Rhino education is key

THE R120 000 donation received by Thula Thula Private Game Reserve from a KZN delegation, acting on behalf of the greater Durban Chinese community, will be used to help the reserve’s anti-poaching unit in an attempt to further protect their wildlife.

‘Our expenses to protect our wildlife are phenomenal and we cannot do without our 24/7 armed security to patrol the game reserve and fight poaching,’ Francoise Malby Anthony, owner of Thula Thula, told the ZO.

During the handover on Saturday, attended by Consul General of China, Jianzhou Wang, Anthony made specific reference to education as being the key to conservation.

‘Three rhinos are killed every day in South Africa, and one elephant every 15 minutes in Africa.

‘We can all fight this in different ways, by fighting with weapons, as this is a way, but also by education, as education is key to conservation.

‘This can be done by stopping the demand for rhino horn and elephant tusks.

‘Children are the voices of the future; that is why it is vital for them to learn and understand the importance of wildlife conservation and protection, and to learn and understand the poaching crisis we are faced with every day in our nature reserves,’ she said, speaking at the reserves rehabilitation centre on Saturday.

Anthony’s sentiments were expressed a mere eight months after two of Thula Thula’s orphaned rhinos were brutally attacked, resulting in the death of one and the other having to be euthanised because of the extent of the mutilation.

Speaking during the briefing, Consul General Jianzhou Wang said there must be a concerted effort in putting a stop to poaching.

‘Every time I read the local papers which say that rhinos and elephants are being poached or have to be dehorned, I feel sad.

‘It was shocking for me to hear that more than 170 rhinos have already been killed in KZN this year.

‘We have an old Chinese teaching that says ‘Do not fail to do good – even if it is small, and do not engage in evil – even if it is small – no matter how small it is.’

‘And in my view, poaching is evil,’ he said.

‘China wants to contribute to the ecological security of the world, and has made positive changes by banning the import of African ivory and carbon products into our country,’ said Wang.

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