Notes
When Lake Kariba (Zimbabwe) was built in the late 1950s about 57,000 Tonga people were displaced and resettled elsewhere. The dam flooded the broad valley, their spiritual home, so they were relocated to environments unfamiliar to them. Their entire way of life was upturned. In the words of anthropologist Thayer Scudder "Today, most are still 'development refugees.' Many live in less-productive, problem-prone areas..."*.
Humans weren't the only ones who needed relocation. Operation Noah was a rescue effort that lasted 5 years during which over 6000 wild animals were rescued from the rising waters and relocated to the mainland.**
I have little idea what the valley was like before the lake was there but if it was anything like the Mana Pools conservation area downstream, a World Heritage Site, a natural paradise was surely lost.
Whenever I visit Kariba, I find myself contemplating its distinctive submerged forests. There were clearly some great trees in the extensive woodlands spread across the valley floor. I find myself imagining prides of lion lolling in their shade, elephant shaking them for their pods, baboons raucously clambering amongst the branches and leopard lying in their boughs waiting for some hapless antelope to pass below. I imagine a hunting party of Tonga men crouched behind a tree trunk, gesturing silently to each other. I imagine a gaggle of Tonga women chatting as they weave their way along shaded woodland paths, water filled pots delicately balanced on their heads, giggling, mischievous children at their heels.
I imagine that each of the tree skeletons is a ghostly reminder of the beautiful things and events, great and small, that were drowned by the rising waters and which are now lost to time.
Clarification: The Tonga (aka Batonga) people of the Zambezi valley were farmers and fisherman. I have not been able to find out if they also hunted. I'm sure hunters would have lived in the vast area now covered by water, perhaps the bushmen who were apparently there before the Tonga. Whatever the case, I will still imagine hunters crouching behind the tree trunks and gesturing to each other!
* Incomplete citation from Wikipedia: "Pipe Dreams: Can the Zambezi River supply the region's water needs?". Cultural Survival Quarterly. Retrieved 2007-07-31.
** http://operationnoah.blogspot.com
Camera & Exposure Information
| Canon EOS 40D | |
| Focal Length: | 130 mm |
| Aperture: | f/7.1 |
| Exposure: | 1/1600 sec |
| ISO Speed: | 320 |
Categories: [Flora] [Landscape] [Nature]
Comments
fantastic!
sazangnim on 10th February 2010 @ 9:31pm
Great shot! It really sets a mood.
Ps. My kids and I enjoyed your shots of elephants too.
thanks.
whacked daddy on 10th February 2010 @ 9:59pm
Impressive image. Reading your explanation and looking at the picture brings me in a kind of sad mood: Another lost place.
tom on 11th February 2010 @ 6:44am
terrebly expressive picture (so sad as well)
veronique on 11th February 2010 @ 2:38pm
Thanks for the comments everyone.
@tom, @veronique
It is certainly sad and a sobering reminder of the slow and steady march of progress. More on this in my next post.
Adrian Park on 11th February 2010 @ 3:47pm
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