Do not let poaching rear its ugly head in Namibia

Dear sir,
The Namibia Economist has helped to promote the conservation of our wildlife and natural environment and I thought that you might be interested in following up on the scourge of rhino poaching that has been taking place in South Africa during the past four years. We are in the fortunate position that some of the Namibian conservation NGO’s and government have involved the rural communities in the management and benefit sharing of their wildlife and natural resources and that is why we have the largest population of free roaming black rhinos in the world, but we should not be complacent as the people behind the poaching have vast resources at their disposal and they are totally ruthless and would not hesitate to destroy our national heritage.
This week the National Joint Operational Centre in South Africa said that, joint security forces including the Endangered Species of the Hawks, the Asset Forfeiture Unit, Department of Environmental Affairs and “the curators made a huge stride in our undying effort to
thwart rhino poaching in South Africa.”
The team seized assets in the region of R55 million, believed to have been acquired through criminal activities, particularly rhino poaching from Dawie Groenewald and veterinary surgeons, Karel Toet and Manie Du Plessis.
In September 2010 the the trio was officially charged with 1872 counts of racketeering which makes it one of the biggest wildlife cases in South Africa. While this matter is still pending in
court, the provisions of the Proceeds of Crime Act allows the Asset Forfeiture Unit to seize and preserve the assets of an accused until the case is finalised.
Pieter Mostert
Blue Sky Namibia Tours