Shocking scale of the slaughter: Trophy hunters kill an animal ‘every 3 minutes’
Shocking scale of the slaughter: Trophy hunters kill an animal ‘every 3
minutes’
Writing the foreword for the book in which the revelations are made, former
Botswana President Ian Khama blasts trophy hunting as “sadistic,” and makes
an impassioned plea to Western governments to ban trophy imports before
it's too late.
Riyaz Patel, The South African
December 31, 2020
See link
https://www.thesouthafrican.com/lifestyle/shocking-scale-of-the-slaughter-trophy-hunters-kill-an-animal-every-3-minutes/
for photo and graphics.
Players in the bloodthirsty ‘sport’ of trophy hunting managed to kill an
animal every three minutes over the past decade, a devastating new exposé
of the industry has revealed.
The new book, entitled Trophy Leaks: Top Hunters and Industry Secrets, was
penned by Campaign to Ban Trophy Hunting (CBTH) founder Eduardo Gonçalves,
and exposes the shocking scale of an industry that disingenuously claims
that it is pursuing the aim of conservation.
Over 1.7 million animals – including elephants, lions, and rhinos – have
been slaughtered by trophy hunters, with the wealthiest among them paying
top dollar to kill rare and endangered creatures perilously on the brink of
extinction.
The grim data underscores the ties between an industry that rakes in over
$400 million per year; and the global elites thirsty for a chance to kill
the rare animals that conservationists have tirelessly worked to rescue,
Gonçalves says in his book.
SICK SPORT
Trophy Leaks reveals that hunters have killed some “100 endangered animals”
every day in 2018.
The book, which draws on analysis by the International Fund for Animal
Welfare, reveals that the life of an animal is taken for sport every three
minutes in a blatantly irresponsible contribution to a loss of biodiversity
that has seen the global rate of species extinction accelerate to
unprecedented levels in recent decades.
Gonçalves aptly characterizes the trophy hunting trade as an extinction
industry that banks on the wholesale slaughter of creatures.
“An estimated 1.7 million animals were shot by trophy hunters over the past
decade – the equivalent of almost 500 animals a day, or one every 3
minutes.”
He exposes the incredible kill scores of the world’s top trophy hunters,
and the astonishing ‘covert operations’ funded by the industry to prevent
their sick sport from being banned.
The book reveals how shills for the game-hunting industry have run
high-profile disinformation campaigns on social media to counter the
efforts of the UK government to outlaw imports linked to trophy hunters.
About £600,000 (USD $800,000) was used to prop up sock puppet accounts on
Facebook and Twitter that purported to be Africans opposed to Boris
Johnson’s pledge to ban trophy imports to Britain.
The book says nearly 800 hunters have won the “African Big 5” prize from
the industry, which rewards those who have slain at least one buffalo,
elephant, leopard, lion, and black or white rhino.
Hunting lobbyists with the Safari Club International (SCI) industry
association have also awarded special prizes to hunters who have killed
over 80 different African species.
HUNTING LOBBYISTS HARD AT WORK
Hunting advocates have also reportedly pumped over $2 million to Donald
Trump’s presidential campaign in hopes of seeing a generous return on
investments under his administration.
While Trump has previously denounced trophy hunting, his two sons are
prominent trophy hunters and the Humane Society of the United States has
denounced his administration for catering to wealthy trophy hunters and
ignoring the pleas of conservationists to ban the import of slain animal
“trophies.”
“Future generations will look back aghast at how we allowed the world’s
most endangered species to be gunned down in their droves by adrenaline
junkies in pursuit of grinning selfies and gruesome souvenirs.”
“Trophy-hunting isn’t about a handful of sick individuals – it is about a
huge global industry which wields extraordinary power and manipulates
governments.”