Some African nations are seeking to relax an international ban on the ivory trade, but wildlife conservations fear that will lead to a renewed massacre of African elephants. Meanwhile, poachers in Africa are killing more elephants than they have in almost 20 years.
The surge in elephant poaching coincides with a revival of talk on legalizing the ivory trade. When the signatory states to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) meet in The Hague in June, "the ivory trade will be one of the most controversial issues" on the agenda, predicts Jochen Flasbarth, the German chief negotiator and Director of the Department of Conservation at Germany's Ministry of the Environment (BMU).
One of the reasons the article fails to state for the disparity between elephant numbers in Kenya and southern Africa is the complete ban on hunting in Kenya. South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe and Botswana take advantage of safari tourism to pay for their conservation efforts. A license to hunt an elephant costs a small fortune and a portion of the proceeds go to the village nearest the kill, thereby giving the local inhabitants a stake in preserving the wildlife that otherwise only threatens their crops.
Always getting smarter here. Thanks.
Thanks for the seed.
You're in Easy Mode. If you prefer, you can use XHTML Mode instead. |