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Wildlife crime remains an international conservation management issue that threatens ecotourism, ecological balance and biodiversity. The industry of illegal hunting and trade in wildlife and wildlife products is estimated to be worth US$50-US$150 billion per annum, according to the United Nations Environment Programme, and continues to pose a threat towards globally-endangered wildlife species. The escalation of wildlife crime also threatens national and local economies, the criminal justice and security systems, and public health.

A case in which two Kunene conservancies, a traditional authority and a tourism company tried to get a court order to stop mining activities and the construction of a road in their area is not urgent, a judge ruled in the Windhoek High Court on Friday. Judge Orben Sibeya ruled that an application filed by the Doro !Nawas and Ûibasen Twyfelfontein conservancies, the ≠Aodaman Traditional Authority and the company, Ultimate Safaris, two weeks ago does not meet the requirements to be heard as an urgent matter.

Two former Kruger National Park field rangers were sentenced to 20 years' direct imprisonment each for rhino poaching. The Skukuza Regional Court secured the win for this near-extinct species on Friday, September 27, when it handed down sentences to Lucky Mkanzi (30) and Nzima Joel Sihlangu (32).

"White rhino populations in South Africa are on the rise despite poaching," the report says. Curiously, the report does not mention private ownership of the species, which has been one of the driving forces behind this trend. The report notes that by 2012, there were more than 21,000 white rhinos on the planet, capping a remarkable comeback from the brink of extinction. A century earlier, there were fewer than 100.

Two communal conservation areas near Khorixas feel betrayed by the decision of the environment ministry to allow mining activities in a joint management area where rhinos are threatened. The conservation areas of Doro ! Nawas and Ûibasen Twyfelfontein recently succeeded in obtaining a court order to stop road construction activities related to mining claims within their nuclear rhino conservation area.

According to the International Rhino Foundation, the largest population of rhinos in the world is found in South Africa. Only 16 056 rhinos are left in South Africa, but not nearly enough to save the species from endangerment. 'World Rhino Day' is commemorated annually on September 22 to continue to raise awareness about rhino poaching across the globe. Due to ongoing poaching, the number of rhinos continues to get lower. KwaZulu-Natal has the highest number of poaching cases with 145 rhinos poached from January to June this year alone.

Deputy Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, Narend Singh, says he believes that dehorning rhinos is not necessarily the answer to the poaching problem. Singh has expressed his concerns about continued rhino poaching in the country. This comes as the globe marked World Rhino Day yesterday. The day highlights the global effort to protect and raise awareness about rhino conservation and the threats they face. Singh says more can still be done.

A black rhino bull was poached from a farm in the Otavi district of the Otjozondjupa region between last Monday and Saturday. According to the Namibian police's weekly crime report, the carcass of the rhinoceros was discovered with the horns removed from the bull.

In Namibia, despite famed conservation efforts, close to 300 rhinos have been poached over the past 4 years (2020 to 2023), according to wildlife reports from the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism.

The Doro ! Nawas and Ûibasen Twyfelfontein recently obtained a court order to halt road construction work for planned mining operations to protect rhinos in their area. They are supported by the traditional authority Aodaman and Ultimate Safaris, a tourism partner, in their lawsuit against mining entrepreneurs Ottillie Ndimulunde and Timoteus Mashuna. The lawsuit is also directed against the Ministry of the Environment, the Ministry of Mines, the Commissioner for the Environment and the Commissioner for Mines.

In the latest case, people living around the arid northern community of Khorixas looked out one morning last month to find a new road being bulldozed through an area they had been managing, together with the tourism company Ultimate Safaris and the nonprofit Save The Rhinos Trust, as habitat for black rhinos, an endangered species. The conservancies, together with the tourism company, went to court, alleging that the road, and mining project it will serve, showed up on the scene "without any consultation" with them.

On Monday, Khorixas pensioner Leonard Hoaeb contacted Namibian Sun to complain about a social media post the newspaper published pertaining to Ultimate Safaris, the Doro-Nawas and Uibasen-Twyfelfontein conservancies and the #Aodanam Traditional Authority appearing in court to fight the projects. "Ultimate Safaris is making millions from this area but we, the community, are getting nothing. They have 28 employees, while the mine will employ 140 employees in the first phase. Why can’t they co-exist?” he wanted to know.

Mining operations will pose a direct threat to critically endangered black rhinos in an area south-west of Khorixas. This is detailed in an urgent application filed at the Windhoek High Court by two communal conservancies, a traditional authority and a tourism operator. Black rhinos in the area will be under increased threat of poaching or migrate out of the area if plans to start mining operations go ahead, the Doro !Nawas and Ûibasen Twyfelfontein conservancies, the ≠Aodaman Traditional Authority and the company Ultimate Safaris claimed in an urgent application filed on Friday…

Namibia has already lost three times the number of rhinos in 2015 compared to that of last year. A total of 77 rhinos and 37 elephants have been poached so far this year. This was confirmed by the Director of Parks and Wildlife Management in the Ministry of Environment and Tourism, Colgar Sikopo on Friday. Namibia has experienced a sharp increase in cases of rhino poaching over the past five years. Namibia lost one rhino to poaching in 2009 and 2010 respectively; two rhinos were illegally killed in 2012, four in 2013 and 25 last year.

Court evidence reveals the typical methdology deployed by one of five organised crime syndicates believed to be active in Namibian wildlife trafficking, reports John Grobler.

Chief Inspector Barry de Klerk of the Namibian Police’s Protective Resources Unit delivered explosive evidence in his testimony in the trail of four Chinese nationals accused in Namibia’s biggest rhino-horn smuggling case. De Klerk described the hierarchy of an organised Chinese Triad. He revealed that Wang Hui was the kingpin in the group and said he was offered a bribe to ensure that Wang escaped justice. De Klerk said the bribery attempt is still being investigated.

The Chinese national who is suspected of being the kingpin in one of Namibia’s biggest rhino-horn smuggling cases was found with gold, bank cards, bank books as well as other suspect items when he was arrested. Wang Huii, who operates an import and export company in Otjiwarongo, stands accused along with three other Chinese nationals Li Xiaoliang, Li Zhibing, Pu Xuexin who all appeared in the Windhoek Regional Court in Katutura yesterday for the continuation of their trial. 

Police chief Inspector General Sebastian Ndeitunga told Namibian Sun that he “did not start the rumour,” referring to a probe into a senior City Police officer in respect of a rhino poaching incident. Ndeitunga, however, did not deny that the investigation was ongoing. It is the second time this week that he has washed his hands on issues in which his force is implicated. Earlier in the week, he denied any knowledge of the involvement of the police implicated in the case of the missing Khoi San in the former Caprivi, now Zambezi Region.