Lockdown in South Africa: Free run for poachers

Almost two and a half months officially prescribed Lockdown gave the South Africans the course. In front of food expenditure are long queues, Doctors complain more and more cases of malnutrition, unemployment is expected to climb, according to forecasts coming up on 50%. Now the unique animal world suffers. Had a hard curfew initially led to the national parks of the country was at peace, watching Ranger is currently more cases of poaching.

Thilo Thielke

Free Rapporteur for Africa, based in Cape town.

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In the Pilanesberg national Park and the protection of Mafikeng and Botsalano areas, employees of the national Park authority and a guardian of the organization “Rhino 911” dozens of rhinos have cut off the Horn, to protect them from the poachers. The Horn consists of Keratin, a fiber protein that is also found in hair and finger nails. Exact Figures about how many rhinos poached, and how many being dehorned you were held back, in order to protect the animals. Nico Jacobs, a helicopter pilot and founder of “Rhino 911”, reported that during his flights he discover lately, almost every day the carcass of slaughtered slain rhinos.

Dead rhinos in the Safari regions

Without the valuable Horn, the animals can reach a weight of up to 2.6 tons and a body length of almost four meters, for the poacher hardly a value. For a kilo of Horn are currently being paid around $ 60,000. Mainly in the High Society of countries such as China or Vietnam, the powder is as a supposed medicine for any Suffering popular and more expensive than Gold or cocaine.

For the past three years, Rhino 911 supports “” the “Dehorning”. The method is not without controversy. The Horn grows again, however, critics argue that horn loose Rhino bulls were able to defend themselves well. In addition, it was made in the past, the observation that African poachers had slaughtered Rhino without a Horn slaughtered: out of Frustration, because they were chased for days, the traces of a worthless animal, or to prevent this from happening a second Time.

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