Govt Takes Over Wild Life Farms

Zimbabwe Standard (Harare)
January 8, 2006
Posted to the web January 9, 2006
Our Staff
GOVERNMENT says it is going ahead with its controversial Wildlife Based Land Reform Policy despite pleas of a review from disgruntled operators. Operators last week said they were negotiating for a review of the policy, which had not adequately addressed indigenisation of the sector and ownership rights.
"It's a controversial issue. We are engaging the National Parks (and Wildlife Authority)," said Clive Stockhill of Save Conservancy without elaborating.
However, Environment and Tourism Minister Francis Nhema said on Friday that the policy was ready for implementation with the State waiting to identify "suitable" beneficiaries.
"Animals belong to the State. The policy has been approved and we are now waiting to identify people with ability to run conservancies," Nhema said.
He however said the policy design was scientific and beneficiaries were expected to pay white operators for the use of their infrastructure.
"Indigenous people would have to buy into the infrastructure. The design was scientific and intended to save the ecosystem," he said.
Industry officials however told Standard Business that white operators were edgy about Government's intentions to indigenise the sector given its track record of land seizures. Government's land reform programme was characterised by violent farm invasions and a chaotic distribution exercise, which saw land being given to a few elite.
"There is a lack of trust between the white farmers and the government. White farmers feel the policy needs to have clearly defined business principles that should see indigenous farmers buying equity into their conservancies. They do not want a repeat of the land reform," said an industry official.
The policy - designed in line with the land reform policy - requires that owners of "conservancies and game ranches (to) surrender portions of their land to accommodate indigenous Zimbabweans". It is also based on the premise that all wildlife belong to the State.
The wildlife policy will be administered by the Ministry of Environment and Tourism, which would issue out 25-year leases "in accordance with the Land Reform Policy". Nhema said the leases would be reviewed on expiry but indigenous farmers would rather they be given full title to land.

What a shocker...not.

BOHICA!!!!!!

This is very sad.

No surprise. EVERYTHING belongs to Uncle Robert and the State in Zimbabwe, including the SOULS of all of those who live there, don't you already know that? As far as this scheme goes, pitty all of the Outfitters and Hunting Operators in Zim! Never thought that it would happen to them, just to the farmers. So, what about the status of hunting in Zimbabwe in the coming years, as has been hotly debated here on AR recently? Anyone now changing their theories and thoughts? You know, come to think of it, hasn't South Africa also started their own program like that as well, only more subtle? As I understand it, if an Outfitter or PH there makes an indigenous person part of their hunting operation, they'll get some favored treatment and a more favorable outlook in regards to their operations. Just one more reason to hunt Africa in 2006. Time's running out on us, folks. Hey 500 Grains, which canyon above Salt Lake did you take that gorgeous picture in?

Sad, truly sad, after hunting this past year in the Save Conservancy I truly hope the majority of it will be spared. As Mark Young says...it is a piece of Eden.

So bloody stupid, predictable, and sickening nonetheless.

Their motto seems to be: "It's ours now. Watch us waste and ruin it."

I guess now I have some more questions for Gordon Duncan in Dallas when I negotiate my '07 hunt in the Save Conservancy and Senuko Ranch.

Of course, I won't get a straight answer, one, because there is no straight answer, and, two, because a straight answer would completely kill their whole livelyhood.

God, I'm glad I'm not in their shoes!

It's hard to say how much of this is "posturing" and how much is going forward as described.

Bob and his gurus know that disrupting the safari industry is interrupting the country's only source of foreign funds... and thus their source of foreign funds.

Even if it's only benign posturing, it's too bad that they don't realize what kind of damage this does to the likliehood of hunters coming to Zim.

The black plague completely changed the political dynamics of Europe.

And the scientists tell us that bird flu is coming. Maybe it will change the political dynamics of Africa.

AIDS will change the dynamics of Africa. Shame Mugabe does not have a double case of it.
Much as I would have enjoyed hunting Zimbabwe in years past, once the Mugabe terrorism came into full bloom, I strongly advocated a complete US hunting boycott of the country. I wrote to SCI, DSCI, and others advocating that position. But there was "concern" for the few outfitters left there. Action years ago might have prevented this, who knows. I feel for the outfitters but had a sense that this was coming.

Those of you who enjoyed the "good years" are fortunate.

quote:

Bob and his gurus know that disrupting the safari industry is interrupting the country's only source of foreign funds... and thus their source of foreign funds.

I'm sure they do know this, but are playing the game differently than we would. My bet this is part of his end game. If we assume Bob is a classic despot and that the pay offs for a despot are (in no particular order) wealth, power and at least historically, lots of childern, then he is faced with only 3 outcomes: natural death, violent death or exile.

Bob has a tricky game to play. The longer he stays in power, the more wealth he accumulates, but the less likely he is to die naturally. A lucky and powerful despot may be able to nominally give power to a trusted underling and live in local retirement as the power behind the throne. That doesn't seem very likely considering the shambles the country in and the diversity of the population in Zim. I just can't see Bob maintaining a powerful enough support base to allow him to survive local retirement. That suggests Bob's best chance for old age is exile and exile is always more fun with lots of extra cash.

With the "Presidential Elephant Herds" I'm sure well on their way to Asian carving centres, I see only 2 obvious sources of cash left: foreign aid and the safari industry. With starvation looming, plundering the foreign aid will be more profitable than ever and unlikely to dry up any time soon. On the other hand, I'm guessing the safari business will only supply a return for a year and maybe a bit more. About the time that tanks, it might be about the right time for Bob et al to go into exile somewhere in Europe (or RSA?) Surely not even a fleeing despot would want to go to China.

So, in a back handed way, this might be a good thing if it comes to pass. The end may finally be in sight. Not that much worth having is likely to be left by the end.

Yours in doom and gloom predictions,

Dean

As usual that is not quite what the minister said...

Like the last Standard/Independent article saying the USA was going to ban its nationals from hunting here- a load of Bull. The Standard/Independent in zim is extremely anti firearms and anti hunting - and local standard of jornalism are no higher her than at the washington post...

Nooooo....their standards can't be THAT low!

Also... their previous article stated that Jacob Mudenda (a nasty local politician occupying a mates farm) was denied a visa to market at SCI...Not true. Mr Mudenda has a visa... Not one FACT given in that article was True- are we suprised