Rhino go to poaching suspect

CHARL DU PLESSIS | 29 July, 2011 00:34

At least 50 white rhino sold by SA National Parks in the past four years have ended up in the hands of alleged rhino horn smuggling kingpin Dawie Groenewald.

The animals were part of a group of 568 white rhino bought for a total of R119-million by private buyers. SANparks sold them between January 2007 and October 2010.

These figures, which SANParks has confirmed, but which until now have been largely unreported, emerged from a document submitted by Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs Edna Molewa in response to a parliamentary question by DA MP Gareth Morgan in October.

Despite the continuation of poaching of rhino around the country, this year SANParks has sold a further 46 of the animals to private buyers.

Though SANParks claims "all precautions are taken to prevent allocation to persons with known environmental-crime records", it appears from Molewa's response that at least 50 rhino were bought and "delivered" to individuals other than their buyers.

Groenewald made headlines last year when he was arrested with 10 others, including well-known wildlife veterinarian Karl Toet, on charges relating to rhino poaching.

He was released on R1-million bail and has not been asked to plead yet.

SANParks spokesman Wanda Mkutshulwa said yesterday that "private ownership of rhino, alone, does not lead to crime against rhinos".

She said the 58 white rhino that Groenewald bought were sold to him "before any criminal charges were placed against him" and that the whole industry should not "be tarnished by the actions of a few rogue individuals".

She said SANParks had no plans to sell more rhino to Groenewald.

The Department of Water and Environmental Affairs document states that at least 15 animals listed as having been sold to buyers other than Groenewald were delivered to him.

Groenewald's lawyer, Thomas Grobler, said yesterday that he did not understand why the fact that SANParks sold rhinos to his client, who has valid permits, was newsworthy. He has previously said "we don't even know what he has been charged with; the prosecutor at the last court appearance specifically said she cannot say that he has unlawfully hunted any rhino."

Mkutshulwa admitted that the Kruger National Park, which is responsible for the biggest white rhino population in the world, focused on the sale of "high-value species ... and in the Kruger National Park the focus is on white rhino".

"There is a healthy population and the numbers removed are well within population parameters," she said. But the DA and environmental groups have questioned SANParks' policy of focusing on high-priced white rhino to generate revenue at a time when poaching is at an all-time high.

Morgan called on Molewa to stop rhino sales to hunting lodges by SANparks "until such time as rhino poaching has been brought under control".

More than 550 rhino were poached during the four years in which SANParks sold 568 white rhino. Only 13 rhino were poached in 2007 but the number jumped to more than 220 this year alone.

Recent high-profile arrests have suggested that syndicates use corrupt provincial officials responsible for issuing hunting permits to export lucrative rhino horn.

Pelham Jones, chairman of the Private Rhino Owners' Association of SA, said there was a "desperate need" for a centralised, national permitting system to prevent abuse by corrupt provincial officials.

"The figures [for rhino sales by SANParks] are absolutely staggering ... we are failing a species that is under stress," he said.

Experts say the Kruger National Park's sale of white rhino is driven by government underfunding.

Water and Environmental Affairs had not responded yesterday to a list of detailed questions submitted to it on Monday.