Update on Namibia’s horrendous plan to auction off 170 wild-caught elephants
Amidst international protest the Namibian government recently declared that meantime 57 live elephants had been sold to undisclosed bidders, and that 42 of these would be exported to destinations outside Namibia. Among the areas targeted for capture is the arid Kunene Region in the northwest of the country, where desert-adapted elephants have managed to survive. But the highly vulnerable population there “could be on the verge of collapse”, as a recent field investigation states.[1]
According to the environmental journalist Adam Cruise, who carried out the two-month field study on behalf of Fondation Franz Weber (FFW), even the removal of “just a handful of elephants from the Kunene region could have severe consequences on an already fragile elephant population reeling from years of drought, trophy hunting and government mismanagement.”[2]
Since 2017 three adult desert elephant bulls plus a 19 year old male were shot in highly controversial circumstances, three as so-called “problem animals” and one as a trophy. Among the victims was the legendary Voortrekker, who had been declared a problem elephant and shot by a hunter in 2019 – despite his reputation as a calm and peaceful bull. His death left elephant lovers around the globe devastated.
Only one mature breeding bull – known as Benni – is now left in the Ugab River/ Omatjete area. The number of females is also in sharp decline. And since 2014, of nine newborn calves not a single one has survived.
That some of the last desert-adapted elephants might end up in zoos or safari parks outside of Africa is a shocking vision to conservationists and wildlife lovers worldwide. It is also a violation of CITES regulations: Elephants in Namibia are listed under Appendix II, which implies that they cannot be exported outside their natural habitat. Namibia seems determined to wilfully “misinterpret” these rules, as they have done before. [3]
Conservationists and wildlife NGOs have called on Namibia to immediately halt the capture and export of wild elephants to captive facilities – for both legal and ethical reasons. In an open letter, Pro Elephant Network has urgently appealed to the CITES Secretariat to withdraw a previous statement that appeared to signal green light for the sell-off. The CITES Standing Committee will examine the legality of Namibia’s interpretation in regard to exports of live elephants at its next meeting in 2022.
There are also grave concerns about animal welfare. A capture operation of highly mobile elephants in such a large area would involve high risk of injury or mortality, as experts have warned. Also the life prospects of the elephants, should they be forced to spend their lives in captivity, will be dire. “African elephants are intelligent, sentient animals with highly developed emotional complexity, and strong social and family bonds that last a lifetime. It is unconscionable cruelty to subject these animals to brutal and traumatic capture, separating them from their families and condemning them to lifelong captivity for the sake of human amusement”, said the President of Humane Society International, Jeff Flocken.[4]
Why Namibia seems intent on wiping out their small population of iconic desert elephants instead of cherishing them as a national treasure and tourist attraction remains a mystery. This madness must be stopped.
Photo credit: Larry Laverty