Kenyan conservationists push for stricter anti-poaching laws

Nairobi — With a spike in the number of elephants killed for their tusks since the beginning of the year, Kenyan conservation advocates are calling on politicians to make laws much stricter to deter poaching. Without enforcement of such laws, illegal trade in ivory and other animal parts could harm the environment, as well as ruin the country's economically vital tourism industry, they say. Kenya lost 74 elephants to poaching from January to March this year, according to Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS) spokesperson Paul Mbugua. In all of 2012, poachers killed 384 elephants, up from 289 in 2011. High prices for wildlife products on the black market are encouraging even more people to engage in poaching, said director of the National Environment and Management Authority Geoffrey Wahungu. Elephant tusks and teeth are used for making jewellery, carvings, sculptures, piano keys, enamel plates and billiard balls. "Apart from just being used to show affluence and exoticism, people crave those wildlife products, for instance rhino horns, to cure health conditions associated with reproductive [health] and others use it as an aphrodisiac," he told Sabahi. If Kenya does not find long term solutions to stop poaching, the country's ecological system will be compromised, he said. "The animals being killed, such as the elephants and rhinos, are large mammals and they clear bushes to maintain Savannah landscapes where other animals stay," he said. He urged all Kenyans to take responsibility and report to the authorities any activity related to poaching. Earlier this month, KWS announced it was mobilising an additional 1,000 park rangers to combat poaching and protect the country's dwindling population of 35,000 elephants. Nonetheless, poachers continue their illegal activities unchecked because fines and prison sentences for convicted poachers are lenient under the current laws, Mbugua said. As a result, even when KWS officers arrest ivory smugglers and big game poachers, lax penalties under the Wildlife (Conservation and Management) Act of 1976 make it easy for violators to drift back into criminal activity, he said. "Sentences and fines provided for by the Act are now very low considering the current value of money," Mbugua told Sabahi. "The highest fine for wildlife crime under the Act is 65,000 shillings ($775). Most offenders get away with fines as low as 2,000 shillings ($24)." "This explains why we have, time and time again, arrested people who are out on bond and who have gone back to commit the same offences," he said. Under the Wildlife Act of 1976, ivory smuggling and poaching are considered petty offences or misdemeanours. However, because these illicit activities are so lucrative, they should be treated as economic crimes, which carry heftier penalties, Mbunga said. A bill pending in parliament proposes that violators face fines of more than 50 million shillings ($596,000) and sentences of more than 20 years in prison. "We want wildlife crimes to be regarded as economic crimes just like corruption, fraud and bribery," he said. "Poachers are people stealing from the public, as wildlife is a national resource. They deserve to be dealt with just like the corrupt." The threat posed by poachers to the country's wild elephant and rhinoceros herds has become part of the political platform of President Uhuru Kenyatta. "Poaching and destruction of our environment has no future in this country," he said during his inaugural speech April 9th. "The responsibility to protect our environment belongs not just to the government but to each and every one of us." Kenyatta's words give Kenya's anti-poaching movement a much-needed political boost, according to Mombasa and Coast Tourism Association chairman Mohammed Hersi. "The other reason why poaching has been going on unabated is because there was no commitment from top government officials in the fight, and that statement from the president gives this effort an impetus," he told Sabahi. Apart from applying stringent measures against poachers, the government should form a task force to assist authorities in investigating and prosecuting poaching cases, Hersi said. "We fear that poaching will deplete our wildlife," he said, adding that tourism makes up 12% of the Kenyan economy. "What this means is that we are kissing goodbye to tourism." Wildlife tourism is the biggest draw for Kenya's tourism industry, and other sectors such as the beach and cultural tourism revolve around it, Hersi said. "Almost all tourists who come to Kenya come for wildlife safaris, and after that they choose to relax on our Kenyan beaches, which means that if we lose our wildlife, then we better forget tourism as well," he said. "Elephants and other wildlife are worth more alive than they are dead," Hersi said. Source: Sabahi Online (Washington DC)

Vietnamese poacher nabbed with 30 kg of ivory ornaments

Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) officers at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport have seized thirty three kilogrammes of ivory ornaments worth over six million shillings from a Vietnamese national who was transiting through Kenya to Bangkok, Thailand. Thirty nine year old Nguyen Viet Truong who was traveling aboard a Kenya Airways flight KQ542 from Cotonou, Benin was arrested after a check by KRA Customs Surveillance and Targeting team noticed suspicious cargo in his two suitcases. Scanners revealed images of what was suspected to be ivory ornaments. When the suitcases were opened in the presence of KRA, police, Kenya Airways security and Kenya Airports Authority officials, 488 bangles painted various colors and weighing 33.6 kgs were discovered packaged in boxes labeled as flower vases were discovered. The Vietnamese national who had been scheduled to fly out of the country on the same day aboard KQ 886 flight was handed over to the police and is scheduled to appear in court to be charged with being in illegal possession of game trophies. He is among the many foreigners and Kenyans who have been arrested and arraigned in court to be charged with either illegal possession of game trophies or poaching. Source: The Star, Nairobi

Zim elephant poachers in court

TWO suspected elephant poachers arrested in Tsholotsho last week, leading to the recovery of 224kg of elephants tusks valued at $56 000, appeared at the Hwange Magistrates’ Court yesterday. Busani Moyo (36) of Bhule 2 village, Chief Magama in Tsholotsho and Cornelius Mudimba (35) of Kariangwe village, Chief Siansole, Binga, were charged with contravening Section 128 (b) of the Parks and Wildlife Act as read with Statutory Instrument 362 of 1990 (poaching) when they appeared before Hwange magistrate Lindiwe Maphosa. They were both remanded in custody to today for bail ruling. Bulawayo lawyer Tonderai Mukuku made the bail application on their behalf. It is the State case that police in Tsholotsho received information that Moyo and Mudimba were allegedly dealing in ivory and teamed up with detectives from Lupane and raided Moyo’s homestead. The police searched the homestead leading to the recovery of 27 elephant tusks and five pieces of ivory. Police arrested Mudimba while Moyo fled under the cover of darkness. However, Moyo was arrested two days later after the police had used his brother to phone him and lure him to come home under the pretext that police wanted to negotiate the case with him. When he eventually came, police immediately arrested him. Source: Newsday

Zimbabwe gazettes 11-year maximum sentence for poachers

The Zimbabwean government has enacted new laws imposing stiffer penalties of up to 11 years for poaching protected animals, the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority has said. ZPWMA public relations manager Ms Caroline Washaya-Moyo said the new laws would affect criminals who kill any protected animals gazetted by the Ministry Environment and Natural Resources Management. "Any person who is convicted for unlawful killing of a rhinoceros or elephant is expected to be sentenced to nine years for a first offender or eleven years for a second or subsequent offender," she said. The new penalties are contained in the General Laws Amendment Act of 2011, amending the Parks and Wildlife Act. Ms Washaya-Moyo said the new laws would help curb rampant poaching of rhinos and elephants. Zimbabweans are known to target rhinos and elephants for markets in Far East countries fronted by wealthy international criminal syndicates. Financial challenges have crippled ZPWMA efforts to curtail poaching. Zimbabwe is currently stuck with over 50 tonnes of ivory which the country has been prohibited to sell under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. It had been hoped that permission to sell the ivory stockpile worth over US$10 million would boost capacity of the authority to fund its conservation activities. CITES, which was held in Bangkok, Thailand last week noted that reliable techniques on wildlife trade tracking and forensic methods were needed to combat organised wildlife crimes, together with stronger punishments. New Ziana

SA donates six white rhinos to Botswana

This ad zapped. South African travel company and Beyond's Phinda private game reserve in KwaZulu- Natal is involved in a groundbreaking deal to translocate six white rhino to Botswana's Okavango Delta. It has been reported as the first private game reserve donation of rhino to another country. The translocation began in February following years of negotiation and planning. It is still under way. "The Okavango Delta has proven to be a successful rhino relocation habitat and Botswana has a strong security and monitoring framework in place whereby the military helps to protect the species," andBeyond said in a statement at the start of the translocation process on 8 February. Game scouts from Botswana received tracking and monitoring training from Phinda to assist with the move."The movement and behaviour of the six rhino will be closely monitored using satellite collars and telemetry and tracking equipment," the company said. It forms part of andBeyond's rhino protection efforts, which fall under its Care of the Land, Care of the Wildlife, Care of the People vision. The translocation was facilitated in partnership with conservation organisation Rhino Force and funded by insurance administrator Motorite Administrators. It follows in the wake of a 49% increase in illegal poaching in 2012, when 668 rhinos were killed in South Africa. "Botswana has an excellent security system in place to protect these endangered animals and will be a safe haven for the six relocated rhino," said andBeyond CEO, Joss Kent. "Translocations are fundamental to secure the ongoing survival of endangered species and this groundbreaking project led by andBeyond's conservation team aims to increase Africa's dwindling rhino populations for future generations to enjoy." The project has the support of the Botswana Rhino Management Committee, as well as assistance from the Eastern Cape's Chipembere Rhino Foundation for telemetry and tracking equipment being used by the game scouts. Source: Online

Nine Zimbabweans, Mozambicans arrested for rhino poaching in SA

Maputo — The South African police on Sunday arrested nine Mozambicans and Zimbabweans suspected of rhino poaching at a game farm in Lephalale, in the northern province of Limpopo. According to police spokesman Brig Hangwani Mulaudzi, cited on the “Times Live” South African website, the poachers were arrested while they were setting a fire inside the game park “to lure the animals to a spot where they would then kill the rhinos and dehorn them." The brigadier said the same gang was linked to a case in the same area where a rhino calf was killed two months ago. "The same modus operandi of burning a field was used to kill and dehorn the calf”, he said. Police confiscated a camera that was used to take pictures of the game farm, the rhinos and the movement of the owners. A grinder, a generator and two vehicles were also confiscated. The police did not say how many of the group were Mozambicans, and how many were Zimbabweans. Mulaudzi did not yet have the names of any of the poachers. In a separate case, two Mozambicans, named as Steve Mbombi and Roy Baloyi, appeared on Friday in the Lephalale Magistrate's Court to face charges related to poaching, said Muluadzi. Police confiscated a hunting rifle and an axe from them after they allegedly tried to poach game in the Kruger National Park. Their case was postponed to 15 March. Source: Online

ALLEGED ILLEGAL EXPORT OF ZIM ELEPHANTS

It has been rumoured that Elephant Experience in Victoria Falls have been exporting elephants to Zambia across the Limpopo under cover of darkness. We have also heard that they have been smuggling lion cubs across the border in the boot of a car. They are apparently assisted by Chief Mukuni who has a lodge on the Zambian side called Mukuni Big 5 Lodge. The Victoria Falls community has always had concerns about the location of Elephant Experience and due to this, in 2007, a meeting was held between Environment Africa, Environmental Management Agency, ZNSPCA, Victoria Falls Council and National Parks. Their concerns were about the degradation of the land occupied by Elephant Experience and lack of feeding and freedom for the elephants to express their natural behaviour. The conclusion of the meeting was that Elephant Experience had to find other, or more land but due to their contacts with the ruling party, nothing has ever been resolved. Johnny Rodrigues Chairman for Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force Landline: 263 4 339065 Mobile: 263 712 603 213 Email: galorand@mweb.co.zw Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/ZCTF-Zimbabwe-Conservation-Task-Force/246013052094585 Website: www.zctfofficialsite.org.