Animal activists have slammed the government’s latest elephant management plan, which is designed to relieve the pressure the growing elephant population is putting on the environment.
The plan, called the Draft Norms and Standards for the Management of Elephants in South Africa, was released by Environment Minister Marthinus van Schalkwyk this week and essentially gives a careful green light for the resumption of elephant culling, which was halted in 1994.
Animal Rights Africa called the draft regulations ‘devoid of compassion and respect†and ‘only wedded to conservation for profitâ€.
‘Despite compelling scientific and ethical evidence against killing elephants en masse (euphemistically referred to as culling), it comes as no surprise to us that Van Schalkwyk, through the recently released Draft Norms and Standards, is sanctioning the resumption of culling in the Kruger National Park and other reserves,†said the organisation’s Michelle Pickover.
The culling of elephants in the Kruger National Park has been a contentious issue for some time. Scientists have said the park, which has a population of at least 12 500 elephants, can only support a population of 7 500. Environmentalists are split over whether it is more important to protect biodiversity or elephants’ right to life.
The new plan declares that ‘culling may be used to reduce the size of an elephant population subject to — due consideration of all other population management optionsâ€, adding that, ‘where lethal measures are necessary to manage an elephant or group of elephants or to manage the size of elephant populations, these should be undertaken with circumspectionâ€.
Apart from culling, the plan also encourages the use of contraception and the relocation of animals.
Van Schalkwyk commented that personally he would have preferred not to consider culling and contraception. ‘But I am persuaded that all these options have a potential role to play under different circumstances,†adding that he would never give a blank cheque to culling.
Pickover said the strategy was linked to ‘South Africa’s overt utilisation stance on the commercial exploitation of wild life — And the context in relation to elephants is that South Africa is playing a kingpin role to get a mandate for the down-listing of elephants at Cites and the unbanning of the ivory trade,†Pickover said.
Opponents of culling have in the past threatened South Africa with a tourism boycott if it was reintroduced. But the conservation group World Wildlife Fund (WWF) said the consideration to approve the culling of elephants was valid. ‘Although WWF does not advocate culling as the preferred management alternative, we recognise that it is a management option and reiterate our view that all other options should first be explored,†said Dr Rob Little, acting chief executive of WWF South Africa.
Rudi van Aarde, a scientific panellist who was involved in drawing up the plan, does not believe that the new draft encourages culling. He told reporters that culling would become less likely if the rules were adopted. The management plan was published in the Government Gazette on Friday with 60 days to canvass comment.