Minister Dion George. (Photo: Environmentza/X)
Wildlife ranchers have accused Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment Minister Dion George of “hiding behind a process of his own making” by failing to set and allocate annual trophy hunting quotas for African elephants, black rhinos and leopards.
On Friday, the minister announced his decision not to set the 2024 to 2025 Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (Cites) export quotas for African elephants, black rhinos and leopard hunting trophies pending a court outcome.
This follows an ongoing legal battle being waged by Wildlife Ranching South Africa (WRSA), which is before the Gauteng high court, which challenges aspects of the quota-setting process.
“The minister’s decision aims to protect the integrity of the process and ensure legal certainty while the matter is before court,” George’s department said, adding that it would await the outcome of the court proceedings before taking further steps.
“Once a judgment has been delivered, the minister will consider the court’s ruling and decide on the way forward in line with South Africa’s conservation objectives and its obligations under Cites.”
The department said it remains committed to working with all relevant stakeholders to ensure that future quota decisions are scientifically sound, legally compliant and support both conservation and sustainable use.
However, WRSA has rejected what it called George’s “misleading” statement, saying the assertion that quotas cannot be set until the court rules on its application was false.
“The only reason WRSA approached the court is because the minister had already failed to carry out his legal duty to set the quotas. The court case exists because of his inaction,” it said.
“To now use that very case as justification for prolonging his failure is circular reasoning of the highest order and a transparent attempt at political sleight of hand.”
In November last year, WRSA launched legal action against George and 11 other respondents regarding the ongoing failure to issue the national annual hunting quotas for elephants, black rhinos and leopards, for both the 2024 and 2025 calendar year.
It said these annual quotas are not optional, but rather a statutory obligation under South African environmental law and a binding requirement under the country’s commitments to Cites.
“This is responsibility turned on its head,” WRSA chief executive Richard York said of George’s statement. “The minister is using a case brought against him for failing to do his job, as the very reason to keep failing at that job.”
At its core, this is not prudence but evasion, WRSA claimed. “Instead of taking responsibility, the minister is hiding behind a legal process of his own making. This is a classic case of rule by delay replacing the rule of law. The wildlife industry and the communities that rely on us cannot afford such evasions.”
The law binds the government equally, it noted. “Ministers do not get to choose whether or when to exercise their legal duties. Failure to act is as unlawful as acting irrationally.
“To cite ‘respect for the court’ while using the judiciary as a political shield is to distort the separation of powers.”
The spokesperson for the department of forestry, fisheries and the environment Thobile Molobi told the Mail & Guardian that the minister had noted WRSA’s statement.
According to WRSA, international hunters wishing to visit South Africa have been unable to legally hunt elephants, black rhinos and leopards from 2021 to 2025. This, it said, is because the department has either published quotas too late in the year or failed to issue them at all.
The country’s hunting industry generates R44 billion a year and, without national quotas, millions in revenue is being lost.
“Over the past five years, South Africa has lost an estimated R1.75 to R2.25 billion in direct revenue from high-value hunting safaris for leopard, elephant and black rhino,” it said.