We, the undersigned residents and supporters, call on SANParks, Cape Nature, and the City of Cape Town to halt and urgently review specific components of the Cape Peninsula Baboon Management Action Plan insofar as it proposes:

• The relocation of wild baboon troops into fenced enclosures
• The vasectomising of healthy male baboons
• Population control driven by spatial confinement rather than genuine coexistence

Baboons are highly intelligent, socially complex, wide-ranging wild animals. Confining entire troops to limited, fenced spaces and suppressing reproduction to prevent overcrowding raises serious animal welfare, ethical, and conservation concerns. Such measures fundamentally alter natural behaviour, disrupt social structures, and risk long-term psychological and physical harm. In effect, these enclosures function as permanent captivity, rather than conservation.

We are particularly concerned about the first major intervention proposed in the Final Action Plan:
the relocation of the Seaforth baboon troop to approximately 1.5 hectares of land on Plateau Road.

This area is grossly inadequate for a troop of chacma baboons. In the wild, baboons naturally:

• Range over many kilometres daily
• Forage across diverse and changing habitats
• Rely on spatial choice to maintain social stability and reduce conflict

No matter how well intentioned, a fenced area of this size cannot meet the ecological, behavioural, or welfare needs of a free-ranging baboon troop. Managing population pressure through sterilisation and confinement places the burden of human land-use decisions onto the animals themselves.

We wish to be clear - 

We fully support:

• The urgent roll-out and enforcement of strict waste management and baboon-proofing
• Measures that reduce human-derived food access
• Thoughtful, humane approaches to coexistence

We do not oppose the concept of a baboon sanctuary in principle. However, any sanctuary must:

• Be of a scale appropriate to the species
• Be justified by transparent, independent scientific and welfare assessments
• Prioritise natural behaviour and long-term wellbeing over convenience

Cape Town has an opportunity to lead globally in urban wildlife coexistence. That leadership must be grounded in science, transparency, and compassion — not in the permanent confinement and reproductive suppression of wild animals.

We therefore call on the responsible authorities to pause implementation of enclosure-based relocation and vasectomy, release full details and justifications for these measures, and meaningfully engage the public and independent experts before irreversible actions are taken.

Cape Town can and must lead with coexistence — not confinement.