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Kinyarwanda
Cutting of trees without authorization in Rwanda is illegal and punishable by the law. It is considered as an act of environmental degradation, which has negative impact on nature and humans in particular.
On Monday, two people were arrested in Kamabuye sector of Bugesera District for allegedly felling trees.
The duo allegedly cut trees locally known as Kabaruka or umushikiri, whose stumps they were trying to traffic out of the country.
The stumps of the local plant mainly found in the Eastern Province, are used as a raw material in the manufacture of perfumes and lotions.
The suspects were found with one tone of the tree stumps, which they were apparently trying to load on a truck plate number, RAA 275C.
According to Police in the area, the suspects after their arrest tried to bribe the officers to flee them, in vain.
Senior Superintendent Benoit Nsengiyumva, the Eastern Province Spokesperson sternly warned people involved in the criminal act saying “Rwanda National Police will not blink until they are arrested to face justice.”
“Trafficking of kabaruka and felling of trees without official authorization is a criminal offence which is punishable by the Rwandan laws,” said SSP Nsengiyumva.
He called for more cooperation with public to protect the endangered tree species such as kabaruka and forestry in general, through information sharing.
“We all know the great importance the environment on human lives, which we should strive to protect jointly,” he observed.
