21 September 2012
- The Department of Environmental Affairs
would like to make a renewed call for action
by all South Africans against the ongoing
scourge of rhino poaching, ahead of the
third annual World Rhino Day on the 22 September
2012.
Spokesperson for the
Department of Environmental Affairs, Albi
Modise stressed that, “It is clear we need
to continue working with all stakeholders
and our entire South African society, if
this war on rhino poaching is to be won.
It is clear that this is an organised crime.
And in dealing with organised criminals
we need inputs and action from all South
Africans in an organised manner.”
The latest statistics
on rhinos poached for 2012 stand at 388,
with the Kruger National Park having lost
a total of 241 rhinos since the beginning
of the year. Limpopo, the North-West and
KwaZulu-Natal continue to be the provinces
most targeted by poachers, collectively
accounting for 119 of the total rhinos poached
this year.
The South African government
views the illegal killing of our national
treasure in a very serious light and our
commitment to addressing rhino poaching
remains unwavering. Government continues
to prioritise our fight against this crime
jointly with the security cluster Ministers
and their departments.
Operation Rhino still
remains a standing agenda item of the National
Joints Committee (Nat Joints Com), which
comprises of senior members of SAPS, NPA
and the South African National Defence Force.
As a result of this ongoing cooperation,
203 people have been arrested in 2012 alone
for rhino poaching and related activities.
Of these, 176 were poachers, 10 receivers
or couriers and 17 were couriers or buyers.
Numerous other identified
interventions continue to be implemented
in an attempt to curb rhino poaching. These
interventions range from publication and
implementation of the norms and standards
for the marking of rhinoceros horn and for
the hunting of rhinoceros for trophy hunting
purposes to the Council of the Global Environment
Facility having approved R 25m of funding
aimed at strengthening our wildlife forensic
capabilities. At an international level,
the Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation
on the field of Biodiversity Conservation
and Protection between South Africa and
Vietnam is at an advanced stage.
“However the concern
expressed by South Africans as well as the
numerous initiatives aimed at raising awareness
around the poaching of our precious resource
also needs to be commended as South Africans
prepare to commemorate World Rhino Day this
Saturday. The public continue to make a
meaningful contribution in the fight against
poaching but enhanced participation is required
to deal effectively with this grave situation
before is too late,” said Modise.
Government would like
to reiterate its call to the South African
public to be an active part of the fight
against rhino poaching. Any incidents of
rhino poaching or tip-offs that can prevent
illegal killings or lead to arrest can be
reported to 0800 205 005.
+ More
Update on rhino poaching
and Operation Skhumba focuses on taxidermy
and tannery industry
22 August 2012 - As
part of government’s ongoing initiatives
in the fight against rhino poaching, a National
Enforcement Blitz was conducted by the Green
Scorpions. The Blitz, titled Operation Skhumba,
was conducted jointly by officials from
the national Department of Environmental
Affairs as well as provincial Environment
Departments. It occurred during the week
of 14 August and focused on the Tannery
and Taxidermy industries in the Free State,
Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga,
North West and Western Cape provinces. Approximately
28 facilities were inspected during the
Operation.
The blitz was executed
by the Green Scorpions amidst an increase
in the number of rhinos poached in South
Africa, with the figure since the beginning
of this year now standing at 339 and a total
of 192 individuals arrested in connection
with rhino poaching.
The Kruger National
Park has lost a total of 201 rhinos to illegal
killings in 2012.
The Green Scorpions
conducted inspections looking at compliance
with the legal requirements related to waste,
pollution and biodiversity issues. Under
biodiversity issues, the two main aims were
to check compliance with regard to the Threatened
Or Protected Species Regulations (TOPS)
as well as compliance with the amended Norms
and Standards on the marking of rhinoceros
and rhinoceros horn and for the hunting
of rhinoceros for trophy hunting purposes
under the National Environmental Biodiversity
Act 10 of 2004, as published in Government
Notice no. 304 on the 10th of April 2012.This
is in line with the Department’s plan to
ensure ongoing industry compliance in an
effort to curb the number of environmental
crimes, including rhino poaching.
The amended norms and
standards are intended to strengthen the
regulatory framework in terms of monitoring
the legality of hunts and control over rhino
horns. Stricter provisions relating to hunting
were required to ensure that processes are
standardized and to reduce possible abuse
of the system. According to the amended
norms and standards, rhino horns from trophy
hunts are expected to be transported by
a duly authorised person from the address
where a hunt took place directly to a taxidermist
for processing and exportation. The transportation
of horns may only be authorised in terms
of an individual permit granted by the issuing
authority (it may not be authorised in terms
of a standing permit or in combination with
the hunting permit).The permit authorising
the hunt and a copy of the professional
hunting register must accompany all rhino
products when being transported between
destinations. Also, by law, when taxidermies
receive rhino horns, these needs to be reported
to the respective provincial conservation
authorities. Taxidermies are in addition,
required to keep a register detailing the
date of receipt of the rhino horns, their
weight, micro-chip numbers as well as the
numbers of the hunting permit, transport
permit and professional hunting register.
This register must be made available to
the issuing authority for inspection upon
request. Ensuring that these amended norms
and standards are being adhered to, was
also one of the focuses of the Operation.
Alongside taxidermies,
Operation Skhumba also focused on some of
the country’s tanneries. During 2011, criminal
investigations were initiated against tanneries
in the Eastern Cape for non-compliance with
environmental legislation. So, through Operation
Skhumba, the Green Scorpions aimed to also
inspect tanneries in other (what do we mean
by other regions) regions in order to ensure
that such transgressions do not continue
unabated.
While it was found during
the Operation that some of the inspected
facilities were adhering to the relevant
environmental legislation, most were not
in compliance. The most frequent transgressions
uncovered related to poor waste management
processes. A smaller number of the inspected
facilities were also found not be in possession
of the required licences, including air
and waste licences. From a biodiversity
perspective, the most frequent issues of
non-compliance related to the absence of
hunting registers and the absence of TOPS
permits.
Investigations into
the cases of non-compliance found by the
Green Scorpions are currently underway.
The findings on these will be released once
all due processes are complete.
Members of the public
are also urged to report any non-compliances
that they are aware of to our Environmental
crimes hotline on 0800 205 005.
