendants. The Pushcha gave him to us for the purpose of making him general manager».
I do not want to offend the scientist but, firstly, mister Parfenov has not lost everything in this life that to rush to embrace exploitation policies on the first sign from the officials. What are the possibilities of this commission in the present political environment, especially at the beginning of the elections« campaign? What are the chances of bringing Mr. Smoktonovich back in the park director's armchair, after he has been removed, as people say, from the third day? This was just an experiment of the authority, a trap, a game of imperious cheats. Today a restriction has been imposed to Mr. Smoktonovich. The new director has forbidden him (even though he is the General Forest Warden) to visit certain quarters, to see what and how goes on…
Secondly, Mr. Parfenov is a skilled man and, let it be my sin, I have to say that he does not see any light at the end of the tunnel. The commission looked at the forest, spent a night in the Pushcha, and then went home. A document was signed there, but till now it doesn't have any force because some artificial disagreements and discussions started between members. Had this document been firmly drawn up, had all the requirements been considered and had there been a complete consent between the signing persons, the authority wouldn't have anyway looked over the conclusions. It does not mean, however, that today we do not need «heroic acts». We do, and unfortunately they are fewer and fewer in science. The commission has not yet been dissolved so we have to wait and see whether somebody will stand up for the truth. As far as I know, an expert from Gomel city, the famous scientist and forester Vladimir Baginski has not put his signature on the conclusions of the commission because he considered them too weak and insisted on taking adequate measures.
The role of the Ministry of Natural Resources, led by the former Deputy Manager of the Property Management Department of the President, is quite shameful. At least the following fact comes as a confirmation — the Ministry authorized the illegal fellings itself. Now they want to show they send a «governmental commission». Where did you see it? The Ministry never kicks against the prickly bushes; if the administration of the president took the decision to fell the Pushcha there is no room for comments. The regime exists for the purpose of making a state official feel himself as a mouse under the broom.
— You have said that a discussion started between members of the governmental commission. What was the subject of the dispute?
They argue on whether to continue sanitary cuttings or not. They say that to win against the bark beetle which is destroying the Pushcha, it is necessary to cut down the fifty hectares of forest already populated by the beetle. Why is this discussion irrelevant? You see, not only the bark beetle, but a totally different factor, the human one, is destroying the forest. The timber harvesting «beetle» — a more dangerous, destructive and foreign currency-hungry mercenary — acclimatized in the reserved territory. The mechanism of his activity is secured by specific infrastructure, economic calculations, and a system of bargains … I note that the mechanism is quite uncontrolled. Let's try to control something!.. This is why some of the members of the commission hold discussions about the parasite bug. It is simply a comedy! Adult people play the game of «bark beetle». At a short distance from their hotel, the timber processing super plant is working for over a year. Because of this new purchase the park administration risks everything just to pay the foreign businessman and the creditor. It doesn't matter how, the payment has to be made. The administration is compelled to use wood as payment, of course best wood is used since the sawmill is designed exclusively for raw wood processing. At the same time the German seller requires the highest quality wood in exchange. This is the core of the black business.
I visited the Pushcha two times as the clear cuttings were getting started. My last visit was confidential concerning the meetings with the people. I talked to the local people. They said: timber plant has changed sources, from Pushcha's sites to the Pripyat forested areas. You can picture timber lorries carrying timber from one national park (I mean the «Pripyatski» one) to another. What is this? Is it a competent resource-saving ecological policy?
— The diagnosis is really obvious. But is it really that local inhabitants do not try to protect their land?
The long-term traditions of «nomenclature protection» plus the frontier zone have created this situation. People do not hurry to open their hearts. They are afraid of persecutions. It is difficult to find a job, while to lose the earnings is so easy. Five directors have been changed in the last seven years! The last one, Nickolai Bambiza, has managed the «Pripyatski» National Park for a long time. He expanded there the hunting industry and focused on harvesting timber… As he's just been named general director of the National Park «Belovezhskaya Pushcha„, he started the fellings in this Reserve too. This shows the precise goals of those who brought him here. The Pushcha is a large eternal refuge, but it cannot defend the rights of its inhabitants because it doesn't have any rights itself for a long time.
— The circle closes? But where is the science in the Belovezhskaya Pushcha?
It too has no rights, if it's possible to consider a scientific department consisting of several philosophy doctors among 15 employees as «science». Most likely it is a simulation of «science». Instead of a close union between nature, science and world values — and the Belovezhskaya Pushcha is such a place! — now an illiterate pragmatism, I would say, like in the timber enterprise, dominates. The scientific approaches develop separately, apart from the actual problems of nature protection. It is no sense to be talking about the role of science in decision-making process or about the rescue of the Pushcha. Science is not attractive and the young scientific staff leaves the park. Those people who grew roots here, are compelled to adapt constantly. Where are scientists who are subjects for appeal? I remember the «80„. The potential of the Soviet science was much greater. This ideology, let's say, developed public interest and pluralism. Now the situation is absolutely different. The Belarusian authority hides the ecological problems and the public opinion is roughly and systematically pushed aside.
— But first of all, the science is silent!
Not only science. Let's consider the public organizations, our
Meantime, I personally found out that such a structure as the National Park «Belovezhskaya Pushcha» doesn't have a legal framework for a long time. It has to be «sealed up» in slapdash fashion, because the statutory documents, the original codex regulating its activity, determining actions, defining international status and so on, is has not been accepted or enforced by laws until now. I do not know whether the Ministry of Justice or, for example, «Ecopravo„ nongovernmental organization should do this, but there is too much toleration towards abuses and infringements of clause 24 of the Law “About protected natural territories».
Recently my words proved to be true when the representative manager of a Danish governmental organization together with our academic nongovernmental organization «Belarus Birds Protection» came to the Pushcha to implement an
Generally, this is a disputable idea — to develop ecotourism on our small-sized protected territories, which don't even have a real protection regime. Damages caused by human impact are inevitable. Having only 3 — 5 % relatively protected territories we should not allow development of tourism in Parks. Facilities for tourists should to be looked for outside the borders of specially protected natural territories. Nevertheless, the state adopted this tourism idea and created the National program for development of tourism in Belarus 2001 — 2005. This program plans to use national parks as the «main centers for development of tourism». Have no illusions, this is the next form of ruthless exploitation of our beautiful nature. It is typical bureaucratic liberalism. We have already seen such examples of «soft contact with nature» in the Belovezhskaya Pushcha, «Pripyatski„ national park and other protected natural sites.
— In your opinion, who will be responsible for the destruction of the natural heritage of Belarus?
For the last seven years the authorities have tried to paint the fog pink. The Pushcha has got the international status of Biosphere Reserve, the European Diploma, and has been included in the World Heritage of Mankind. In principle, these are advance payments, the rules of the game for honest people. But instead of these, Ivan Titenkov has come to the Pushcha with a phrase: «You are walking on gold». He had the typical reaction of a petty entrepreneur seeing a temple. All the high titles of the Belovezhskaya Pushcha were piled up in a corner, in any case, kept handy only for the situation in which someone suddenly required a response for the robbery and the destructive actions, which have got an especially cynical character on the reserved territories. A hand on a hip, and … now we are worthy, Europe itself has granted the Diploma.
Today there is one more question, whether the Council of Europe will prolong the validity of the prestigious award — the European Diploma, given to the Pushcha in 1997. Five years (this is the exact validity period of this award, after which the next confirmation is necessary) have shown that the owners of the Pushcha did everything to offend the validity of the Diploma. The sawmill, which created a serious scandal, is a glaring example of this. It will soon become known what decision the European environmental matters department will take. Our initiative group has the intention to influence the acceptance decision and we already started to act.
Who will be responsible for the mockery? Since an authority with valid concerns about national values will come, it is necessary to ask this question in an appropriate way. Today is too early to speak. Laws and Constitution have been broken. The heritage was robbed and destroyed and so were the gene fund of rare wood, the biological diversity — priceless all over the world. Belarus has signed a number of international conventions and it holds responsibility for their implementation. Unfortunately, authorities do not respect and generally ignore these most important legal documents.
I think there should be two commissions to investigate the perpetrators. The first one should be a parliamentary commission, investigating the crimes against natural patrimony, including the Belovezhskaya Pushcha. The second should be the international commission, which would define the future of the European celebrity. I would especially emphasize the importance of the international commission's role. First of all, it is vital to give rights and appropriate powers to it. I believe there should be no Belarusian members of this commission because they would fall out and wear out. The situation in the Pushcha is so difficult now that it is necessary to sacrifice own «principles» and to allow international experts to make independent estimations in regard to the future. We shouldn't hinder or prevent them. The main problem is that we could be too late, because today or even yesterday is already late. Now it is a matter of rescuing the Great Remnants of Belovezhskaya Pushcha. We need a strategy and an action plan to carry out this task.