Ghost of slain elephant lingers

THE ghost of the wandering Blaauwbosch elephant which was shot a month ago refuses to rest, with new evidence emerging suggesting that the owner did not act to contain the animal despite urgent warnings to do so.

The elephant was shot dead on March 31 on the instructions of the provincial department of environmental affairs and tourism.

The department had already issued Blaauwbosch owner Khalaf Ahmed Khalaf Al Otaiba a notice of compliance regarding the management of the Blaauwbosch Private Game Reserve.

The shooting sparked an outcry from conservationists, who said it could have been avoided if the department had clamped down sooner on previous evidence of mismanagement at Blaauwbosch, including not maintaining electrified fences and failing to tackle elephant herd dynamics.

Al Otaiba has maintained through his spokesman Ahmed Elgarib that his team did all they could to contain the elephant and prevent the shooting.

But Brian Bailey, conservation director of ecotourism company Lion Roars, said yesterday this was untrue.

Bailey had, at the request of Al Otaiba, visited Blaauwbosch to help him address the concerns raised in the compliance notice.

On March 21, he received a call from reserve manager Siphiwo Haas asking for help as one of their elephants had escaped.

“I contracted a helicopter to chase back the elephant,” Bailey said.

“I took the decision to do so without confirmation because the elephant was bothering [Bulletjie] Erasmus, the neighbouring farmer.

“Elgarib said after I had done this and the elephant was back that it wasn’t necessary to have hired the helicopter. I warned him that if it hadn’t been done the department could have destroyed it as per the letter of compliance and because of the damage it was doing to the neighbour’s farm.

“I warned him that it would happen again and that the fence and especially the electrification must be fixed.”

Bailey said that when the animal broke out again on March 29, Elgarib had asked him for help.

“I said I would if he could guarantee payment for the helicopter.

“There was no response but I booked the chopper anyway.”

Bailey was set to fly out again but then heard from the department that it had been decided to shoot the elephant, so he cancelled the flight.

E-mails in The Herald’s possession reflect this train of events.

Elgarib failed to answer questions sent to him on Friday.

In a March 21 e-mail, which The Herald has seen, he thanks Bailey for his advice on the need for an urgent management plan and notes that he has “spoken to His Excellency [Al Otaiba]” but has “not received the green light”.