UK’S big game ban ‘smacks of colonialism’
African conservationists and high commissioners argue Bill will take money away from saving wildlife
AFRICAN leaders have accused the UK of endangering animals and trying to “recolonise” the continent by attempting to ban the importation of big game trophies.
They say Britain’s proposed Trophy Hunting Bill will cut funding to conservation efforts and take away incentives to preserve wildlife.
MPS are scheduled to debate the legislation, which aims to prevent hunters bringing home game souvenirs such as heads and pelts, on Friday.
The Bill has received cross-party backing but in an open letter to Andrew Mitchell, minister of state in the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, 109 representatives of conservation areas in Angola, Botswana, Namibia and Zambia, say the law will instead harm wildlife. Income from “carefully managed” trophy hunting is needed to fund conservation efforts and without it, poaching and unemployment will increase, the authors say.
“It is sad to mention that we feel this is another way of recolonising Africa, with all the consequences that had befallen our forefathers,” they wrote.
A potential ban on trophy hunting has received backing from celebrities including Dame Judi Dench, Ricky Gervais, Liam Gallagher and Dame Joanna Lumley.
Dame Joanna said last month that British trophy hunters were the “lowest of the low”. She added: “This is an utterly grim and cruel industry.
“Weasel words and twisted evidence will try to show the benefits of this hateful pastime. But killing animals for fun is disgusting.
“Virtually everyone agrees that allowing people to bring home animal trophies from hunting holidays should be banned at once.”
However, the Private Member’s Bill introduced by Henry Smith, the Conservative MP for Crawley, has angered governments in southern Africa, which have complained about a lack of consultation. High commissioners from Zambia, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, South Africa and Namibia last week called for an urgent meeting with UK officials ahead of the vote on the Bill.
“While we recognise that the Government’s intention with this Bill is to support conservation, it has the likelihood of reversing and inhibiting long established and sustainable conservation efforts in many African nations,” they warned.
“With reduced revenue from trophy hunting, poaching will increase because there will be less funding to pay salaries to the community game guards for their anti-poaching patrols to deter poachers.”
British hunters are thought to import scores of trophies each year from hunting trips. In 2019, The Daily Telegraph reported that 96 body parts, including elephant feet, polar bear skins and a rug from a lion, were shipped into Britain from hunting holidays in one year.
Groups campaigning for a ban on trophy hunting reject the notion that it helps conservation, saying that the money from hunters rarely reaches local communities or parks authorities.