Poachers strike pro-trade advocate
In an audacious attack on Friday, 24 May, poachers killed three dehorned rhinos on the farm of South Africa’s largest private rhino owner and breeder, John Hume.
Hume (70) owns over 800 rhino and has been a vociferous supporter of legalising trade in rhino horn in order to curb the rhino poaching crisis.
“I can confirm that three adult male rhinos were poached last Friday on John’s ranch in the North West. John is devastated by this blow and deeply concerned,” said Tanya Jacobson, campaign manager for RhinoDotCom, Hume’s lobby group for the legalisation of rhino horn trade.
“A fourth bull was severely wounded and being treated, but is in a critical condition,” Jacobson added.
This is the first time that Hume has had rhinos poached at his North West ranch, but the rhino-farming tycoon has, since 2007, lost nine rhinos to poachers at his Mauricedale Game Ranch in Mpumalanga, where he does large-scale breeding of the animals.
This is despite Hume dehorning all of his rhinos and shaving off the regrowth every year. The 70 year old Hume is reported to have more than 500kg of rhino horn with a retail value of over R200-million stockpiled in safety vaults off his property.
Due to the incredible demand and high black market price of rhino horn, poachers still kill dehorned rhinos for the stump of horn that remains.
The number of rhinos poached in South Africa this year has reached 354 nationwide, with some experts predicting that this could reach close to 1000 by the end of 2013.
“We find this situation incredibly frustrating and depressing when these rhino deaths are so blatantly unnecessary. Rhino horn can be provided from live, healthy, happy animals. These brutal and tragic poaching incidents can be avoided, yet much of the global society insists on keeping a legal rhino horn trade banned on the basis of ethics,” said Jacobson.
International trade in rhino horn has been banned since 1975. Internal trade within countries was allowed to continue, but in February 2009 the national moratorium on rhino horn trade became law in South Africa, halting the practice altogether.
“For many years before this, poaching figures were minimal, less than 30 rhinos per year. In 2009, 122 rhinos were poached and this number has risen to its current levels at an alarming rate,” said Jacobson.
“The question I ask is, how ethical is it to allow this slaughter to continue when a potential solution remains untested?” Jacobson added.
Jacobson said that an investigation into the attack on Hume’s ranch was being conducted, but that no leads had yet been found. – The Write News Agency