Battle will soon be lost as we fail our duty to protect rhinos

IF A child is found to have been badly abused by its parents, or other immediate family, the authorities may step in and take that child into care.

The safety of the youngster is paramount and must take precedence over the “rights” of parents.

Surely then our wildlife, particularly our rhinoceros, is a perfect corollary.

The people of South Africa, together with the Parks Board, are the guardians of the rhino.

Unfortunately we are failing in our duty. We are losing our animals; despite the efforts of many brave and dedicated people working to save the creatures, the battle will soon be lost.

I suggest therefore that to begin with, the rhino must be taken into care. As custodians we have failed these magnificent, rapidly vanishing creatures.

South Africa must naturally be given the opportunity to donate the remaining rhinos to a country where they will be safe (Australia and America are possibilities), otherwise the international community must intervene and take the “children” away.

The cost? It will be vast, of course, but somehow the money must be found.

The new parents won’t be long in recouping whatever they may have invested, for millions will flock to see these foreign animals living peacefully in a new, secure environment.

We must begin with say 50 rhinos, and then, should there still be any left in their country of origin, we might send more.

Unless something revolutionary is done the rhino and the elephants and much more of this country’s unique wildlife will be extinct long before the century’s end.

Michael V McCabe

Ruimsig, Roodepoort