Risking my life to protect Congo's forest

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In the 1990s the Democratic Republic of Congo, then Zaire, was in the grip of a violent civil war. The conflict reached the remote area of the Ituri forest in the north-east of the country - an area with enormous biodiversity but also rich in minerals and diamonds. Dedicated conservationist Corneille Ewango hid in the forest from armed groups to try and protect the area’s plants and animals, despite repeated threats to his life. He spoke to Rachael Gillman for Witness History. (Photo: Corneille Ewango in the Ituri forest. Courtesy of Corneille Ewango)