WHITE RIVER – “Poaching in South Africa is just a symptom and no matter how much money you spend to stop the poaching, nothing will change, unless you address the cause and that cause is in Mozambique and in the Far East and that is where the solution lies.” That is the opinion of Damien Mander, an anti-poaching crusader, as he calls himself.
Mander is an Australian citizen and a former Special Operations Military sniper, and worked in the middle east area as the protector of ambassadors.
He is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of the International Anti-Poaching Foundation (IAPF), that he started in 2009.
The mission statement of IAPF is “To protect and preserve wildlife in volatile regions” and focuses on ranger training, operations and integrating modern technology and solutions, like Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) for conservation.
The solution for the poaching crisis does not lie within the South African border, but on the outside.
There is a lot of anger against South Africa in the villages in Mozambique, Damien Mander found when he visited there. “There is a feeling of impotence. They are forced to relocate out of an area, where they were the first humans living there for generations. Now they must make space for animals. South Africans value animals more that they value the Mozambican neighbours, they told me.” There is nobody to explain to them and work with them to make the relocation process easier. They are going to villages where they have no roots and have to mix with families that view them as invaders.
There are more than 400 non-governmental organisations in South Africa at work in anti-poaching and rhino conservation and in Mozambique less than a hand full.
“We need to start working there to change the feeling and attitude against South Africa. We need to allow them also to benefit from nature, wildlife and conservation. We need to make them part of anti-poaching.”
The Far East also plays a role in finding solutions.
According to Damien, it is of no use to tell the Chinese and Vietnamese that rhino horn has no medicinal value, just as you cannot tell any other tribal group in South Africa than animal bones or muti has no value! They have been using traditional medicine for generations.
“So what are we telling them, that their ancestors were lying and that they were mad? We need to accept that they see it as medicine. The only solution is to offer it to them in a way that will benefit all of us and save our rhino.”
The IAPF operates in South Africa, Australia, Zimbabwe and Mozambique and is becoming increasingly well known for establishing crack anti-poaching units by putting locals through specialist tactical training programmes.
The ranger training is free of charge and funded by donations, grants and fundraising activities, like the recent Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa (WESSA) anti-poaching evening at Casterbridge, just outside of White River.
