Swaziland ranked most successful in rhino conservation

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Toko
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Swaziland ranked most successful in rhino conservation

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Lowvelder: Swaziland ranked most successful in rhino conservation

Nepal in the Himalaya Mountains and Hlane, one of the national nature reserves in Swaziland have two things in common: Zero poaching for the past few years and zero tolerance for poachers.
6 February 2015 08:31


MBOMBELA – Nepal in the Himalaya Mountains and Hlane, one of the national nature reserves in Swaziland in the Lubombo Mountains, have two things in common: Zero poaching for the past few years and zero tolerance for poachers.
The year 2014 was the third year that no poaching incidents were reported in Nepal – neither of rhino nor of tiger.
Mr Rubak Maharjan has been working in the Chitwan National Park in Nepal since the mid nineties. He was part of this landmark announcement.
He and his co-workers along with five other institutions in Nepal recently won the enforcement award for best site-based intelligence network from the World Wildlife Fund’s Tigers Alive Initiative Award after the Nepal government announced a 63 per cent increase in its tiger population.
According to Mr John Scanlon, secretary general of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), Nepal’s success is the result of zero tolerance with any illegal trade in wild-life.
He said, “Strong and committed leadership, excellent national collaboration among enforcement entities, parks agencies and local communities, and lastly targeted intelligence-led enforcement actions leading to arrests of key players at the top of the criminal chain.”
For the Kingdom of Swaziland to boast a similar record, seems to be impossible but it is true: Only three rhino have been lost to poaching since 1992.
The country also borders Mozambique, where 80 per cent of active poachers in the Kruger National Park come from.
There are just about 20 000 rhino left in Africa. Long before the dawn of modern man, these iconic animals ranged all over the region.
The first rhino ever killed in Southern Africa, was by a Dutch settler Mr Leendert Janssen in 1647, who wrote that one was shot “near the fort”.
Mr Ted Reilly has led conservation efforts in the little kingdom.
He spearheaded the creation of the protected areas network, along with the support and endorsement of the late King Sobhuza II and more recently King Mswati III.
In 1964 Reilly turned his family farm, Mlilwane, into a wildlife sanctuary, after the British colonial government denied land for a national park.
He also drafted the Game Amendment Act which is a powerful piece of conservation legislation that was passed into law by Parliament.
According to the Game Act, if you poach or attempt to poach, one of the specially protected species, white or black rhino, elephant or lion, you will go to jail, without the option of paying a fine to get off your jail sentence.
There is a minimum of five years’ imprisonment, which can be increased to 15 years.
On top of your jail sentence, the prescribed value of the rhino poached must be paid back to the owner of the animal, and if you can’t, then an additional two years will be added to your jail term.
Anti-poaching legislation in Swaziland is preventative legislation.
But there is more: Any ranger can search any person or his property without a search warrant, and there is a standing public offer of a R 100 000 reward for any information that leads to the conviction of a poacher which has been very effective.

Because of this effective legislation and enforcement, the International Union for Conservation of Nature has ranked Swaziland as the most successful country for rhino conservation in Africa.


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Re: Swaziland ranked most successful in rhino conservation

Post by Lisbeth »

Toko wrote: Because of this effective legislation and enforcement, the International Union for Conservation of Nature has ranked Swaziland as the most successful country for rhino conservation in Africa.
How come that SA has not tried this way yet -O-


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Re: Swaziland ranked most successful in rhino conservation

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According to the Game Act, if you poach or attempt to poach, one of the specially protected species, white or black rhino, elephant or lion, you will go to jail, without the option of paying a fine to get off your jail sentence.
There is a minimum of five years’ imprisonment, which can be increased to 15 years.
On top of your jail sentence, the prescribed value of the rhino poached must be paid back to the owner of the animal, and if you can’t, then an additional two years will be added to your jail term.
Anti-poaching legislation in Swaziland is preventative legislation.
But there is more: Any ranger can search any person or his property without a search warrant, and there is a standing public offer of a R 100 000 reward for any information that leads to the conviction of a poacher which has been very effective.


Good question, Lis! 0*\


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Re: Swaziland ranked most successful in rhino conservation

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Ja, but to be fair, one should say, that Swazi's white rhino are all in a fenced and small section of Hlane which is very easy to control. These rhino live in a sort of big enclosure (together with elephant, giraffe and some other species) and it's certainly not the classic way of biodiversity conservation to keep megafauna in mini reserves 0: Their habitat is highly overgrazed and there is hardly any living tree left -O-

The other reserves where black rhino live are different though \O


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Re: Swaziland ranked most successful in rhino conservation

Post by Lisbeth »

Lack of info make you draw the wrong conclusions 0*\
:ty: Toko 0/0 But the law is not bad in any case ;-)


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Re: Swaziland ranked most successful in rhino conservation

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No reason the same penalties can't be applied here! :yes:


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Re: Swaziland ranked most successful in rhino conservation

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Thanks Toko. \O


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