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More
elephant carcasses found in Hwange as govt vows poaching crackdown
Alex
Bell, SW Radio Africa
September 16, 2013
View this article
on the SW Radio Africa website
More elephant
carcasses have been found in the Hwange National Park following
the poisoning of water wells by poachers, bringing the number of
dead elephants to 69.
Three more poaching
suspects were arrested this weekend in an ongoing investigation
by police officers and National Parks authorities, launched after
41 elephants carcasses were discovered
in the park late last month. The latest arrests bring to nine the
number of poachers arrested since the launch of the anti-poaching
operation.
Another 28 elephant
carcasses were also recovered this weekend. The elephants died after
members of a suspected poaching syndicate laced salt with the toxic
chemical cyanide and distributed the salt in a drinking pool used
by elephants in Hwange.
Government officials
have since vowed to crackdown on poaching, following a Ministerial
delegation visit to Hwange over the weekend. The new Minister of
Environment, Water and Climate Saviour Kasukuwere was flown to the
national park along with Tourism Minister Walter Mzembi and Information
Minister Jonathan Moyo to assess the situation.
“We will
protect elephants alongside all our animals. This is a war we will
win,” said Kasukuwere.
Johnny Rodrigues,
the Chairman of the Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force, said that
current poaching penalties are “very lenient.” He told
SW Radio Africa stricter anti-poaching laws are necessary.
“The biggest
problem is in the judicial system. The police and national parks
don’t work together and when poachers do get arrested they
get a slap on the hand and then soon they are back out there doing
the same thing. The penalty for what is happening is actually very
lenient,” Rodrigues said.
To contact this
reporter email alex@swradioafrica.com
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SW Radio
Africa is Zimbabwe's Independent Voice and broadcasts on Short Wave
4880 KHz in the 60m band.
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