Tough laws saving rhino populations
© 2001 Reuters
June 12, 2001
By Ed Stoddard
MLILWANE NATURE RESERVE, Swaziland, June 12 — Tough anti-poaching laws, perhaps the most stringent in Africa, are credited with saving Swaziland’s rhinos from almost certain extinction. “Poaching has never been lower, but it’s always a threat that needs to be taken seriously,” Ted Reilly, the chief executive officer of Swaziland’s Big Game Parks, told Reuters.
THERE WAS a time when the situation looked bleak. The landlocked kingdom, which began restocking its nature reserves with rhinos imported from neighboring South Africa in the 1960s, saw an upsurge in poaching 13 years ago.
From 1988 to 1991, some 25 Swaziland rhinos a year were killed for their horns, sold in southeast Asia to treat fever. ”Rhino horn does hold fever-reducing properties, but it’s not as effective as aspirin,” said Reilly.
The other big market is Yemen, where a dagger handle made from rhino horn is a major status symbol.
Reilly said Swaziland’s rhinos started being killed after they caught the eye of Zimbabwean poachers who had decimated that country’s rhino population.
“In Zimbabwe the poachers even shot rhinos that had been dehorned because they became frustrated if they spent a whole day tracking an animal only to find it had no horn and they did not want to waste time tracking it again by mistake,” he said.
The poachers did not mess around, using AK-47s to kill the animals and scare off Swazi conservation officials, who were usually armed only with shotguns loaded with birdshot.
“The poachers were so cheeky that they actually entered bomas (holding pens for newly released animals), frightened off the officers with their assault rifles, killed the rhinos in the bomas and made off with the horns,” Reilly said.
With 80 percent of Swaziland rhinos killed off by 1991, he and other conservationists pushed for legislation with teeth.
GETTING TOUGH WITH POACHERS
They got it in the form of the 1991 Game Act.
“It is a great piece of legislation because it introduces tough minimum punishments. It also removes discretion from the courts because they were playing around with us,” Reilly said.
The law divides the country’s wildlife into three categories. At the top of the list is “Specially Protected Game,” comprising elephants, lions and rhinos.
Africa has two species of rhino, black and white. The names are misleading as both are gray and have two horns. But the larger white rhino has a wide mouth and is a grazer, while the black rhino has a hooked lip and browses on leaves.
Anyone convicted of poaching specially protected game in Swaziland faces a minimum sentence of five years in prison. They must also “replace” the slain animal by paying to have another one introduced to the reserve — which can cost tens of thousands of dollars in the case of rhinos or elephants.
If they cannot they spend at least seven years in prison.
Swaziland is the only country with a mandatory replacement law for killing game, in line with an old Swazi custom that says if you kill a man’s cow you must “bring it back to life.”
For killing royal game, which covers the vast majority of wildlife in sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarchy, the minimum punishment is a $500 fine plus the replacement of the animal or a cash payment for the value of the animal.
If not, you get two years in prison. And the fine cannot be less than the value of the animal taken, which in the case of a sable antelope would be around $3,200 or more.
In the case of “common game,” impala antelope, gray duiker, blue wildebeest and warthog, the minimum fine is $75 or six months in jail plus the replacement of the killed animal. If you cannot replace the animal you get an extra year in prison.
Swazi rangers have also been armed with assault rifles and are allowed to shoot to kill to protect themselves. They have killed at least two poachers in the past 10 years.
RESULTS SPEAK FOR THEMSELVES
“Poachers are ruthless and they use weapons of war. Our rangers have to protect themselves,” Reilly said.
Swaziland’s game rangers and anyone acting under their orders are immune from prosecution when carrying out their duties and have the right to search without a warrant.
Reilly says the results speak for themselves: “Since December 1992, we have not lost a single rhinoceros or elephant to poachers.”
This has allowed the rhino population to recover, but he said the number cannot be made public for security reasons.
“The legislation is only part of the story. We also have very dedicated rangers and other staff who have made it all possible,” he said.
Conservationists in Africa and elsewhere say Swaziland’s no-nonsense approach is a model for other countries.
Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands, a noted conservationist and fan of African wildlife, heaped praise on Swaziland’s efforts to contain poaching this year during a visit to the kingdom and South Africa.
But Reilly said there was no room for complacency, noting with concern that a backlog of cases in the courts could be used by poachers as a window of opportunity.
“People will take advantage if they see things are not coming to trial so we have to move things along in the courts. Right now it is more of a threat than a reality but we could see a new increase in poaching if it persists.”