Pixaby | Kirsi Kataniemi

Conservationists Condemn Botswana For Lifting Elephant Hunting Ban

The south African country of Botswana has recently made the controversial decision to lift its ban on elephant hunting in an effort to control the increased number of elephants in the region, Unilad reported.

This decision has conservationists condemning the country for lifting the ban and effectively supporting the cruel sport of trophy hunting.

In the last century, African elephant populations have been significantly reduced thanks to hunting.

Unsplash | John Matychuk

According to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), an estimated 100,000 elephants were killed each year in the 1980s. The rise of the illegal ivory trade saw the demand for ivory grow and the threat of poaching has increased.

Because of this, elephant populations have suffered immensely.

In 2014, Botswana introduced a prohibition on elephant hunting in the country.

Pixaby | Pexels

The former president, Ian Khama, was a passionate environmentalist who sought to protect the dwindling elephant population.

However, the current president, Mokgweetsi Masisi, seems to have some friction with his predecessor.

The country's environment ministry issued a statement about the ban and said elephant populations were getting out of hand.

Unsplash | AJ Robbie

A cabinet committee review found that "the number and high levels of human-elephant conflict and the consequent impact on livelihoods was increasing," The Guardian reported.

It was also reported that there are increasingly high levels "of human-elephant conflict."

Unsplash | Matthew Spiteri

In an effort to remedy this, the country decided to lift the ban and vowed that hunting would resume "in an orderly and ethical manner."

Conservationists have voiced their outrage over Botswana's decison.

Twitter | @prowildlife

In a tweet, Pro Wildlife expressed their disappointment with Botswana's decision and branded the trophy hunting a "bloody sport."

Kenyan expert and activist Dr. Paula Kahubu called hunting an "archaic practice."

Unsplash | Casey Allen

In an interview with The Guardian, she said, "The whole world is turning away from hunting. It is increasingly seen as an archaic practice."

She added, "This is very, very damaging to the image of Botswana as a global leader in elephant conservation."

Other people have also taken to Twitter to express their anger at the ban lift.

"You do realize if this continues, the African Elephant species as a whole could dwindle down until nothing's left?" one user wrote, while another called the decision "shameful" and "horrendous".

h/t: The Guardian

Filed Under: