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RHINO REFLECTIONS
The next morning, we see five magnificent white rhinos in the
Park, sizing us up before crossing the path in front of our vehicle.
It’s refreshing to see them as they should be, with their horns intact.
Back in Johannesburg, I meet Pelham Jones of the Private Rhino Owners
Association. Pelham has been very active in assisting law enforcement
officials track down poachers.
It is no longer the occasional shooting from an AK-47 obtained in a neighbouring civil war. Now, it might be a professional single shot from a high calibre hunting weapon or a dart from a veterinary tranquilizer. In some cases, helicopters have been used.
The war is escalating. Perhaps it’s time to defund it.
From my trip it’s clear that South Africans feel the same way about their rhinos as we Chinese do about our Pandas. They are a source of inspiration and great national pride as we brought them back from what looked like inevitable extinction.
For South Africa, it’s also an important source of tourism revenue, which is now under threat.
Unfortunately, a very small number of people in Asia are still buying
rhino horn, either as speculation or for what they may believe is a
medicine or a tonic. The horns are made of keratin, the same type of
protein that makes up our hair and fingernails.
Legitimate traditional medicine in China ended rhino horn use in 1993.
As I leave Africa, I go with incredible positive memories of the beauty, the wide open spaces, the incredible diversity of large animals wiped out elsewhere on the planet, but also with sadness that the actions of just a few people in a world of 7 billion can jeopardize the future of the two largest animals walking the earth.
Collectively these people are sabotaging African economies and stealing from us all.
As the vast majority, we need to let them know that this is not acceptable and is damaging China’s relations with our friends and trading partners in Africa. We would be outraged if people were killing our pandas, we should be just as upset with what’s happening to rhinos and elephants in Africa.
From the conversations I’ve had, and the conversations WildAid has had with Chinese officials, there is a clear government commitment to collaborating to solve this. Peter Knights tells me Vietnam is also willing to collaborate.
But laws will only go so far. We need a drastic increase in awareness to reduce markets. Myself and other prominent Asians will be working with WildAid, African Wildlife Foundation, and other organizations to this end and we hope you will join us.
That means any of us who know people buying rhino horn or ivory need
to ask them to stop, explain to them what is at stake and ask them to be
part of the solution and not the problem.
It is no longer the occasional shooting from an AK-47 obtained in a neighbouring civil war. Now, it might be a professional single shot from a high calibre hunting weapon or a dart from a veterinary tranquilizer. In some cases, helicopters have been used.
The war is escalating. Perhaps it’s time to defund it.
From my trip it’s clear that South Africans feel the same way about their rhinos as we Chinese do about our Pandas. They are a source of inspiration and great national pride as we brought them back from what looked like inevitable extinction.
For South Africa, it’s also an important source of tourism revenue, which is now under threat.
Photo by Kristian Schmidt for WildAid
Legitimate traditional medicine in China ended rhino horn use in 1993.
As I leave Africa, I go with incredible positive memories of the beauty, the wide open spaces, the incredible diversity of large animals wiped out elsewhere on the planet, but also with sadness that the actions of just a few people in a world of 7 billion can jeopardize the future of the two largest animals walking the earth.
Collectively these people are sabotaging African economies and stealing from us all.
As the vast majority, we need to let them know that this is not acceptable and is damaging China’s relations with our friends and trading partners in Africa. We would be outraged if people were killing our pandas, we should be just as upset with what’s happening to rhinos and elephants in Africa.
From the conversations I’ve had, and the conversations WildAid has had with Chinese officials, there is a clear government commitment to collaborating to solve this. Peter Knights tells me Vietnam is also willing to collaborate.
But laws will only go so far. We need a drastic increase in awareness to reduce markets. Myself and other prominent Asians will be working with WildAid, African Wildlife Foundation, and other organizations to this end and we hope you will join us.
Photo by Kristian Schmidt for WildAid
Photo by Kristian Schmidt
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