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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South African National Parks has confirmed that lions have been targeted in a poisoning campaign in the northern Kruger Park by poachers seeking the animals’ body parts, presumably for the muti trade. The numbers are not huge, but in the wake of the rhino poaching onslaught, the targeting of another charismatic species in the iconic park will set off alarm bells among conservationists.
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SA_2023_07_Kruger lions being poisoned by poachers for body parts_says SANParks_Daily Maverick.pdf | 436.49 KB |
The Wildlife Justice Commission has published details of a rhino horn trafficking case that includes the use of frozen seafood and 'mishandled baggage', as well as the failure of authorities not to publicly report their seizure of the horn.
Police arrested 26-year-old man on the N6 Road with 16 refuse bags filled with abalone.
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SA_2023_03_Police confiscate bags full of abalone worth over R1 million_The South African.pdf | 422.29 KB |
A 47-year-old accused will appear in the Kabokweni Magistrate Court on Tuesday, 7 February 2023, after his DNA was linked to rhino horns found during a search and seizure operation.
Private and communal lands now conserve at least 50% of Africa's rhinos, according to a newly published paper in journal 'Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment', highlighting the need for 'adaptive policies' to build on this success. These trends have policy implications as debates rage about rhino-horn trade and trophy hunting.
One of the seven Chinese nationals who slipped out of the country while on bail after being arraigned on charges of money laundering and possession of more than 20 kilogrammes of rhino horns has been arrested by the International Criminal Police Organisation (Interpol) in the United Arab Emirates after spending over two years on the run.
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ZIM_2021_12_Chinese fugitive arrested in UAE_The Sunday Mail.pdf | 358.72 KB |
Rhino poaching declined sharply in South Africa last year, according to the latest official data, and the data also shows that rhinos on state land were far more vulnerable than those in private hands. In South Africa, if you are a rhino on a state reserve, your chances of getting whacked by a poacher are about nine times greater than if you roam a private one.
The illegal hunting of bush meat, or game meat, has long distressed wildlife conservationists. It has persisted in sub-Saharan Africa, attracting international attention and debate. Enforcement by authorities and community-based initiatives have been tried as anti-poaching approaches, but with mixed results. Overall, wildlife populations have continued to plummet. Why has poaching refused to go away? The answer, as suggested by poachers themselves, is simple: Because poaching pays.
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NAM_2018-05_Why Poachers Persist In Hunting Bush Meat_The Namibian.pdf | 559.3 KB |