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Campaign Against Canned Hunting (CACH)

Why I will not attend the 'Colloquium.'

8/3/2018

15 Comments

 
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There is such a hype in animal welfare circles over the forthcoming 'Colloquium' on lion farming in SA, that I felt compelled to try to offer some cautionary opinion.

Especially because there seems to be some puzzlement on why I am not going to Cape Town for this event. It is about lion farming, right? Surely CACH should be there, right?

This report explains what it is about:
​www.thesouthafrican.com/sas-macabre-captive-lion-breeding-industry-to-be-investigated-by-parliament/

I don’t know why there has to be such a pompous and pretentious Latinism to describe what is clearly a workshop. And notice that the agenda is restricted to the effect of lion farming upon South Africa’s conservation image.

The Department of Tourism is not even mentioned or represented.

So do not think for one second that this chat group is going to lead to a ban on lion farming or on the trophy hunting of lions. I'm writing this blog post because I think that there is an unrealistic expectation from members of the animal welfare community about the purpose and results of this workshop.

The hunting industry is at this workshop in force to ensure that the message gets across that responsible trophy hunting is a wonderful tool of conservation, job creation, foreign currency generation, blah blah.  And they’ll call for regulation of lion farming, not to ban canned hunting, but to minimise the bad publicity that it brings to all hunting and the threat felt by the hunting industry that the excesses of canned lion hunting will pull down the whole trophy hunting industry.

People who live in the developed world where parliamentary committees are important and can actually effect change will have unrealistic expectations for this workshop.

I have been to Parliament to talk to members of the portfolio committee on the environment and I can tell you that these are not animal lovers. Or in my experience qualified to understand what true conservation is. One of the MP’s looked me in the eye and asked: ‘what’s wrong with hunting. I hunt.’ Talk about the cruelty to helpless animals involved and their eyes glaze over.

Conservation as you and I understand it, which is the preservation of natural functioning ecosystems for their own sakes, is a totally alien concept to this government in general, and to the portfolio committee in particular. Like the DEA, they've swallowed the pro-hunting narrative.

This workshop is about public relations surrounding the hunting industry and how to improve it.  Nothing more.

Indeed, Minister Molewa has publicly stated that biodiversity is merely a resource that needs to be exploited and transformed (a euphemism for transferring income to previously disadvantaged South Africans)

So please put this workshop in that political context.

The most effective tactic for CACH to adopt is to circulate David Nash’s compendium of bad publicity to Brand South Africa, a comprehensive list of all the poor publicity that Brand SA gets from lion farming, canned lion hunting and the hideous lion bone trade.  And that is what we'll do - even though this workshop is not about the financial damage to the tourism industry.

If it were the Department of tourism would be involved.

Add to all this the fact that the portfolio committee would be unable to change anything even if it wanted to. Conservation structures in South Africa have been utterly and completely captured by the hunting industry and any attempt to crack down on lion farming and canned hunting would be met with a torrent of lobbying and litigation:-
‘You gave us permits to breed lions for hunting and for lion bones’, they would argue, ‘so if you want to close us down we want compensation.’

So in short I regard this workshop is a total waste of time. I cannot justify the cost and time involved to attend. If I thought there was a sliver of hope that I could achieve anything by attending, I would be there like a shot. But to spend a day travelling to Cape Town, two or three nights in a hotel and another day travelling back home, all of five days away from the work which I regard as really important, is out of the question.

I'm not telling any of you not to go. Attending will certainly do no harm. Subjecting the members of the committee to something other than hunting propaganda would certainly do no harm - if only to cause them some bafflement.

And if I regard the Portfolio Committee as a, no doubt well-intentioned, but woefully un-qualified and ineffective bunch of political appointees utterly incapable of understanding why it is in the national interest to ban lion farming, why, I may be wrong.

15 Comments
Irena Durakic-Edwards
8/3/2018 06:17:15 am

Their government cant "understand" as its one of the most corrupted in already corruptive Africa.They would allow human trophy hunting eaaasy yesterday if could only get away with it!World gov and ordinary people should react and put stronger pressure specially usa ,uk ,german gov and others too forbiddening transfer of game and trophy hunting and many more....

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Laura Klimist
8/3/2018 08:08:29 am

If Africa does not end the lion bone trade, trophy hunting and canned hunting of its iconic species they are shooting themselves in the foot. People will no longer tolerate their insatiable desire for money at any cost including the decimation of multiple species. Corrupt gotta of Africa must be held accountable and CITES should be abolished in favor of an agency that has the best interest of the survival of these animals. The conduct of South Africa is immoral and despicable. Protect and aid these animals.

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Michael McKeown
8/8/2018 11:40:25 am

Agree 110 per cent. The Southouse African government's greed for money derived from hunting is seemingly unquenchable. Visitors to SA should vote with their feet and boycott travelling there.

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Southern African Fight For Rhino link
8/3/2018 08:23:36 am

Although we feel it is all just a waste of time, and indeed realize that the hunting fraternity rule this corrupt SA government, it is not often we get to parle with these 'stakeholders' very often. Often we are denied access to secret behind doors meetings, and as there is much hype that has been created with this, the more who can listen, offer comment etc attending this 'Colloquium'
the better. I am sad that you will not be attending Chris, as indeed you have been at the forefront in exposing this evil practice and continue to be.

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Chris Mercer
8/4/2018 01:59:02 am

Thanks for your input. Please see my comprehensive reply below to the comment by the incomparable Phil Wollen.

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Philip Wollen link
8/3/2018 04:57:54 pm

I fully understand Chris' reasons for not attending this patently self serving gabfest.
Nevertheless, I believe his powerful voice for reason must be heard - even if it is outnumbered by the cretinous killers.
Remember what Thoreau said “A man more right than all his neighbors constitutes a majority of one!”

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southern african fight for rhino link
8/4/2018 01:39:04 am

And he will have some strong allies at this Parle, to be sure. Please reconsider Chris?

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Chris Mercer
8/4/2018 01:55:50 am


Non-attendance does not equal non-participation
Just because I am not physically attending the Colloquium for reasons explained, does not mean that CACH is ignoring this event. On the contrary, we are most certainly participating, but doing so in a manner which we feel is more effective and much more cost-effective. People who donate funds to us do so to benefit the animals and we have to be alert at all times not to forget that.
Most of the criticism I have had is along the lines that this is an opportunity to engage with government, most of the other players in animal welfare are attending and therefore we have a duty to attend in order ‘to show them that we are still actively involved.’
Well I’m sorry, but I don’t think that’s a good enough reason to spend a lot of donated money for public relations purposes ie to show that we are still involved. We know that we are involved and working as actively as ever to raise awareness globally about this awful industry and if other people and organisations are not aware of our work, I don’t care.
We are participating in this event strongly. We have as members of CACH already filed written input with the Parliamentary Secretary, and will shortly be releasing to all animal welfare participants an important document describing in detail the damage to brand South Africa being caused by lion farming and its spin-offs. This will build on the previous 33- page review of international media coverage which we filed with the Department of Tourism two years ago
It will be a an encyclopedic review of international media coverage and governmental, NGO, airline & tourist industry responses to increasing international awareness of South Africa’s captive lion breeding and canned hunting industry.
It will cover:
Campaigns: 10 international charities and campaigns either focus exclusively on stopping canned lion hunting and captive breeding or included in their wider campaigns & activities.
Global Marches and Petitions: 11 online petitions targeting canned lion hunting –the largest of which has so far attracted over 1.8m signatures .
Trophy Import Bans in 5 countries including the current restrictions in the US (the biggest market for the South African canned hunting industry)
IUCN motion to prohibit the hunting of captive bred lions in SA
EU & UK parliamentary & government reactions
45 airlines worldwide who banned lion trophies as at August 2015
Major reports on trophy hunting from the IFAW and US Democrats
The position of UK and Netherlands tourism bodies (describing trophy hunting as “unacceptable” and covering volunteer tourism operators
Media coverage: 44 articles in newspapers, magazines and websites across the world – critical of canned lion hunting and/or captive breeding
TV, Film & Video: 1 major film (Blood Lions), several TV programmes and 22 videos critical of canned lion hunting and/or captive breeding
Social Media – pages and pages of stuff here
So watch this space – CACH is going strong.

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Southern African Fight For Rhino link
8/4/2018 02:27:51 am

Well now put this way, I completely understand! Of course donors money must be well spent, but as I do not get any (hahaha) it is all self funded. Thank you Chris for all you do in this regard. It is shocking and horrifying that in today's so called civilised world we as a nation still have to fight to stop such inhumane practices.

lasne julie link
8/15/2018 08:10:06 am

I fully agree with Philip Wollen comments Chris even if I fully understand your reasons that I share. Especially if Tourism industry is not there I find dangerous to let them spread in such a colloquium their propaganda and to take the risk tat they convince more unaware people.

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Clive Coles
8/3/2018 11:01:27 pm

I am sure the decision not to attend was taken after considerable thought , but I am disappointed that CACH will not be present.. It seems to me that the Campaigning community has become fragmented since the disappointments of COP17, and in consequence has lost focus. Captive breeding and wild lion problems have become confused as various factions have followed their own agendas. This meeting was a chance to engage with Government ~ by not attending the baton that CACH has held for so many years has been passed on to a different group of campaigners headed by Daily Maverick journalist Don Pinnock and the EMS Foundation who are pursuing their own parallel agenda. i,e the hunting of wild Lion in Greater Kruger.

This is of course a valid topic as it too is probably tarnishing the SA tourist image , but is not nearly so damaging as the scandals surrounding Canned hunting of captive bred lion and the escalating Lion skeleton export trade.

That to my mind is where the focus of campaigners should continue be directed, and CACH would have been the natural leader to have pursued that cause.

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Chris
8/4/2018 01:59:52 am

Thanks for your input. Please see my comprehensive reply above to the comment by the incomparable Phil Wollen.

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Chris Voets
8/4/2018 01:12:47 am

While I'm usually 100% behind you, Chris, this time I have to say I'm quite disappointed by your decision. I would think that CACH's presence at this is very important. Although you may feel that it's a waste of time and money, who else will be the voice of reason there? If we're no longer willing to stand up for wildlife, no matter how many voices we have to battle, we're not doing what we've all set out to do. Isn't that what "they" are really waiting for??
Please reconsider?

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Chris
8/4/2018 02:01:05 am

Thanks for your concerns Chris. Please see my comprehensive reply above to the comment by the incomparable Phil Wollen.

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Ushka Devi
8/4/2018 07:20:16 am

Chris is the voice for lions and it stands to reason he needs to be there.
But I strongly agree the 'Colloquium' is nothing more than a PR hoax to address SA’s brand damage of "our internationally-acclaimed wildlife and conservation record.” This will not be a round table, something special with a predilection for truth. To venture somewhere we’ve never been. It’s more like a deprecatory joke, that leaves one in a tense and vulnerable spot, stuck in the middle of amusement and wrath. 
According to Noem Chomsky, one of the greatest minds of our times, "The two biggest dangers to our world are nuclear war and environmental catastrophe." 
Our Environmental minister, Edna Molewa, is also our Water and Sanitation Minister. Link the dots. She came into office in 2010. On her watch, something's going down that's not right. Absolutely not! After years of wild animal activism, protests, petitions and prayers, what remedial regulations has she put in place? Nothing has changed. Arguably it has worsened.  

Poachers are a decoy. The Scientific Authority, Nature Conservation Authorities, CBO/hunting farms, export officials, are part of a cartel for Mama-Africa-Animal-Exotica trafficking. Organised crime racketeering for gargantuan greed, with Edna Molewa’s signature on the deed.  It's a crime against nature.  #Animalterrorism #Animaltrafficking 
Heartbreaking.  It's incredibly important to a hellova lot of people around the world. We are against it. We want it stopped. #NoCompromise 
The #1 enemy of our world is corrupt politicians and their minions.

We need new leaders. With ethics. #EarthDemocracy
”All members of the Earth Community including all humans have the right to sustenance -- to food and water, to safe and clean habitat, to security of ecological space. These rights are natural rights, they are birthrights given by the fact of existence on earth and are best protected through community rights and commons. They are not given by states or corporations, nor can they be extinguished by state or corporate action. No state or corporation has the right to erode or undermine these natural rights or enclose the commons that sustain all through privatisation or monopoly control." Vandana Shiva. – Ten Principles of Justice. Sustainability and Peace. 

Earth democracy globalizes compassion, not greed. And peace, not war.

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