It is not just conservationists who are decrying the sustained threat to the survival of Africa’s endangered elephants. It is an entire continent that knows we, just like our ancestors have co-existed peacefully with our wildlife for generations beyond count. Each species has kept a respectful distance, allowing the animals’ habitat to be the crowd-puller it is today.
That poachers’ bullets are feeding a burgeoning black-market trade of ivory in cyberspace is proving a bitter pill to swallow, especially as the very same animals are the attraction that is putting food on many of our tables, in the form of tourism revenues.
Secondly, the very same wildlife manage their habitats in such an orderly way and using some primordial gauge, maintain balance in the environment.
A thriving trade in illegal elephant ivory, rhino horn, snakeskin, turtles and rare birds is now a waking nightmare in the hard-to-police Internet forums and shopping websites worldwide. There, however, has to be a local, homegrown solution to the growing elephant slaughter, that has assumed crisis proportions, largely blamed on global demand.
International Fund for Animal Welfare has found 17,847 elephant products listed on 13 websites in China, which it termed the world’s top destination for “blood ivory” from Africa. This is perhaps inaccurate since similar sites exist in Europe and Japan, fuelled by well organised pin-stripe-suited business moguls, paramilitary-style gangs, a pliant Customs service, crooked security agents and an archaic legislation that only render cursory slap on the wrist court fines.
Now there are fears that some of those entrusted with protecting wildlife are complicit in the mindless slaughter. So who will watch over the watchers? Will the electronic tags and unmanned drones make a difference? Is it time to picket and lobby the Legislature to pass stricter laws with deterrent sentences that will raise the cost of poaching to a new level?
Is the intervention of sportspeople, local communities, conservancies and celebrities paying dividends? How about cash-starved county governments be mandated to fight for survival of wildlife so they can ensure the various tourism circuits become sustainable? Is it too far fetched to consider an eye-for-an eye introduction of the death penalty for anyone dabbling in prohibited wildlife trophies? Just a thought.
