Every night, when the sun goes down below the horizon and darkness falls, the inconceivable and incredible; but the actual practice takes place in the ancient walled city of Harar by hyena man -feeding hyenas mouth to mouth.
The practice, as sources stated, has started decades ago, in time there was drought in the hills where the wild animals roamed; and hungry hyenas slipped into the town and eaten human beings and cattle.
Then the community of the town started looking for ways to protect their own life and the cattle from hyenas. As a result, they found feeding the hyenas as a solution and the symbiotic relationships was born between the community and hyenas, as sources indicate.
Lastly, leaders of the city went on to create holes in the sand-colored stone walls that surround Harar to give the hyenas nightly access to the town’s garbage. And in the 1960s, a farmer started feeding hyenas scraps of meat to keep them away from his livestock.
Though he was the first hyena man, currently there are a lot of hyena men.
Yesim Zekaria, Harari State Culture and Tourism Bureau, Tourism Director said that for the community, the event has both spiritual and nonspiritual meanings.
She revealed that the act has been attracting mass tourists to the area and it has created job opportunities for many people.
The Bureau also hosts hyena feeding festival every year at state level in the presence of foreign and local tourists so as to preserve and pass on the culture, she underscored.
According to her, the event is very helpful to change the attitude of the society towards wildlife.
Abbas Yusuph is one of the hyena men engaged in feeding hyenas along with his sister, Ardi Yusuph. As he uttered, he learnt the activity from his father who got involved in the business for decades.
“After my father started feeding hyenas they had never attack the people of Harar, unless you harm their babies. Currently, I have continued the good work he had started and I will pass it onto my children when I grew old.” he added.
His work is now astonishing and drawing many tourists who came to visit the city’s ancient mosques nestled within its old stone walls.
The Ethiopian Herald May 27, 2020
BY TAMERU REGASA
