A recent call for evidence by the UK government for and against trophy hunting has triggered a long standing debate on the issue.
In researching a feature story for Mongabay, Roving Reporters tapped into the perspectives of various key stakeholders in South Africa and beyond.
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Organisations
The Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT)
The EWT accepts that it is lawful to hunt various species of wildlife in South Africa and in principle the EWT supports the sustainable use of wildlife, which includes trophy hunting, provided it meets certain conditions. >> Read more
Conservation Action Trust
The Conservation Action Trust is highly critical of commercial hunting, publishing regular stories on the issue. In one of its latest articles, Does trophy hunting really benefit conservation and local communities?, Andres Wilson-Spath argues that commercial hunting in South Africa has been marrred by scandals involving the captive breeding of lions for canned hunts. A number of private nature reserves have also come under fire for unethical trophy-hunting practices, causing irreparable damage to South Africa’s conservation credentials. >> Read more
The World Wild Fund for Nature (WWF)
In certain limited and rigorously controlled cases, including for threatened species, scientific evidence has shown that trophy hunting can be an effective conservation tool as part of a broad mix of strategies, says the World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF). >> Read more
Campaign to ban hunting trophy hunting
Formed in 2018 ((check)) this campaign was launched in 2018 by a group of public figures in the UK who were appalled by “the awful news that Botswana’s newly elected President appears determined to brink back trophy hunting.” The group describes trophy hunting as “cruel, immoral, archaic and unjustifiable” and are calling for an immediate end to trophy hunting worldwide. “Killing animals for pleasure is cruel, unnecessary, and has no place in a civilised society,” said the campaign founder, Eduardo Gonçalves. “Humans have no right to take the life of an animal for recreation. Animals experience suffering and pain when they are hunted for trophies. Killing endangered wildlife for pleasure only helps push them even further towards extinction.” >> Read more
The Namibian Chamber of Environment
Humane Society International
South African National Biodiversity Institute
The Aspinall Foundation
Prominent individuals
Chris Brown, CEO of the Namibian Chamber of Environment
George Hughes
Tony Weaver
Andrew Venter
Andries Botha
Related articles
Namibian ecologist responds to Guardian newspaper article against trophy hunting – The Guardian
Trophy Hunting: Should We Kill Animals to Save Them? – National Geographic
Hunting and tourism can work together for conservation: the Namibian experience – IUCN
Angry tweets won’t help African lions – New York Times, July 1, 2016
Related videos
A Conservationists Cry – PHASA
