This archive of published media articles about wildlife crime in Namibia aims to:
Public access to information is a vital component of ensuring community engagement in prevalent issues. Wildlife crime is one of the pressing environmental issues of our time.
Wildlife crime investigations are generally covert operations requiring utmost confidentiality to succeed. Investigations and prosecutions in complex cases may take months or even years to complete. For this reason, the information that can be released to the public without compromising cases is often limited. Nonetheless, the Namibian government strives to share as much information as possible with the public.
The Namibian media has welcomed this approach and regularly publishes statistics and feature articles on wildlife crime. These are entered into the database at regular intervals, creating a comprehensive archive of wildlife crime reporting in Namibia.
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Pretoria - The number of rhino in the Kruger National Park has increased. This after the use of technology and sniffer dogs to deter poaching. In the past financial year, the park reported about 180 cases of rhino poaching, a decrease of 45% compared with previous years. Security camera were installed and 12 more installations are expected.
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SA_2023_06_Kruger National Park conservation efforts see number of rhino increase_IOL.pdf | 289.85 KB |
After receiving a tip-off from a whistleblower, two men were arrested for illegal possession of a pangolin in Alberton on December 11.
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SA_2022_12_Two men arrested for illegal possession of pangolin_Southern Courier.pdf | 232.78 KB |
The trial of a former Kruger National Park ranger and a state veterinary technician accused of rhino poaching has been postponed to November 22 because the court dates of the accused's legal representative clash with another trial. The ranger, Rodney Landela, and state vet Kenneth Motshotso appeared in court on Tuesday for the trial, which was meant to run until Friday. Landela and Motshotso were arrested on July 27 2016 for the possession of two rhino horns, a rifle and ammunition.
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SA_2022_08_Rhino poaching case of former park ranger and state vet postponed again_City Press.pdf | 446.57 KB |
Six years after two rhinos were killed and poached, a former Kruger National Park ranger and state veterinarian technician could soon hear their fate. Their trial dates have been set for Tuesday until Friday. Former ranger Rodney Landela and former state vet Kenneth Motshotso were arrested on July 27 2016. The pair were arrested for the possession of two rhino horns, a firearm and ammunition.
As several stories have revealed across different platforms of late, most pertinently in the long delayed release of the Rhino Report in Daily Maverick of 31 May, poaching in the Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park has boomed. There is little argument among conservation bodies about the numbers - some 95 rhinos have been poached in the park so far this year. It drew to mind an interview I recorded with former Environmental Affairs Minister, Edna Molewa, in about 2013 for a multimedia eBook I was producing called, iRhino.
Kruger National Park section rangers have expressed concern at the courts taking too long to convict alleged rhino poachers arrested in the facility, despite evidence. Speaking to the Pretoria News, Karen Keet, the head ranger at the Phalaborwa gate, and Andrew Desmet, who heads the Letaba section within the Kruger National Park, said they often arrested poachers. However, they never get convicted because of laxity within the judiciary system. The two claimed the system seldom took the matter seriously.
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SA_2021_03_Kruger National Park rangers say courts not taking rhino poaching seriously_IOL.pdf | 113.62 KB |
South Africa’s drive to use wild animals as commercial trade goods has been ratcheted up a notch with the appointment of a high-level panel to review the policies, legislation and practices of breeding, hunting and trading of elephants, lions, leopards and rhinos. The panel’s terms of reference and the people appointed by Environment, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Barbara Creecy make it extremely unlikely to support wildlife welfare and conservation. The appointment of the panel follows the almost surreptitious listing late last year of 32 wild animals under the…
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SA_2020-05_Barbara Creecys wildlife panel is trying to reinvent the wheel _City Press.pdf | 1.05 MB |
Rhinos are known for their distinctive horn or in some cases two horns on their nose. It's a great shame how some people do not consider these animals as the treasures that they are. They are also known as part of the big five.
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NAM_2014-06_Poison can End Rhino Poaching_The Namibian.pdf | 278.76 KB |