Umbabaat/Ingwelala controversial lion hunt

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Re: Umbabaat/Ingwelala controversial lion hunt

Post by Richprins »

Maybe so, but there is another side. Here is what happened to the Cecil hunter:



The Minnesota dentist accused of killing one of Africa's most famous lions reportedly closed his practice
Barbara Tasch
Jul. 29, 2015, 10:06 AM

When Minnesota dentist Walter Palmer went on his $55,000 safari to Zimbabwe, he probably didn't expect this.

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Palmer has been accused of killing Cecil, a beloved 13-year-old lion, and he is now facing poaching charges.

The fiercest backlash came from social media, where people have been calling for Palmer to be hunted and killed.

The animal-rights group PETA called for Palmer to be hanged, and others have said he should be publicly shamed or have his teeth pulled out without anesthetic.

The threats prompted Palmer to close his dental practice.

Palmer's dental practice's Facebook page was taken offline on Tuesday, Vice News reports; it had received many nasty comments.

Vice notes that people" left stuffed animals at the door to his shuttered office Tuesday in a sign of protest."

Palmer has spoken out, saying he was "upset" over the comments and threats he was receiving and still insists he did not know the lion he killed was protected and that he regrets killing the animal.

"I deeply regret that my pursuit of an activity I love and practice responsibly and legally resulted in the taking of this lion," Palmer said in a statement.

He added that his guides had permits and thought everything was being handled properly.

Palmer, who already has a felony record related to shooting a black bear in Wisconsin, according to Vice News, also said he had not been contacted by either US or Zimbabwean authorities.

"I have not been contacted by authorities in Zimbabwe or in the U.S. about this situation, but will assist them in any inquiries they may have," Palmer said in his statement.
lion roaringFlickr/Eric Kilby

One of the most graphic descriptions of what Palmer's punishment should be came from media personality Piers Morgan, who was among the people calling for him to be hunted and killed.

He added graphic details of what he would do:

"I will sell tickets for $50,000 to anyone who wants to come with me and track down fat, greedy, selfish, murderous businessmen like Dr. Palmer in their natural habitat. We would all take a bow and fire a few arrows into his limbs to render him incapable of movement.


http://www.businessinsider.com/dentist- ... 015-7?IR=T


https://www.theguardian.com/environment ... ns-to-work


https://www.news24.com/Africa/Zimbabwe/ ... n-20151012

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Re: Umbabaat/Ingwelala controversial lion hunt

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DEA to probe if lion hunted in private park was from Kruger

BY SHEREE BEGA - 10 JULY 2018 - SATURDAY STAR

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The Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) says it is considering allegations that a lion may have been illegally baited in a private reserve adjacent to Kruger National Park in a hunt organised for a US trophy hunter.

“We are in the process of considering the allegations and will review all the relevant information and then make a decision on whether or not action will be taken,” said spokesperson Albi Modise yesterday.

Controversy has dogged the “secretive” June 7 hunt in Umbabat Private Nature Reserve, part of the unfenced Associated Private Nature Reserves (APNR), bordering Kruger.

The Conservation Action Trust first reported the hunt, citing unconfirmed reports that the hunted lion may have been Skye, from Kruger’s Western Pride.

This week, in a letter sent to the DEA by environmental attorneys Cullinan & Associates on behalf of its clients, the EMS Foundation, and Ban Animal Trading raised concerns that violations of the 2007 Threatened or Protected Species (Tops) legislation were committed during the hunt.

The organisations cited how their repeated requests to Mpumalanga conservation authorities to view the hunting permit had been ignored. “The warden of UPNR said in a statement to the press that the lion was baited, allegedly to ensure the correct lion was shot. An official confirmed this on record,” read the letter.

“Baiting of lion is permitted in terms of the Mpumalanga Nature Conservation Act (MNCA), provided the permit issued specifies it.

“However, baiting of lion is not permitted by the Tops Regulations, 2007, as amended

“There is good reason to believe the lion that was hunted was not the animal which was specified in the permit. Our client and other concerned individuals have been denied the opportunity to inspect the skin despite repeated requests, from which only an adverse inference may be drawn.”

Kholofelo Nkambule, spokesperson for the Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Agency (MTPA), said on February 6 authorities in Kruger indicated they would not support the hunt due to predator population figures.

“At that stage MTPA also was not supporting the hunt without any population information. The information was submitted later the same month and our approval was sent on February 22. Based on the 2017 predator census information, the hunt of one lion was regarded as sustainable.”

When asked whether baiting was allowed, Nkambule said: “Two provinces in South Africa are not Tops compliant yet, of which Mpumalanga is one. The hunting permit was therefore issued in terms of the MNCA … Given the information available at the time the lion was hunted, it appears the lion was a male lion that complies with the requirements of the APNR hunting protocol.”

Access to the skin had been denied, because “the moment that the hunting client pulled the trigger on the lion, he took ownership of the animal”.

Ike Phaahla, spokesperson for SANParks, said it managed an ecosystem and not individual species or animals. “We manage a national parks system that does not allow for hunting. The dropping of the fences with the APNR is managed by agreed protocols which specify what can be done or can’t be done.

“It was a noble idea to increase the range for animals and allow for free passage. These private reserves have resident prides within their land which makes it difficult to say an animal is a Kruger animal or not.”

Last month, UPNR management said it engaged in commercial hunting to help fund its conservation costs.

“None of the funds from hunting goes to any individual … All hunting in the UPNR is governed by national and provincial law, and is further guided by the Greater Kruger Hunting Protocol, which is a well-defined document compiled by representatives and experts from the KNP, state, province and privateThe UPNR does not engage in luring animals from beyond its boundaries for any purpose whatsoever.”

It disputed, too, that a named pride male was hunted. Michele Pickover, of the EMS Foundation, said efforts were under way to prohibit the export of the lion trophy to the US. “Even if this wasn’t Skye … trophy hunting should not be happening in unfenced private reserves next to Kruger. These animals are national assets.”

SANParks’s agreement with the APNR needed to be reviewed in a “transparent, public way”, she said.

Phaala said: “SANParks would like to see everyone in the APNR respecting the protocols which manage the agreement on the dropping of fences. We have expressed our concerns through relevant channels and are talking to APNR on this and other matters. We will communicate the outcome.”

See original article: https://www.iol.co.za/saturday-star/new ... r-15931184


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Re: Umbabaat/Ingwelala controversial lion hunt

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It took Sanparks quite some time before they decided to intervene in the discussion.


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Re: Umbabaat/Ingwelala controversial lion hunt

Post by Dzombo »

Lisbeth wrote: Thu Jul 12, 2018 2:28 pm It took Sanparks quite some time before they decided to intervene in the discussion.
This was THE major issue for me.
SANP spent a long time hiding behind: "It didn't happen within Kruger (A SANP) so nothing we can say/do about it"

I saw in a UK newspaper that the hunter who pulled the trigger has been named. Can't find a report online though.


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Re: Umbabaat/Ingwelala controversial lion hunt

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His name is written somewhere in one of the articles above.


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Re: Umbabaat/Ingwelala controversial lion hunt

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the US hunter was Jared Whitworth from Hardingsburg, Kentucky.


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Re: Umbabaat/Ingwelala controversial lion hunt

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When asked whether baiting was allowed, Nkambule said: “Two provinces in South Africa are not Tops compliant yet, of which Mpumalanga is one. The hunting permit was therefore issued in terms of the MNCA … Given the information available at the time the lion was hunted, it appears the lion was a male lion that complies with the requirements of the APNR hunting protocol.”

Access to the skin had been denied, because “the moment that the hunting client pulled the trigger on the lion, he took ownership of the animal”.

\O


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Re: Umbabaat/Ingwelala controversial lion hunt

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“Baiting of lion is permitted in terms of the Mpumalanga Nature Conservation Act (MNCA), provided the permit issued specifies it.

“However, baiting of lion is not permitted by the Tops Regulations, 2007, as amended


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Re: Umbabaat/Ingwelala controversial lion hunt

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Skye the lion – the beginning of the end for trophy hunting in the Greater Kruger?

Posted on 10 July, 2018 by Simon Espley in Hunting, Opinion Editorial, Wildlife and the Opinion Editorial post series

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Opinion post: Written by Simon Espley, CEO of Africa Geographic

The highly controversial shooting of a male lion by a trophy hunter in the Umbabat section of the Greater Kruger could conceivably mark the beginning of the end for trophy hunting in this part of Africa.

I am speculating here, but please hear me out…

Since we reported the known facts about the hunt, I and many others have been digging for clarity. Was the hunted lion indeed ‘Skye’? – a dominant male of the Western Pride, featured in this tribute ‘The Story of Skye’ by Charlie Lynam, a shareholder in Ingwelala, one of the properties making up Umbabat. The photos accompanying this opinion editorial are of Skye and his pride.

The trophy hunting team insist that the lion killed was not Skye the pride male, claiming that he was in fact an old male lion with worn teeth and a protruding spine. But they refuse point blank to supply a photo of the dead lion to prove their claim, citing legal and personal safety concerns. Lynam and others insist that Skye the pride male was killed. According to Lynam, Skye has not been seen since the day of the killing of that lion. Additionally, one of his cubs has since been killed and some of the pride lionesses have been beaten up as a new coalition of males has moved into the area. This is classic lion behaviour when a dominant male is removed and new male/s move into the vacuum – cubs are killed (infanticide) and lionesses are beaten up as they try to defend their cubs.

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Recently activist Don Pinnock, who broke the story, has revealed that the hunter in question is an American by the name of Jared Whitworth, from Hardinsburg, Kentucky. He also revealed the names of the South African hunting outfitter who sold and managed the hunt and the government official who signed off on the lion permit. Whitworth is a member of Safari Club International (SCI), which defines hunting success in terms of size and rarity. Apparently the larger the horns/tusks and rarer the animal, the more respect you are due for killing it. Whitworth’s 15-year-old daughter was awarded the title “2018 SCI Young Hunter of the Year”, and the SCI website features her proudly posing with a massive buffalo she killed. I found this out by visiting the SCI website a few days ago – and note with interest that today those pages have been removed (fortunately I saved a screenshot). Are the SCI members now afraid of the tree-huggers? Perhaps they should be …

And here, ladies and gentlemen, is where I start reasoning why I believe that trophy hunting will soon end in the Greater Kruger.

As I write this, an investigative agency has been hired to look into the legality of the Skye hunt, there is a popular online petition calling for justice, and various people are digging away to find out the personal information of everyone involved. Momentum is building, and I hear that the guilty parties are shaking in their boots. Anyone remember what happened to Walter Palmer, the American dentist who shot Cecil the Lion, once his name was known to the public?

Let me be blunt: Do trophy hunters really think that they can keep these things secret in this day and age, and do they and their families feel safe knowing that their deeds will be in the public domain sooner or later? I understand from sources that the southern African trophy hunting industry is already suffering from cancellations because of increased public scrutiny and vigilantism.

Beyond the hunter and the hunting outfitter, what about the other people involved – the government officials and game reserve management? How long before these people decide that they are not prepared to take the risk and stress of being associated with this industry that specialises in surgically removing the last-remaining big-gene animals? Many of these people are simply ordinary employees, who signed up to be involved in conservation and now find themselves defending an industry they don’t even believe in, and being subjected to personal abuse and threats of physical violence.

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We are increasingly seeing government departments and officials being targeted by a tidal wave of emotional backlash against trophy hunting. The fact that much of the commentary is factually inaccurate is beside the point – this is a battle of emotion, not fact. The anger generated amongst the social media-empowered general public, driven by activists who value impact over fact, is a toxic cocktail that will drive change – regardless of the consequences. Recently the Namibian government issued a ruling that trophy hunters to that country cannot publish kill photos on social media. This bizarre and unenforceable move is surely testament to the extent of the pressure that is being brought to bear on the trophy hunting industry.

Anti-hunting activists are evolving, and increasingly now combining their immense social media support base with targeted action against specific perpetrators. On the other hand, the trophy hunting industry does not have the DNA to evolve. They are still barking out the same defensive rhetoric from decades ago – despite the conservation landscape having shifted massively under the immense pressure of habitat loss and poaching. This industry will never be driven by ethics and transparency; it is entirely opportunistic, and known to retrofit the conservation argument based on the specifics of the particular animal hunted.

In the court of public opinion, we are all judged by the company we keep, and the partners we choose. In my opinion, if management of the Greater Kruger does not change tack and distance itself from their trophy hunting partners, this tremendous conservation initiative will self-destruct. Members of the Greater Kruger simply cannot any longer risk being associated with an industry that refuses to evolve, and regularly shoots itself in the foot. Quite simply, they have to dissociate themselves, or face eventual ruin.

And that is why I believe that it is only a matter of time before trophy hunting ceases to be a management tool in the Greater Kruger.

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Of course, the landowners and managers of these wildlife reserves will consequently need to source alternative funding for their rapidly escalating anti-poaching and general conservation costs. Photographic tourism can provide some of the extra funding, but not all of it. Even if all parties agree to higher lodge and vehicle densities (with concomitant increased environmental pressure) and higher lodge prices, not all areas in the Greater Kruger have the same tourism potential – this is a simple fact based on location, carrying capacity and biodiversity. Many of the most vocal social media activists have never been on safari in Africa, and are unlikely ever to. But hopefully they will donate to a fund to enable anti-poaching work in the Greater Kruger to continue.

I suspect that some landowners, especially the local communities, will seriously consider alternative land uses such as livestock and crops, once trophy hunting is off the table. There are few straight roads in Africa.

Some pro-hunting folk will refuse to acknowledge advice like mine if it does not come accompanied by instant iron-clad alternatives to hunting. With respect, this is like refusing to accept that your daughter is pregnant, just because she won’t tell you who the father is. The first step to solving a problem is to acknowledge that you have a problem.

I have great faith that in time trophy hunting in the Greater Kruger will be replaced by a more ethical, more relevant sustainable land-use strategy. This will take time, but it will happen. A luta continua!


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Re: Umbabaat/Ingwelala controversial lion hunt

Post by Lisbeth »

What did I say some time ago, RP?: "Outcasts of today's society" ? or something similar O**


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