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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When Poison Enters the Land, the Land Falls Silent. In Lesoma, Chobe area of Botswana, the land spoke in grief. Four lions were found dead. Two more followed. Experts believe poison was the cause. But the poison did not stop with the lion. Jackals fed and fell. Vultures descended and never rose again. And slowly, Soon the air was empty, and the earth smelled of sickness and the sky grew quiet. People can be heartless when knowledge is absent. In moments of fear or anger, some choose poison not knowing the animals were never the enemy.
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| BOT_2025_12_When poison enters the land_the land falls silent_Roar Wildlife News.pdf | 70.32 KB |
On Nov. 11, 2024, Alfi Simatupang, a police officer in Asahan district on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, was arrested along with two soldiers and a civilian for allegedly attempting to traffic nearly 1.2 metric tons of pangolin scales. Since that bust, the civilian, Amir Simatupang, has gone on trial; the soldiers, Muhammad Yusuf Harahap and Rahmadani Syahputra, are undergoing a court-martial; while Alfi, the alleged mastermind of the trafficking plot, has not only avoided prosecution, but even been promoted.
Namibia has registered a drop in rhino poaching from 52 cases in 2019 to 31 since the beginning of last year. In 2018, the country lost 81 rhinos due to poaching, 66 in 2016 and 97 in 2015. The 2020 figure is the lowest in the last five years. Addressing a media conference yesterday, environment minister Pohamba Shifeta said more resources have been allocated to fight poaching, and more stakeholders have come on board to support efforts to stop the gruesome practice.
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| NAM_2021-02_Poaching cases down in 2020_New Era.pdf | 408.9 KB |