Uganda: 1,000 Pieces of Ivory Seized
Gerald Tenywa
29 June 2009


Kampala — THE Uganda Wildlife Authority is hunting for poachers and traders in ivory following the recovery of 100 pieces of elephant ivory hidden in sacks of beans at Kabusu in Kampala.

The Police deployed on the Masaka road at Kabusu stumbled on the ivory while on routine check on June 18. On opening what appeared to be sacks of beans loaded on a lorry, the Police discovered ivory in three of the bags. The ivory was later handed over to UWA.

"It was a good catch," said Major Edward Tahunga, UWA'S law enforcement coordinator.

"We have got some clues on the origin and destination of the ivory, which we shall use to carry out investigations to a logical conclusion."

The elephants could have been killed sometime back because the ivory looks old, but a few pieces have fresh stains of blood, meaning that illegal killing of elephants is still taking place, Tahunga observed.

The consignment is suspected to have originated from the DR Congo, but the perpetrators of the wildlife crime are still unknown.


The Kabusu incident comes two months after 300 pieces of hippo teeth and elephant ivory were recovered in sacks of bananas in Masaka by a Uganda Revenue Authority official.

In a related incident, one tonne of ivory was impounded by customs officials in Bangkok Thailand and traced back to Entebbe International Airport early this year.

Trade in ivory is banned according to national and international laws on wildlife. The elephants are listed internationally as endangered species.

Poaching has led to the decline of the population of elephants in Africa from 1.3 million in 1980 to only 600,000 in 1989.

There is concern that illegal killing of elephants could easily spread into the country if anti-poaching measures are not tightened.