From the Editor
A
lot of rumours abound about the security
situation in Mozambique, and the various
Western embassies seem to be among some of
the worst culprits. African Hunter was able to get the
following assessment recently from a lodge manager
resident in-country:
“What is happening up north around Nampula,
although small-scale at the moment, I do not have a
very good idea of as it is too far from us. I know some
people who travel a lot from Musorril to Nampula and
Pemba and they say the situation up north is quiet.
It seems that Sofala Province is where most of the
problems are occurring. This used to be a Renamo
stronghold and is having the most effect on travel in
Mozambique. South of the Save River and all the
way to Maputo has been very quiet with no incidents
occurring.
“In Sofala Province most of the incidents have
occurred in the area of Gorongoza National Park and
surrounds and the EN1 between Muxungwe and the
Save River Bridge. The road from Muxungwe to Save
River Bridge is a worry, it appears that the first convoy
in the morning departing from Muxungwe (around
07:00) is the one being targeted and it causes a knockon effect on the other three convoys creating delays or
cancellations. Last week it was attacked twice and so
far this week once that I know of.”
The situation doesn’t seem too bad, and your PH or
outfitter will know what’s happening on the ground, so
don’t be too quick to write off a hunt in Mozambique this is just the way Africa works. I was in Kampala in
1985 when Milton Obote was deposed for the second
time. You didn’t go out after dark, but there was no
reason to anyway there, then. The US embassy told
me not to continue with my journey to the then Zaire
because “they didn’t have enough body bags”. The
only problem I encountered was crossing into Zaire and
clearing immigration at closing time - I had to spend
the night in a no-man’s land between immigration and
customs, but I was very well looked after. The next
morning, the Uganda border post didn’t open, and a
Zairois customs official told me as he stamped my
papers “It seems Mr Obote is no longer the president”.
Don’t know if I have any children or grandchildren,
but that would just be another good story to tell.
The recent controversy following Melissa
Bachman’s legal South Africa hunt has grown out
of all proportion to reality. An online petition started
by Elan Burman of Cape Town has received more
than 250,000 signatures demanding that she never be
allowed to enter South Africa again. Fortunately, we
all know that online petitions aren’t worth the time
it takes to read them, but the whole matter does beg
the question of how much Melissa Bachman paid to
Above: Melissa
Bachman with lion.
Right: Elan Burman
go on her South African hunt - much of which would
have been channeled back into conservation within the
conservancy she hunted in - as opposed to how much
the online petitioners have contributed - materially - to
conservation in South Africa. Mr Burman, how much
did you personally contribute? Wildlife conservation is
a hands-on proposition. And threatened species cannot
seek refuge in or eat online petitions.
The Maroi Conservancy where she hunted posted
on their Facebook page “We do ethical hunting and
all meat from animals hunted is distributed to the
local community. Funds generated from hunting
goes towards fixing the border fence that was washed
away in the 2013 floods, combatting poaching, which
is excessive in this area due to close proximity to
Zimbabwe, and running a sustainable conservancy."
And a lot of noise has been made about the fence
and “canned” hunting. South Africa was first colonized
over 350 years ago, and one will battle to find wildlife
areas that aren’t fenced. Either as a holdover from
when they were commercial farms or to protect the
wildlife as law and order gradually deteriorates. At
60,000 hectares, the Pilanesberg is South Africa’s
second-largest contiguous national park, and is entirely
fenced. Fencing does not necessarily imply a “canned”
hunt, but the whole topic is ripe for emotive rhetoric
and suits the activists well.
There was much shock and horror professed by a
number of African leaders as a result of the recent US
The African Hunter Magazine is published six times per annum as a service to the world-wide hunting fraternity. The magazine
is dedicated to the conservation of the wildlife resources of Africa through practical management and sustainable utilization. We
are committed to promoting ethical hunting practices based on the concept of fair chase, and the fostering of goodwill among all
beneficiaries of these resources.
African Hunter Vol. 19 No. 3
[email protected][email protected]
Page 5