By Tafadzwa Mushonga AS cases of poaching rise across Africa’s protected areas, some governments have responded with a military approach to nature conservation. From as early as the mid-1980s, military forces were used to enforce conservation, as were military strategies and technologies and paramilitary personnel. In 2011, about 165 South African soldiers were deployed to the Kruger National Park, and soldiers were deployed to Zimbabwe’s national parks in 2015. Deployment of soldiers and use of military tactics increased the number of arrests and poachers killed but have not reduced the number of rhinos and elephants poached. Militarised conservation has had unfortunate consequences. Sometimes poaching suspects died before getting their right to a trial. For example, between 2008 and 2013, about 300 suspected poachers were killed in the Kruger National Park. Communities living in and around protected areas also suffer unintended consequences such as being harassed by rangers for accessing resources. Though often hailed as heroes, park rangers have also been victims of militarised conservation. Not only are they at direct risk of death in the line of duty, they also experience violence as implementers of policy. This aspect has not received much attention from researchers. I studied the experiences of forest rangers in Sikumi Forest Reserve in Zimbabwe in 2016. I found out that forest rangers were subjected to occupational violence by their employers. Occupational violence refers to all acts or threats of physical violence, intimidation or verbal abuse, including exposure to life-threatening risks at the workplace. I further found out that exposure of forest rangers to violence contributed to the persistence of everyday violence such as aggressive policing. These findings also have to be taken into account when considering alternative approaches to conservation. Forest rangers and violence at work My study in Sikumi Forest Reserve took place from April to July 2016. The reserve is managed by the State through the Forestry Commission. The area was primarily reserved to protect endangered tree species and fragile Kalahari soils. The forest, however, shares a permeable border with Hwange National Park, providing continuity of wildlife movement. This means wildlife also has to be managed by the forest rangers. One of the key duties of Sikumi Forest rangers, as specified by the Forest Act, is to combat timber and wildlife theft. During the four months that I became a 14th member of the anti-poaching team in the reserve, I observed that forest rangers experience occupational violence through violent training. Though it is necessary for them to learn techniques for their safety, training is often conducted in a manner that is overly violent. They are subjected to direct physically harmful punishments and verbal harassment. “After training we are angry!” was a common statement among forest rangers, suggesting the emotional effect of a violent training process. Training instructors defended their methods as part of hardening