Last Resort - Tale of a Poacher
As you read this story, please try and forget all of the creature comforts you enjoy daily. Forget your cell phone, forget your computer, forget your electricity, forget your local food store, forget the safety net of government assistance, and forget everything that makes your life more than just a battle for survival. It is only then that you can truly understand what a poor African villager feels and thinks about the word “conservation”. This story is about a young 16 year old boy named Khari. Khari lives in a small village in the deep bush of Tanzania. His mother and father passed away last year from disease and he has to support himself and 4 year old sister. His village has no power, no market, and it is a daily 3 mile walk to retrieve water from the river. With his parents passing, Khari inherited 2 cows, 4 goats, and about 1 acre of tilled crop ground for vegetables. He has no money and cannot move to the city with no job, no skills, and no plan with his sister.
Khari was approached by another villager asking him to help guide some sport hunters and would be paid in cash. He could travel far to the market and purchase the things necessary for the survival of his sister and himself. One month before he was to start working with the sport hunters, all hunting was banned in Tanzania. In disappointment, he returns to daily life taking care of his 2 cows, 4 goats, and 1 acre of tilled crops.
One morning, Khari awoke to the sounds of horror coming from his local villagers. During the night a group of Elephants stormed through the village and broke down the small fence keeping his cattle and goats from roaming too far. As the Elephants fed, their large heavy feet quickly demolished the 1 acre of tillable crops he had worked so hard for. His sister cries. Even at 4 years old, she understands that all of those crops were to be their food for the next year. Khari must find his cows and goats quickly.
As Khari tracks the roaming cattle, he starts to find blood. He quickly realizes that he was not the only one tracking his cattle. He comes across a pride of lions feeding on his two cows. These cows were his lively hood and means for protein and survival. He smartly backs away, again, disappointed.
Khari goes back to the village to find that a Leopard had taken down his 4 goats last night in all the commotion. The village is distraught and Khari doesn’t know how he is going to supply the necessary meals for his sister and himself. Khari has nothing. No money, no cattle, no goats, and no vegetables.
A few days later, his friend who asked him to help sport hunters approaches with a new offer. They will be paid for every ounce of Ivory they can recover without being caught. Khari understands this is wrong and not how his father taught him but he needs to survive. He also hears rumors that there are no game wardens because the government did not have the money to pay their salary. There was very little risk and extremely high reward. The person purchasing the ivory supplied Khari with an AK-47 and two boxes of bullets. With Khari and his friends hunting skills, they were able to track down and kill 2 Rhino and 4 Elephant over the next 2 weeks. Khari felt horrible for what he had done. With the animal down, Khari would carve the ivory from the animals flesh and leave the animal there to rot. He would not take any meat because he did not want others, in the village, to know what he was doing. He receives his large payment for his 6 kills and travels with his friend to the market to purchase replacement cattle, goats, and fresh vegetables. Over the next 2 months, Khari and his friend kill 9 more Elephants and 4 Rhino. The buyer of ivory gives them a second AK-47 and 6 more boxes of bullets.
One night, Khari is awoken again by a screaming women. He darts from his hut, touting his rifle, and sees 2 lions harassing the cattle. He quickly approaches and fires multiple rounds towards the lions. He kills one instantly and mortally wounds the other as it is running off. He protected his cattle. The next day the local villagers praise him for saving their livestock and the burn the bodies of the lions.
Fast forward 1 year, to find Khari and his friend camping out for weeks trying to find Elephants and Rhinos to kill for their ivory. They are having trouble located them and are having to venture further into the bush to find fresh sign. After the last shipment of ivory to the buyer, they were offered another avenue of work. The buyer supplied them with 50 snare traps and offered them good money to supply hides and horns from Kudu, Nyala, and Bushbuck. The more animals they killed, the more money they made, and the percentage chance of their survival elevated. As the years pass, the ban of sport hunting has taken away jobs, given the government and villagers of Tanzania no reason to protect the wild animals, and actually created an industry that promotes the decimation of wild animal populations for profit. NONE of this is good for the overall survival of the wild animals of Africa.
As a friend once said, “There are members of every species that sacrifice their lives for the better of their kind. Remember to thank the fallen soldiers at your local cemetery for their sacrifice.”
However, the larger problem here is the totally corrupt Governments of many African Nations which create and promote the culture of poaching through: poor education, allowing kleptocracies/bribery, large rural poor population, plus having absolute unenlightened and horrible leadership (i.e., Robert Mugabe).
Oh, and I forgot: a growing bold racism against non-native colonists and anything they happen to stand for or purport, such as "Conservation".
Trying to educate people who are on the fence about hunting is tough...but we must try as hard as we can.
Join SCI and a local chapter to support the cause.
its typical Facebook BPM. Hate it sometimes...but its so dang addicting lol
