The shooting and killing of Cecil, a well-known, collared lion from Zimbabwe, has gained much attention and provoked outrage worldwide.
Adam Welz from WildAid, said: “The hunting industry needs to take a long hard look at itself. The case of Cecil the lion is not an isolated case, as incidents such as this have been going on for years and are well documented.”
An article on Lion Aid, shows a study that was conducted by Andy Loveridge and co-authors on the consequences of trophy hunting on lion populations in Hwange National Park.
Between 1999 and 2004, 24 out of 38 lions in the park that were tagged with radio-collars or ear tags, were shot by trophy hunters. The lions were lured out of the protected area and into the hunting concessions.
“Professional hunting organisations need to crack down on members who are involved in these types of activities, as it is hurting southern Africa’s reputation as a tourism destination,” added Welz.
Theo Bronkhorst, a professional hunter, and Honest Trymore Ndlovu, a Zimbabwean landowner, were charged in Hwange Magistrates Court on Wednesday, July 29, with failing to prevent Walter Palmer from unlawfully killing a collared lion. They were released on $1 000 bail each.
The accused said through their attorney that they were innocent of poaching charges, which officials said could bring a sentence of 10 years in prison, according to a CNN report.
Zimbabwe has begun with the extradition proceedings of Walter Palmer. "We are appealing to the responsible authorities for his extradition to Zimbabwe so that he can be held accountable for his illegal actions," said Oppah Muchinguri, Zimbabwe's Environment, Water and Climate Minister.
Welz said: “I think it is important to recognise that Cecil is not the first lion to be lured out of Hwange National Park by hunters. Other cases of the abuses of the hunting laws should be investigated with just as much energy as the Cecil case.”
Welz stressed that both he and WildAid were not issuing a blanket condemnation on all hunters. However, he wanted to make it extremely clear that there were issues in the hunting industry in Southern Africa.
