Calls for ban on ‘canned’ lions

The Centre for Environmental Rights and the Endangered Wildlife Trust have come out strongly in favour of a new parliamentary report that calls for a ban on captive lion breeding in the country.

Titled Captive Lion Breeding for Hunting and Bone Trade in South Africa, the report found that captive lion breeding held no conservation value.

There was no evidence to support the argument that the captive-bred lion industry is “a well-regulated, manageable industry that contributes way more positively to SA than negatively”.

The report further asserts that the South African government should rethink its policy stance on the captive lion breeding industry, which runs the risk of making the country an “international pariah”.

The increase in the lion bone export quota from 800 in 2017 to 1 500 in 2018 was “highly problematic”.

There were also ethical, welfare and brand concerns relating to the captive lion breeding and hunting industries.

The use of lion parts in commercial trade is one of the major emerging threats to wild lions and could facilitate illegal trade.

Furthermore, there is concern that export quotas were not based on scientific evidence and that the 2017 quota was not adequately managed, resulting in more than 800 skeletons being exported.

The 24-page report – adopted by the parliamentary portfolio committee on environmental affairs (PCEA) during a special meeting on November 8 – followed a PCEA conference held on August 21 and 22.

During the meeting last week, PCEA said the department of environmental affairs (DEA) should urgently initiate a legislative and policy review of the captive lion breeding industry with a view to putting an end to this practice, and the minister of environmental affairs should report quarterly to the PCEA on progress.

The PCEA said the DEA should conduct an audit of captive lion and cheetah breeding facilities to assess legislative compliance and that the DEA and the department of agriculture, forestry and fisheries should present a clear programme and time frames to deal with welfare and health issues relating to captive-bred lions. – ANA – Additional reporting Simnikiwe Hlatshaneni