Africa Wild

24th November 2013

The Department of Environmental Affairs welcomes the sentencing of two rhino poachers to 10 years imprisonment each by the Vryheid Magistrate’s Court in KwaZulu-Natal for poaching a black rhino and possession of two rhino horn.

The men – Philani Khanyile and Nhlathu Siyaya – were arrested at a roadblock in November 2010. The rhino horns were discovered in their vehicle.

The Department has also commended SANParks rangers and the police for their sterling efforts that have led to the arrest of 13 rhino poaching suspects countrywide in the past two weeks.

This brings to 285 the number of alleged rhino poachers arrested since January this year. A total of 267 alleged poachers were arrested in 2012.

It is due to the combined efforts of SANParks rangers, the SANDF and the police that the battle against rhino poachers in particularly the Kruger National Park will be won. Were it not for these men and women working at the coalface of rhino poaching in South Africa, many more of these iconic animals will have been poached this year.

The number of rhino killed for their horns in South Africa since January has increased to 860. Of the rhino poached, 521 have been killed in the Kruger National Park. A total of 87 rhino have been poached in Limpopo, 82 in North West, 79 in KwaZulu-Natal and 77 in Mpumalanga.

South Africans and members of the international community are encouraged to information regarding rhino poaching and related tip-offs to the anonymous tip-off lines 0800 205 005, 08600 10111 or Crime-Line on 32211.

2013-11-25 14:40

Dane McDonald, News24

Cape Town – Thirteen rhino poachers have been arrested in two weeks, bringing the total number of alleged poachers arrested since January to 285.

According to the Department of Environmental Affairs 267 poachers were arrested in 2012 highlighting an increase of 18 arrests with one month left in 2013.

“The reality is that without the input from various law enforcement agencies, the picture would have been much worse,” spokesperson for the Department of Environmental Affairs, Albi Modise, told News24.

Despite the concomitant increase in the number of rhinos poached for this year the department has lauded the combined effort of SANParks rangers, SANDF, and the police.

"Were it not for these men and women working at the coalface of rhino poaching in South Africa, many more of these iconic animals will have been poached this year," he said.

The number of rhino killed for their horns in South Africa since January has increased to 860. The majority of rhino (521) have been killed in the Kruger National Park (KNP).

The KNP borders Mozambique which is known to be fertile ground for illegal international crime syndicates.

The demand for illegal rhino horn from the Asian black market, where it is regarded as a status symbol, is believed to be the driver behind the rampant poaching.

According to earlier reports rhino poaching between 2008 and 2013 has cost the South African economy R1.1bn. Mostly due to loss of game land through risks of keeping rhino and expensive security measures.

South Africa is home to 25 000 rhino, around 80% of the world’s rhino population.

2013-11-30 21:39

Johannesburg - A suspected rhino poacher was shot dead by rangers at the Kruger National Park in Limpopo on Saturday morning, SA National Parks (SANParks) said.

"Shortly before 01:00 at the Crocodile Bridge section, our rangers made contact with three suspected poachers who were entering the park from the side of Mozambique," said spokesman Ray Thakuli.

"During contact, one of the suspects was fatally wounded while the other two escaped back into Mozambique."

A hunting rifle, ammunition, axes and knives were recovered.

Thakuli said rangers had also come across other poachers on Friday night.

"Two suspected poachers were arrested and we also recovered a hunting rifle and hunting equipment from them," he said.

It was unclear where and when the pair would appear in court.

A total of 119 people have been arrested at the Kruger National Park this year.

The park has between 8 400 and 9 600 white rhino. A total of 521 rhinos have been killed on the park this year.

Thakuli said the park was being surveyed to check if any other animals were injured or killed in the latest incidents.

- SAPA

Penga Ndlovu wrote:

Flutterby wrote: The arrests this week bring the total for 2013 to 117 individuals in the KNP. The KNP has lost 521 animals this year.

So it is 4.45 killed Rhino's for every one arrest they have made.

And it appears that usually the poachers operate in little groups of 2 - 3 individuals , of which one or two are caught/shot , with the others escaping .
That means for every one caught , at least two or even three remain free to poach again.
At this rate , it therefore appears that arrests should at least double or treble in order to make any significant difference

Okie.
You got the right idea

2013-12-03 14:21

Johannesburg - A Mozambican man has been jailed for six years by the Makhado Regional Court for attempted rhino poaching, Limpopo police said on Tuesday.

Musa Simango, aged 19, was sentenced on Monday, Colonel Ronel Otto said.

He was found guilty of attempted rhino poaching, unlawful possession of ammunition, and trespassing.

The 19-year-old Mozambican national and two of his accomplices were cornered by a ranger in the Punda Maria area of the Kruger National Park in October. A shooting ensued. One man, Derrick Maluleke, aged 34, was killed. A third man escaped.

- SAPA

A good sentence indeed!

And same for the departed one...

An open letter to SANParks CEO, David Mabunda

by Jayne Holness
05/12/2013

Dear Dr Mabunda,
I would like to bring something slightly concerning about your marketing and PR efforts to your attention. But before I do that, let me give you a brief overview of who I am and what I do.
I am passionate about South Africa, in particular, the rich natural heritage that we have been blessed with and inherited and I support those organisations that endeavour to protect this heritage. I spend as much time as I can outdoors and in nature and frequent as many South African nature conservancies and parks as I can. In fact, I have bookings at three of your incredible parks to look forward to next year.
To make a living, I am a passionate brand strategist. I strive to ensure that the brands I work with are positioned optimally for maximum impact and effect in the market and I work to help them maintain a good, responsible and positive image in the minds of consumers, ultimately to help guarantee their business success.
Let me return to the purpose of this mail. I follow SANParks on Facebook. You have an impressive 51 000 followers – a number to be proud of in the social media environment in South Africa. That means over 51 000 people have chosen to follow what you say and over 51 000 are recipients of the communication that you extend to them on a daily basis.
I have noted with interest the increasing number of posts on your Facebook page about rhino poaching and what has essentially become and been termed The War on Rhino Poaching. Fair enough, the levels of rhino poaching are alarming. Enough, I believe, to have imposed a decline on our rhino population and if you add up the numbers, to threaten extinction to the species in less than a decade.
We all have the right to be extremely concerned and frankly, angry. Our heritage is being threatened and very little is being done internationally to help tackle the demand for rhino horn. Parks and conservancies are the ones who appear to be bearing the brunt of this epidemic with little reassurance that it is going to slow down any time soon.
In the last three to four years, the South African public has finally been made more aware of what is happening and on what scale poaching is taking place. This is fair and arguably good. We are joint custodians of our natural heritage and have the right to know what is threatening it. It is also necessary to gather the support of South Africans to increase the pressure on government and international organisations to do something about this on the levels that count, i.e. to encourage proper attempts to challenge and curb the demand by a largely Eastern market – a demand fuelled by the leaders of the very countries in question.
On the ground at home, we are dealing with an equally complex situation. Our country and our neighbouring countries are plagued by poverty. Because of this it isn’t difficult to convince a few economically desperate people to plunder a natural heritage – South Africa’s rhinos. That is the least of their concerns. It is a heritage that they realistically reap no rewards from and one that they have had not had the means to appreciate and fully understand the greater meaning of. This is what SANParks is dealing with. And lately, this is what SANParks is becoming increasingly public about – the confrontation between its field rangers or hired task forces and the impoverished “runners” paid very little to break through a fence, find a rhino and kill it.
Via your daily updates, not only are your followers and the broader South African public being made aware of your attempts to curb poaching on the ground, we are also privy to the increasing number of human deaths that are a result of this anti-poaching effort. In fact, your organisation or brand, seems to be advertising the fact



In a post I was exposed to on the 20th November, along with thousands of other South Africans, SANParks acts almost proud that another poacher was fatally wounded (exclamation mark, exclamation mark). It seems fair to assume that SANParks is quite proud of the death of a human being who has done wrong and by deduction, one can’t help but think that SANParks thus advocates the death sentence.
From using Facebook for simple daily updates on the state of the natural nation to it becoming a platform to convey what one can argue is an underlying, yet powerful political ideology is quite a bold leap for a brand with a very defined purpose. This move is one that I am not certain is within the best interests of your brand or grounded in what I believe your brand purpose to be.
Instead of rallying a nation of natural heritage custodians and conservators, you seem to be rallying a crowd for war – a crowd just as pleased as you by the death of another human being that has done wrong; a crowd ignorant to the complexities that fuel this poaching epidemic; a crowd that is starting to outwardly condone death, war, murder as the final resolution.



This is what concerns me most. A brief look at global history might suggest that this attitude or approach only ends badly. Perhaps it is time to take a brand leadership stance and influence your followers from the position of a renowned and admired nature conservator and not an organisation that is proud to kill.
Regards,
Jayne Holness

- See more at: http://blog.getaway.co.za/environment/o ... 4mXMt.dpuf

I certainly agree and have said so more then once and any civilized human being should understand this principle. To applaud the death of a human being is returning to the darkest hours of Middle Age.

What people cannot and do not understand is that we are i deed in a war at the moment.
Lowscale yes, but nervertheless a war.
In war there casualties on both sides.
But to gloat on it is indeed stupid, but a simple statement of the facts would be enough.
But then again.
This is not Europe.
They are enlightened there.
No crimes or poverties there.
No murders.
No famine.
Mideavel times has come here to haunt us here in the deep and dark continent.
So I soppose you want us to apprehend them, feed them, trail them (if they ever get to court) and to let them get off on bail and go back to shoot another animal.
NO WAY IN HELL.

Shoot the bastards and let them rot in hell and tell everybody about it so they know if you come here to kill our wildlife you are going to get killed yourself.

You do not fight fire with water, but with fire.