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Mpumelelo Nyoni Chronicle Reporter
Kingpins behind poaching syndicates are never arrested leaving small fish to face justice, an official with the Forestry Commission has said. Speaking at commemorations to belatedly mark World Wildlife Day at the National Museum of Natural History in Bulawayo, Charles Mashingaidze said real perpetrators who master-minded poaching often go unpunished.
“The poisoning of about 69 elephants at Hwange National Park last year shows that organised syndicates use the poor in communities to carry out poaching.
“There is a need to find and punish the real perpetrators because ordinary people are mere instruments in the larger scheme of things.
“The government must also educate the community on the importance of wildlife so as to buttress the laws that protect the animals,” said Mashingaidze.
He highlighted the need to conscientise the community on the link between forestry and wildlife so that gains of the land reform programme were realised.
He said deforestation, overgrazing and tobacco farming increased the risk of wildlife being endangered thus there should be a sustainable balance of these activities.
Harold Johnston, a professional hunter, said conservation instead of preservation of wildlife should be adopted.
“Gonarezhou National Park has about 10,000 more elephants than it should which will be a danger to people living around the area. Poaching can only be curbed if elephants and rhinos are bred for their tusks and horns and sold to willing buyers.
“The government must spearhead this initiative so that there is a market for communities to earn a living. This will ensure that the poor are not used as instruments of syndicates who mastermind poaching.
“Instead, the community will be empowered and understand the importance of endangered species.”
The 68th session of the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed March 3, the day of the adoption of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), as World Wildlife Day, to celebrate and raise awareness of the world’s wild fauna and flora.
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