The Chronicle

BULAWAYO, Saturday, May 11, 1968 — Fears that increased costs of licences and reduced bags were an attempt to phase out the sport hunter were expressed yesterday by a spokesman for the Rhodesia Hunters’ and Game Conservation Association (Matabeleland branch).

The spokesman said the new licence fees were announced only two weeks before the start of the season on May 1.

People who had booked for hunting trips with the association had cancelled their visits to Rhodesia and had said that they intended going to Angola and Mozambique.

“Valuable foreign exchange will be lost by Rhodesia with the ridiculous increases in licence fees.

“Sport hunters from South Africa who had booked to hunt in the Matetsi area, which is leased to the association, spent about £600 on licences and tours for each party of four.

“But with these increases the visitors will need about £1 000,” he said.

The spokesman said that a meeting on a national scale was going to be held in Gatooma on June 1 and 2. Members of Parliament and others interested would be invited.

“The association did its best to conserve wild life, while large numbers of game animals have been ruthlessly slaughtered in recent years under the guise of game cropping.

“Permits were issued for the cropping of 62 969 head, including 205 giraffe, according to statistics in the 1966 report of the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Management,” he said.