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NU M B E RON E A C R0 S S TH EAT LAN TIC

-.CONTENTS ~mK moo

January/February 1990 Volume 13 Number 1

The Magazine of theEast African Wild Life Society

Editor:

Shereen Karmali

Advertising/Editorial Assistant:Jane N. Kariuki

Typesetting:

Typotronic Typesetters Ltd

Art:

Designplus Ltd

Printing:

Majestic Printing Works Ltd

Colour Separations:

Courtesy of Webb & Sons Inc, Dallas, Texas

Advertising Sales:

Advertising Department,

Swara Magazine,P.O. Box 20110, Nairobi, Kenya.Tel: 27047/337422

Swara Offices:

1st Floor,Ca/tex House,

Koinange StreetNairobi.

368

15

192326

31

35

Society servicesIncluding a membership application form.

Comment

Nehemiah arap Roach

CITES 1989: a personal viewCynthia MossAn observer describes the tough and at time vicious fight that preceded the decisionto ban the international ivory trade.

CITES 1989: a botanist's view

Steven NjugunaA report on what went on in the less publici sed but equally importantPlants Committee.

Society HighlightsThe carnival event '89

Book Reviews

Ivory and elephants in IndiaEsmond Bradley MartinDoes India's success in maintaining a stable elephant population have anyrelevance to Africa?

Ivory smuggIing in SudanAlfredo GuilletHow some of the poached ivory from eastern and central Africa has been smuggledthrough Sudan.

Letters

Swara Magazine,

P.O. Box 20110, Nairobi, Kenya.Tel: 27047/337422Telex: 22153 FUNGA KE

Fax: 254-2-337423

Swara is a bi-monthly magazine ownedand published six times a year by

the East African Wild Life Society.

The Society is a non-profit makingorganisation formed in 1961 by

amalgamating the Wild Life Societiesof Kenya and Tanzania (both founded

in 1956). It is Society policy to conservewildlife and its habitat, in all its forms,as a national and international resource.

Please see page three for full detailsand membership rates.

Copyright © 1990 East African Wild Life

Society. No reproduction whatsoever is

permitted without the written. permissionof the Editor. Opinions expressed by

contributors are not necessarily the

official view of the Society.

Cover photo:Martial eagleDavid Keith Jones

The impala antelope is the symbolof the East African Wild Life Society.Swara (sometimes pronounced Swala)is the Swahili word for antelope.

ALL Enquiries welcomedP.O, Box 67449, !\AlROBI. Phone: nb737/60437

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A Free

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~ -I~II~r~\\.~\.\\~'Access to theI~---\new and growingIS~..- ~\~L .'.brarY in GurI ~~oc"" off""~\_-~

A Membership Card which brings

you a discount of 10% on all cash

purchase over 100/- made in

our Society Shop adjacent to ourOffices on the Mezzanine floor

of the Nairobi Hilton building.

Six issues of

SWARA every year

posted direct

to you.

Members of the

E.~.Wild Life Societygain:

i-M-EM-BE-RS-HI-P AP-P-UCA-T1-0N- - -,,- - lI To: East African Wild Life Society , IP,O, Box 20110, Nairobi, Kenya "

I Please enrol me as an Ordinary Member. II enclose my cheque/money order for

I Addresse~ in East Africa: Surface KShs 250/- 0Airmail KShs 500/- 0 I

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I Addresses inEurope&UK Surface £Stg 18 0Airmail £Stg 32 0 I

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I OR please collect by (DELETE ALL BUT ONE I IAMERICAN EXPRESS Expiry Date ----

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Thesatisfaction of helpingconservation

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Access to

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Act now andhelp us continueour vital work.

Subscribe to Svvara l'J

and help conserve Wildlife!

We have many influent/al peopleacting as Trustees and members ofour Council; and we have District

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hold effective, private discussions at

the highest level and is thus able to

meet potential problems of

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without rushing into abrasive publiccontroversies.

Every new enrolment will give usmore muscle in our negotiations withthe Governments,.i nternational

agencies and organisations whocontrol East Africa's wildlife; and

every new subscription will help by

increasing our funds, which are usedto assist conservation in vital ways.

We also welcome firms, organisations

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seven point benefit scheme. Pleasetick the box for details.

SWARA makes an ideal present toyour relatives and friends-for

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/n the past thirty years the Society has ma.de a significant contribution of more than

$1,500,000 to conservation. We have exerted an influence through funding research projects; through

supplying vehicles, planes and equipment for anti-poaching measures; and through helping education

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United Touring Company Ltd

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3

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Banning the ivorytrade is just the

beginningby Nehemiah arap Rotich

Executive Director, EAWLS

Two years ago the East African Wild Life Society led in calling for a world­wide ban on the ivory trade as ultimately the only way to halt the poaching ofAfrica's elephants. Since then conservation organisations and the news mediaaround the world have unearthed and publicised the bloody massacre ofAfrica's elephants and have lobbied to ban the trade that has been its cause.

Non-governmental organisations and the news media deserve credit forthe agreement reached at last October's CITES meeting to ban the trade. TheSeventh Conference of the Parties to the Convention on International Tradein Endangered Species placed the African elephant on Appendix I of theconvention following ten days of heated and highly charged debate (see thearticle by Cynthia Moss on page 8). A listing under Appendix I prohibitscommercial trade in all products of a species thus precipitating the world-wideban in ivory trading among members of the convention.

~'~':a mUc~ ~:JlX. ~:~ rH& a~~s~~~::C:Q:~ :m~:l:': .:

Patrons: President of Kenya President of Tanzania President of Uganda

The East African Wild Life SocietyThe East African Wild Life Society was formed

in 1961 by amalgamating the Wild LifeSocieties of Kenya and Tanzania (bothfounded in 1956).

The policy of the Society is to safe-guardwildlife and its habitat, in all its forms, as anational and international resource.

Members are requested to address anyqueries to the Executive Director.

Executive Director:

Mr Nehemiah K. arap Rotich

P,O.Box 20110, Nairobi, Kenya.Tel: Nairobi 27047/337422

Director's Office, Swara and Administration

on the 1st floor, Caltex House, KoinangeStreet, Nairobi.

Society Shop and Membership Sales onthe mezzanine floor, Nairobi Hilton

Arcade, Telephone: 331888/21780

6

Chairman

Hon Dr J.K. Misoi

Vice-Chairman

Dr WJ.Lusigi

Treasurer:

M r AX M baya

Trustees:

Prof F.l.B. KayanjaMr John Koitie

Mr A. MongiHon G. Muhoho

Mr H. Ng'wenoHon WA. Ole Ntimama

Hon Vice-Chairmen:

Mr Mervyn Cowie C.B.E. ED.

Mr J.F, LipscombeMr Michael Werikhe

Members of Council:

Mr N. arap ChumoDr H, Croze

Mrs F. Ng'weno

Dr Theuri NjokaProf Stephen Njuguna

Dr R. Olubayo

Management Committee:Mr N.K. arap Rotich(Chairman)

Mr N. arap ChumoMs Shereen Karmali

Mr Andrew K. MbayaDr Theuri Njoka

Prof Stephen Njuguna

Publicity & MembershipSub-Committee

Mr Julian Goodwin (Chairman)

Mrs Lucy CammMr J.R.A. Munai

Mr M.H.A. Shete

Mrs Nanette Song'ony

Scientific & Technical/ Honorary Members:

Committee: Panam World Airways (Nbi)

Dr W Lusigi (Chairman) Panam World Airways (U.S.A.)Mr Nathaniel arap Chumo Thomas G, PlaskettDr Chris Gakahu c.E. Acker

Ms Shereen Karmali Ms M. BishopMr J.R.A. Munai P.A. Walker-Munro

Dr F. Muthuri J,H, Webb Jr.

Mr N. Ndiang'ui Webb & Sons IncorporatedDr Theuri Njoka Westlands Motors Ltd

Prof Stephen Njuguna

Mr G.O. OdengeProf J. Okello

Dr R, OlubayoMs Rosalie OsbornMr W Ottichilo

Mr N.K. arap RotichMr M.H.A. Shete

Mr F.K. Waweru

Nobody expects that with the implementation of the ban poaching willimmediately end. However, the ban provides a vital breathing space fordesigning programmes to reverse the steep decline in African elephantpopulations. Foremost among these must be a public awareness campaign sothat wearing ivory becomes shameful and unfashionable. People must bemade to realise that the guiltiest party in the destruction of Africa's elephantsis the consumer at the end of the chain. The ivory ban is a clear signal to theworld that the elephant is in real danger of extinction unless the consumptionof ivory is stopped.

The poaching of elephants will continue unabated as long as a high marketvalue is placed on ivory. You and your friends can help by not buying ivoryjewellery, however small an item it may be; it was almost certainly obtainedthrough the death of an elephant at the hands of poachers. The public must beencouraged to shun shops and all businesses dealing in any form of ivory. Onlya change in public opinion can make ivory undesirable.

The range states, that is those countries with elephants, must intensifyanti-poaching programmes. Poachers might continue to kill elephants in orderto supply non-CITES countries or to stockpile in anticipation of the ban beinglifted at the next CITES meeting so as to allow limited trade from 'healthy'populations.

The sophisticated and complex world ivory trade is too enormous an issuefor anyone nation to resolve alone. The task of conserving the elephant is alsotoo great for any range state to successfully go it alone. It took the worldcommunity to agree on the ivory ban. Now that this remarkable step forwardhas been taken, the international group should take a second step to supportconservation programmes in the range states. Equally, a co-operative effort isrequired to devalue ivory as a luxury item among the world's wealthy. Thesolution lies in joint action. The attitude that it is Africa's problem has noplace in this crisis. "

EAST AFRICAN WILD LIFE SOCIETY

-REPRESENTATIVES WORLDWIDE "~~ --ARGENTINA Robert R. TaylorJAPANUAEDr Terry L. MapleMr David BlantonZIMBABWE

Miguel A. Tauszig

944 Windermere AveMr Matsuo TsukazakiMr Chris W FurleyZoo AtlantaPO Box 915MrM.R Drury

Av Libertador 17066

Winnipeg2·9·2 Shibuya Shibuya-KuInternational Zoo Veterinary Group800 Cherokee Ave SEIthaca10 Donald McDonald Drive

1643 Beccar

MANITOBAR3T lAlTOKYO 150AI Ain Zoo and AquariumAtlantaNEW YORK 14851EASTELEA HARARE

PCIA. BUENOS AIRES

CHILEKENYAPO Box 1204GEORGIA 30315George F. RooszLarry Northon

AUSTRAUA

Dr A.M. MattoliMr Mark EasterbrookAlAinMr Gordon Crombie61 Forest Ridge DriveP,O. Box 33

MrD. Wood

Casila4PO Box 208ABU DHABI2725 Park AveWorthingtonMvurwi

786 Pacific Highway

SAN FRANCISCO DE MOSTAZALMALINDIMrs E,A. SheppardFranklin ParkOHIO 43235

Gordon

DENMARKMr Edwin KoskeiPO Box 6000ILLINOIS 60131Colin R. BarnesNSW 2072

Carsten Laage-PetersenPO Box 76DUBAIMichael Banks1211 May Lane

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ETHIOPIAI PO Box 253Chief American RepILLINOIS 60093Donna B. Shaver

QUEENSLANDDr J.C. HillmanNAROKPO Box 82002Sanford Takiff1122 SE 31st

Mr Chandra Patel

Wildlife Conservation OrganisationMrs Claire E. YoungSan DiegoPOBox 546OREGON 97214

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Tosmore

ADDIS ABABAMOMBASAMs V. StallingsILLINOIS 60035855 Springdale DriveAdelaide 5065

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SOUTH AUSTRALIAMr Tom KumlinMr & Mrs Enrique MondragonSan Diego

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SF·02160 ESTOOCoahuila No 603MrMarcColenINDIANA 46203Brower Road

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MAINE 04046Bainbridge Island

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HarlowPAKISTANLos AngelesMr C.G. Allen JrWASHINGTON 98110

VICTORIAESSEX CM18 6PDMr Abdi-Ghani SindhiCALIFORNIA 90024

BarreMr Walter Stein

AUSTRIAMr Andrew C, Fentiman2225 Resham Gali

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BP810

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BUJUMBURAHOLLANDDag PetersonCALIFORNIA 94556

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NEW JERSEY 08081Zugspitzstr65

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7

CITES 1989: a personal viewStory and photos by Cynthia Moss

The last issue of Swara went to press just days before the parties to CITES voted to ban the internationaltrade in ivory. Here an acknowledged authority on elephant behaviour, who went to the conference as anobserver, describes the tough and at times vicious fight that preceded the vote.

The seventh Conference of the Parties of

CITES (Convention on InternationalTrade in Endangered Species of WildFauna and Flora) met in Lausanne,Switzerland from 9 to 20 October 1989. I

attended this meeting as one of the team ofobservers from the African WildlifeFoundation. I had never been to a CITES

conference before and I hope I will neverhave to go to one again. I found it extra­ordinarily intense, disturbing and disillu­sioning. I was told by many of the observersand delegates whom I met that CITESmeetings, of which there have been sixsince the treaty was ratified in 1973, 'havenever been like this one before'.

The 1989 conference was dominated bya single, highly emotional issue in a waythat no conference had ever been before.That issue was the fate of the African

elephant. The world was watching and thedecisions made at Lausanne would go downin history as either resulting in the turningpoint for the recovery of the elephants or inthe failure to halt their rapid declinetowards extinction. Everyone at the confer­ence knew how important the outcomewould be and thus the interest and tension

were extremely high.The two basic arguments for and against

an ivory ban were presented in last year'sSeptember/October issue of Swara so I wmnot go into them in detail. Rather I will tryto explain what actually happened at theconference. Since the machinations that

went on behind the scenes were Byzantinein the extreme, I only know what went on inthe actual sessions and some of what went

on outside, and thus my description of whatoccurred has to be 'a personal view'. (I alsomust add that my opinions do not necessar­ily reflect the views of the African WildlifeFoundation. )

CITES is a convention or treaty. Thereare presently 103 signatories to that treaty,each a sovereign state. The states senddelegations and each state has one vote.There were 91 states represented and a fewothers who did not have their credentials inorder and therefore could not vote. Also at

the conference were observers, mostly

8

NGOs (non-governmental organisations)who could speak but not vote. And, ofcourse, the CITES secretariat was thererunning the show. The secretariat is madeup of permanent employees who areentrusted with overseeing that the CITESregulations and agreements are carried out.The present secretary general is a Canadiannamed Eugene Lapointe. CITES is fundedprimarily by UNEP. However, it is withinthe mandate of the CITES secretariat to

raise additional money to carry out itswork. Some of these outside funds comefrom ivory dealers and carvers and furtraders. At registration we were eachpresented with a vinyl briefcase. On it wasprinted in large letters: 'Offered by Inter­national Fur Trade Federation & Associa­

tion Professionnelle Suisse de la Fourrue,CITES Lausanne 1989.' I have to admit I

found it inappropriate and could not helpwondering about conflicts of interest.Presumably I was not the only one whothought the idea offensive, because veryfew of the participants used the briefcasesafter the first day. And as it turned out thewhole question of the ethical conduct ofCITES came up frequently throughout theconference.

The conference of parties meets everytwo years to consider a variety of issues,such as proposals to move a species fromone listing to another, interpretation andimplementation of the conventiof1 includ­ing reported infractions, and budgets andfinancing. The conference was divided intotwo committees. Committee I dealt with

various proposals from the biological pointof view and Committee II dealt with trade

matters and budgeting and financing .Plenary sessions were held to pass therecommendations made in committee anddeal with general issues.

At the opening ceremony on the morn­ing of 9 October Prince Bernhard of theNetherlands gave an excellent speechemphasising to all the delegates the crucialdecisions they had before them regardingthe African elephant. He remindedeveryone that the aim of the conventionwas to save endangered species (which was

reassuring since we already had the strongfeeling that the CITES secretariat felt thatthe point was saving the trade). He said thata ban was not enough, that we must reducedemand and make it embarrassing to wearor use ivory in the same way that people areembarrassed to wear spotted cat skins. Hemade this plea: 'If there is any doubt abouta decision concerning the fate of wildlife,let the benefit of the doubt always be infavour of the wildlife. Once a species isgone we can never get it back.'

The following day the committee meet­ings began and it was soon obvipus thatthere were strikingly divergent views onwhat was best for elephants or best forstates with elephant populations. One sideargued that the rational way to conserveelephants was to continue the ivory tradeunder rigorously controlled conditions; theother side appealed for a complete ban onivory to prevent loopholes and to giveAfrica's elephants time to recover. How­ever, the dichotomy was not in any way thatsimple. Vested interests and politicalrealities underplayed the arguments andsometimes overshadowed them.

At this conference there were seven

proposals up for consideration to transferthe African elephant from Appendix II toAppendix I, which would in effect declarethe species endangered and halt all inter­national trade in its products. The sevenproposing countries were: Austria, theGambia, Hungary, Kenya, Somalia, Tan­zania,and the USA. All of these proposalscalled for the African elephant to be listedon Appendix I throughout its range. Theconsequences of such a listing are:• No commercial trade in ivory except invery exceptional circumstances. Thus noivory can be imported for resale or carvingin a nation that is a signatory of CITES.• Appendix I listing does not affect huntingtrophies because a hunter returning homefrom Africa wi th one or two pairs of tusks isnot doing so for commercial use.• Tourist souvenirs made out of ivorywould be difficult to import and export butnot impossible because tourists do not bringsouvenirs back for commercial resale. The

problem is that an individual wanting toimport a few ivory items has to get animport licence from his or her own countryfirst and then an export permit from theexporting country. At present this is a cum­bersome procedure.• Confiscated ivory and found ivory cannotbe exported for commercial use.• Stockpiled ivory cannot be sold unless itcan be proven that the ivory originatedbefore 1976 when the African elephant wasfirst listed in CITES.

Since CITES is an international conven­tion, what a country does with its elephantsand its ivory internally is its own business.Thus a country such as Zimbabwe couldcontinue to cull its elephants, but it couldnot sell the products resulting from thekilling of its elephants (meat, skins andivory) internationally .

. At that first Committee I meeting eachof the proposing countries was given achance to present its case for placing theAfrican elephant on Appendix I. After­wards other delegates were allowed tospeak and eventually observers were giventhe floor. The single most disturbing aspectof the whole conference was immediatelyobvious on that first day of discussion. Thesecretariat was blatantly and outrageouslypartial and the committee chairmanappeared to support its view. The secretariatwas against transferring the elephant toAppendix I and made its po~ition very clearfrom the start. Indeed, well before theconference ever began it was lobbying

against the Appendix I proposal ininformation sheets that it sent out to allthe participants, and in all sorts of otherways, including organising a meeting ofAfrican delegates in Amsterdam before theCITES conference, allegedly to try to getthem to compromise. The chairman ofCommittee I was not in the least bit subtlein his bias against the proponents of anAppendix I listing. His attempted manipu­lation of the speakers and his comments

from the chair would have been a farce ifwhat was under discussion was not of suchimportance. By the end of that first com­mittee meeting we knew that the fight wasgoing to be tough and vicious and that therules were not what we thought they were .

But also at the end of that first sessionwe knew that we had some very articulatevoices speaking on behalf of the Africanelephant, and most important of all thesevoices were from Africa. Paul Chabeda

9

from Kenya, Costa Mlay from Tanzania,and Mankoto ma Mbaelele from Zaire gavebrilliant speeches calling for a total ban onthe ivory trade. These speeches made thedelegates from outside Africa sit tip andreconsider what was at stake and listen towhat some Africans were trying to say.

Committee I met for two days of hotdebate, before the whole issue of elephantsand ivory moved on to Committee II. Bynow the lines of battle were clearly drawn.Opposition to the transfer came from thesouthern African states of Botswana,Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa andZimbabwe, some central African states, afew non-African states, the ivory tradersthemselves, and the secretariat. To confusethe issue some of the conservation organi­sations (most notably WWF) appeared tobe talking out of two sides of their mouths,calling for a ban or moratorium on one

hand but arguing against a straightAppendix I listing on the other hand. TheIUCN came out strongly for a split listingwhich would put some populations ofelephants on Appendix I and some onAppendix II. Supporters of the banincluded the seven proposing countries,some of the other African states, a range ofnon-African states who made some excel­

lent points (among them Bolivia, FederalRepublic of Germany, Israel, Peru,Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Trinidad andTobago), and most of the NGOs. (It was agreat boost to the morale of the inter­national NGOs to have amongst them theAfrican representatives from the EastAfrican Wild Life Society and the WildlifeConservation Society of Tanzania.)

After five days of discussion in Commit­tees I and II the whole issue was polarisedto such an extent that it appeared that wewould leave the conference with nothingaccomplished. What the southern Africanstates wanted was for all the other African

range states (that is those with elephants) tobe placed on Appendix I, but their popula­tions left on Appendix II so that they couldcontinue trading in ivory. Their argumentwas that their populations were secure andthey did not see why they had to bepenalised for what they considered were

10

the inept management practices and cor­ruption of the other African states. Most ofthe delegates agreed that the majority ofthe range states should be placed onAppendix I. What they did not agree uponwas which countries should be given specialdispensation or whether any should at all.

In a world without political considera­tions the southern African argument mighthave held water, but it was unworkable formany reasons, most of which had nothingto do with elephants. In my view whathappened at the CITES conference was inmany ways a result of a complete mis­reading of Africa by southern Africa and itswildlife departments, the CITES secretariat,and some of the western conservation

organisations. It seemed a rational solutionto the problem to allow the countries thathad healthy elephant populations to go ontrading under a new and rigorous systemproposed by Zimbabwe in which an ivorycartel would be set up and all ivory soldfrom it. In the real world this system wasunacceptable.

The first problem was that for politicaland economic reasons the cartel had to be

part of a trade agreement in southernAfrica which encompassed the regionknown as SADCC (the Southern AfricanDevelopment Co-ordination Conference).Unfortunately for their argument, SADCCincludes not ony Zimbabwe, Botswana andMalawi, which could support theircontention that they had healthy elephantpopulations, but also Mozambique,Zambia, Angola, and Tanzania. Angola isnot a member of CITES, Mozambique is inthe midst of a civil war, Zambia has losthuge numbers of its elephants to poachers,and Tanzania is one of the proponents of anivory ban. And in any case where does thatleave South. Africa? It was supposed to bepart of the cartel and yet the ZimbabweMinister of National Parks and Wildlife

Management, the Hon. Victoria Chitepo,who came to CITES to reinforce her coun­

try's position, said in a press conferencethat Zimbabwe would not deal with SouthAfrica.

Nevertheless, the first of three amend­ments was proposed to allow for a splitlisting. Botswana submitted an amendmentto the Austrian Appendix I proposal,which, although legal under the rules,Austria did not appreciate. This amend­ment allowed certain southern Africanstates to remain on Appendix II with anagreed moratorium on trade until the newcartel and trade regulations came intoeffect. The main concern about the

proposal was that there was no guaranteethat legal trade in these countries would notcover up trade in poached ivory. AlthoughZimbabwe might be able to claim that theyhad no illegal trade in their landlockedcountry, Botswana and South Africa havebeen proven conduits for poached tusks;indeed, since Burundi closed down its ivorytrade South Africa is reported to havebecome the major entrepot for the exportof illegal ivory.

Another problem whicQ the split listingpresented was one that some of us in Africapredicted. There are a few central Africancountries which have elephant populations

that are not being heavily poached eventhough they are also not 'well managed' bysome criteria. These countries are in manyways similar to Botswana and are certainlyin far better control of their wildlife than

wartorn Mozambique. Gabon is a primeexample. It has a large healthy elephantpopulation. It does not want to cull itselephants but would like to sell ivory fromconfiscated stocks and from elephants shoton control and those which have died natur­

ally. Why should Gabon not also beallowed to be on Appendix II? Why shouldit leave at the end of the CITES meeting onthe list of countries that have shown that

they cannot control poaching or managetheir elephants, while other countrieswhich have a far worse record should goaway receiving special consideration forconserving their elephants? A list of 'good'countries and 'bad' countries was a conceptthat was bound to be politically unpopular.Not surprisingly Gabon, Congo and Came­roon suggested that they too remain onAppendix II.

By this time, Thursday afternoon of thefirst week, it was clear that we were at animpasse. Neither the so-called split listingsnor the straight Appendix I had enoughsupport to win a two-thirds majority.Another approach had to be made. Someof the African delegates got together withsome of the smaller NGOs and came upwith an amendment to the Somali proposal.This amendment called for all populationsof African elephants to be transferred fromAppendix II to Appendix I with the provi­sion that a panel of experts be set up toevaluate proposals by countries to downlisttheir populations from Appendix I to II inaccordance with criteria that would be laid

down and adopted at the meeting. A coun­try that met all the criteria could make anapplication almost immediately and couldtheoretically be down listed even before thenext conference of parties if a postal votewere taken.

The Somali amendment was appealingfor several reasons. It meant that at the end

of the conference everyone would be onAppendix I and, therefore, there would beno embarrassing and arbitrary distinctionsbetween nations. It also meant that there

would be no legal trade in ivory and thus itclosed the potential for laundering of illegalivory through countries that could stilllegally trade. And the adoption of a fullAppendix I listing would send out a clearmessage to the world that the Africanelephant was in trouble and that the buyingof any ivory at this time imperilled itfurther. Personally, I felt that this messagewas the most crucial part of the whole con­ference. Unless people are convinced thatthey should stop buying and wearing ivorythen all the bans in the world will have noeffect.

There was an attempt to kill this amend­ment by the chairman of Committee I whenhe said it was so similar to the Botswana

amendment that he was not considering it.Whether this was an honest mistake on his

part or deliberate I could not say. In anycase the Somali delegation protestedstrongly after the session came to a close onFriday afternoon and it was promised that

The EA WLS Executive Director,Nehemiah arap Rotich, chatting withdelegates from Malawi and Cameroon atthe final reception.

they would be able to state their case onMonday morning.

Although some delegates and observersmanaged to get off into the mountains overthe weekend, a great deal of lobbying andmanoeuvering was carried out over the twodays. By Monday morning the tension wasalmost unbearable. We arrived only to findout that the elephant issue would not bedealt with until the afternoon session.

(Other plant and animal species did get ahearing, but I have to admit they did not getthe attention that the elephant did.)

The afternoon session began. Two moreamendments were submitted and theSomali amendment was allowed forconsideration. The new amendments were

to all seven Appendix I proposals (much toAustria's relief). The first was submitted byfive southern African state - Botswana,

Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia and Zim­babwe - proposing that these countriesplus South Africa, and Namibia andAngola (on becoming signatories ofCITES) would remain on Appendix II.They would observe a moratorium on ivorybut not on other elephant products, such ashides, until a working group, 'acceptable tothe named states', was established to deter­mine whether the countries met certain

criteria for trade. Eventually any otherrange state could also trade if it met thesame criteria. The second amendment was

submitted by Cameroon, Congo andGabon requesting that their populationsremain on Appendix II with a moratoriumuntil a working group established that tradecould be resumed.

lain Douglas-Hamilton was then askedto give a brief report on the status ofelephant populations in the regionsrequesting Appendix II listing. He did thisclearly and succinctly, showing that theoverall trend in both these regions was oneof decline. Finally, the moment we had allbeen waiting for came. The vote was to be

11

... elephants How they voted on the Somali amendment

For

Afghanistan, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bolivia, Brazil,Canada, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Denmark,Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Gambia, FRG, Ghana,Guatemala, Guinea, Honduras, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Iran, Israel, Italy, Jordan,Kenya, Liberia, Luxembourg, Madagascar Malaysia, Malta, Mauritius, Morocco,New Zealand, Nepal, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Niger, Norway, Pakistan, PNG,Peru, Philippines, Portugal, Rwanda, St. Lucia, St. Vincent/Gr, Senegal, Singapore,Somalia, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Surinam, Sweden, Switzerland, Tanzania,Thailand, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, UK, USA, USSR, Vanuatu,Venezuela, Zaire.

AgainstArgentina, Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, China, Congo, Gabon, Mozambique,South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

taken on the various proposals and amend­ments but not surprisingly there was yetanother hurdle. ft was proposed that thevoting be by secret ballot. A role call voteoverwhelmingly defeated this manoeuvre.

At last the voting began. First the south­ern African amendment for a split listingwas voted on. This was the crucial one for

all of us who wanted a total ban. As a yes orno was called out by each delegation weheld our breath and as more and more nos

were uttered and we counted up the finalscore we knew there was a chance for

Africa's elephants. That amendment lostby 70 against to 20 for, with one abstention.The Cameroon-Congo-Gabon amendmentlost by 83 to 8. Then the six Appendix Iproposals were lumped together and votedon as one. They failed to get a two-thirdsmajority, with 53 for to 36 against, with twoabstentions. Finally, the Somali amend:ment was voted on and won a resoundingvictory of 76 for and 11 against, with fourabstentions (see box). Prince Bernhard'splea was headed: the benefit of the doubtwent in favour of the elephants.

We had won a reprieve for elephants,maybe a 'cease-fire' as Mr Mankoto fromZaire had so eloquently called for, but atthat point we did not feel it was a securevictory. It still had to be passed by a plenarysession, and that would not take place untilthe next day. By the next morning therehad been a move, behind the scenes, bycertain individuals, including representa­tives from two of the largest conservationorganisations, to have Botswana, SouthAfrica and Zimbabwe placed on AppendixII immediately. They had the audacity tosuggest that the delegates did not under­stand the true implications of their vote.After sitting there for six days listening tothe arguments on all sides, the many clearand detailed explanations of the conse­quences of listing on each appendix, I hadthe distinct impression that they knewexactly what they were voting on and why.The move did not come to anything andthat afternoon at 2:54 pm on 17 October theplenary passed the recommendation of thecommittee. What was left was to work out

the criteria and the panel of experts whichthe amendment had called for. A workinggroup was set up and the criteria andguidelines for a panel of experts (such aselephant population status and trends,conservation management practices andthe adequacy of ivory trade controls) werepassed after some amendments on Thurs­day evening at a special late session whichdid not end until well after 10 pm.Everyone walked out of there utterlyexhausted.

Few people felt exhilarated at a victoryfor elephants. The fight had been far toobitter and the displays of self interest andgreed underlying so much of what wasgoing on left one feeling disillusioned withinternational conservation bodies andtreaties. Zimbabwe said it would take a

reservation (a provision in the treaty allows

12

Abstentions

Japan, Panama, Paraguay, Uraguay.

a nation to take out a reservation for a

particular species within 90 days of thelisting of the species, and under thisreservation they can continue to trade withnon-CITES members and otlier CITEScountries which have also taken reserva­

tions). Botswana not only threatened totake out a reservation but also to leave

CITES altogether. At the very end whenthe criteria for down listing were outlined,South Africa said it did not see how it could

get back on to Appendix II under thoseconditions, and therefore it would have totake out a reservation. One high-levelmember of IUCN, who was against theSomali amendment, claimed after the votethat there would be 12 reservations, includ­ing Japan. Fortunately he was wrong.Within a week Japan declared officially thatit would abide by the Appendix I listing,and by mid-December, the only country tohave taken a reservation was Zimbabwe.

It was a hard fight and one that Ithought was unfairly fought, but in the endthose calling for a ban won becausetheir opponents did not take into accountseveral factors. First was the African nations'

sincere desire to save their elephants andthe very articulate spokesmen they had.Second was the political realities of Africa:regional interests versus the desire forAfrican solidarity over the issue of theAfrican elephant. There were many oppos­ing forces at work, but the force forsolidarity won out in the end. Twenty out ofthe 29 African nations present voted yes forAppendix I with the Somali amendment.And third, the secretariat and IUCN andothers let their fear of reservations lead

them to a compromise position that wasunworkable. As it turned out they misreadboth the African nations and Japan. InJapan there were signs that a change wascoming; the Japanese government appa­rently did not want the elephant issue to beanother whaling confrontation. Japaneseivory traders and carvers had claimed allalong that they would only buy legal ivory,and in particular that they would not buyivory that was confiscated from poachers.

What does all this mean for Africa's

elephants? The poaching is not going tostop overnight. The most pessimisticobservers are saying that the trade will gounderground and the price of ivory will goup even higher. For the moment they arebeing proven wrong. CITES countries have90 days from the adoption of the AppendixI listing to sell their stocks of ivory. HongKong is sitting on 670 tons of ivory;Burundi claims it has 80 tons. It appearsthat there is an ivory glut in a world inwhich demand has been significantlyreduced. Already the price in Africa hasgone down by half or even more.

But the lowered demand may only be atemporary phenomenon. We cannot relaxnow. We must continue with the publicawareness campaign partioularly in the fareast. At the same time each African coun­

try with elephants must be given generousand sustained financial and moral supportto protect those elephants. It is up to therich nations now to help Africa conservethis magnificent wildlife heritage and tostop over-exploiting Africa's naturalresource. At CITES all the African nations

showed their concern for saving theirelephants no matter what their point ofview was on how to do it. However, theones who wanted the ban were more con­

vincing in the end. One only had to listen toPaul Chabeda from Kenya and Costa Mlayfrom Tanzania pleading with the rest of thedelegates to help them stop the poachingand the illegal trade to know that theseappeals came from the heart and were notimposed on them from the outside as sometried to claim. But they cannot do it alone.It is a global responsibility and the worldmust join in the effort. rJ

Cynthia Moss has worked in East Africa for the past22 years. Her involvemcnt with elcphants began in1968 in Lake Manyara National Park in Tanzaniawhere sbe worked with lain Douglas-Hamilton. In1972 sbe started the Amboseli Elephant ResearchProject, which she continues to direct. For 18 yearsshe has been witb the African Wildlife Found'ation

and is presently a Senior Associate. Her two books,Portraits in the Wild (Elm Tree Books and Univer­sity of Chicago Press) and Elephant Memories (ElmTree Books and William Morrow) are both higblyacclaimed.

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14

by Steven Njuguna

Leopard orchids, threatened by collection in the wild, on sale at Mombasa's Likoni ferry.

CITES 1989:a botanist's view

which are issued when certain conditions

are met and which have to be presentedwhen consignments of specimens leave orenter a country. The animal and plantspecies subject to different degrees ofregulation are listed in three appendices:Appendix I includes species threatenedwith extinction and for which trade must be

subject to particularly strict regulation andonly authorised in exceptional cir­cumstances.Appendix II species are those that are notnecessarily now threatened with extinctionbut may become so unless trade is strictlyregulated.Appendix III includes species that are sub­ject to regulation within the jurisdiction of aparty and for which the co-operation ofother parties is needed in order to preventor restrict their exploitation.

The convention provides for a secretariatand a conference of parties which playamajor role in the functioning of the conven­tion. As habitats shrink and fears about

environmental perturbation through globalwarming and ozone layer depletionincrease, the control of trade in threatenedspecies will gain further importance.CITES as a conservation tool has, there­fore, a great deal more to do in future. Theregulation of trade in wild plants has, how­ever, been given much lower priority thanregulation of trade in animals.

The CITES Plants C0mmittee was

formally established at the sixth CITESconference, held in Ottawa, Canada in 1987.The committee was formed to increase the

efficiency of plant monitoring within theCITES system and to assist parties to' addtaxa to or to revise the appendices so as tobring additional protection to plants in needof CITES provisions. The committeeintends to publish a CITES Guide to Plantsin International Trade in 1990 as a practicalguide for the general public and regulatoryofficers. The commitee also plans to pub­lish checklists and establish databases on

orchids, cacti, succulents and tree ferns. Atthe recommendation of the committee, aplants officer is to be appointed at theCITES secretariat to help co-ordinate workon plants at risk from international trade. Iparticipated in most of the sessions of thePlants Committee in Lausanne, whereKenya signalled its intention to stem thetide of trade currently prevalent in orchids,succulents and African violets.

CITES regulates the import and exportof all orchids, cacti, succulent euphorbias,aloes, cycads, most tree ferns, numerouspalms and bulbous plants, many carnivor­ous plants, and various other plants. Wholeplant groups such as families and genera arelisted under CITES because of the manytaxa (species, subspecies and varieties)vulnerable from international trade. All

orchids, cacti and many other vulnerabletaxa are listed under Appendix I or II ofCITES.

Considerable concern was expressed atthis meeting over the trade in wild orchids,which involves huge numbers of specimensand threatens some species with extinction.Paphiopedi/um, or the 'slipper' orchid, tradeis known to involve a high percentage of wild

In March 1973, 21 countries signed theConvention on International Trade in

Endangered Species of Wild Fauna andFlora (CITES). The contracting parties toCITES recognised that 'wild fauna andflora in their many beautiful and variedforms are an irreplaceable part of thenatural systems of the earth which must beprotected for this and the generations tocome'. At the conclusion of the SeventhConference of Parties to CITES held inLausanne, Switzerland, in October lastyear, the number of contracting parties hadrisen to 103 countries, representing almostevery part of the globe.

CITES regulates international trade inspecimens of wild fauna and flora on thebasis of a system of permits and certificates

The EA WLS sponsored one ofKenya's leading ecologists to attendlast year's CITES meeting.He reports on what went on in theless publicised but equallyimportant Plants Committee.

... plantscollected specimens for which a reasonableamount of status information is available.

A brief analysis of the 1985 CITES statisticsfor this genus indicates that a total of109,634 apparently wild-collected plantswere recorded involving 31 differentspecies of which the most significent wereP. callosum (30,703), P. niveum (11,352)and P. sukhaku/ii (5,370). The conferenceendorsed the Appendix I listing of morethan 80 species of the orchid generaPaphiopedilum from Asia and Phrag­medium from South America. Other orchid

species which were listed in Appendix Iincluded Eriopsis bilba and Rossioglosumwilliamsianum.

In Kenya, it is estimated that over 100species of plants are vulnerable andendangered. The true number is likely to bemuch higher since many areas in the coun­try have not been studied botanically.While most attention has been directed

towards the protection and conservation ofanimals, especially the large mammals, theflora has been given scanty consideration.The conservation of fauna cannot be effec­

tively achieved unless the survival of thefood resource, the plants upon which theanimals depend, is ensured.

The indigenous flora of Kenya is underheavy pressure from habitat loss anddegradation as a result of the expansion ofagricultural activities. This problem isfurther compounded by the country's highpopulation growth rate (4 per cent perannum) which means that habitat degrada­tion will be an even more serious threat to

the remaining indigenous plant species inthe coming decades.

Kenyan orchids are in danger ot extinc­tion through the destruction oftheir naturalhabitats and excessive collection in the

wild. The following species of orchids havebeen identified as threatened by horticul­tural collection and trad'e: Ansellia africana

(the leopard orchid), Aerangis luteoalbavar. rhodosticta, Aerangis kotschyana,Polystachya bella, Angraecum eburneumsubsp. giryamae and Microcoelia spp.

In addition to the orchid species, thereare other plant species that are vulnerabledue to collection in the wild. These include

Adenia globosa subsp. pseudoglobosa,Adenum spp., Caralluma spp., Encephalar­tos spp., Edithcolea gradis and Stapeliasemota.

These lists should be regarded as onlypreliminary. Few studies have been carriedout on the endangered plant species ofKenya. There is an urgent need for morestudies on the taxonomy, ecology and easeof propagation of these endangered plants.The studies should be extended to includetrade in wild-collected species before inter­national support for their protection issolicited. As a starting point, the assess­ment of collection and trade in plants formedicinal and medical purposes ought to becarried out.

I would recommend that a largerdelegation from Kenya attends the eighthConference of Parties to CITES, which willmeet in Japan in 1992, to ensure our fullparticipation in all plenary and committeemeetings.

The present Management Authority(the Kenya Wildlife Service) should alsoidentify and so designate the ScientificAuthority for plant and animal species as isrequired under the convention. Mean­while, a close working relationship shouldbe established between the Kenya WildlifeService and the Biological ResourcesProgramme of the National Museums ofKenya. The Scientific Authority shoulddevelop the rigorous and biologically basedadvice which is critically important to theproper functioning of CITES.

'Rescue centres' should be established to

cater for seized and confiscated plant andanimal species. These species should be usedfor scientific research, display, environmen­tal education and propagation. Construction

ot an orchid house and a proper greenhouse at the National Museums of Kenyashould receive urgent attention sinceorchids and succulents are the most com­

monly seized plants.In order to ensure strict control of trade

in endangered plant and animal species,customs officers in charge of checking theimportation and exportation of plant andanimal species should receive. adequatetraining or alternatively, the KenyaWildlife Service should second staffto main

post offices, border posts, harbours andairports.

Simple information for public consump­tion in the form of leaflets, posters, guidebooks, films and exhibits is important ineducating the majority of the people. Thereis an urgent need to draw attention to therole of plants in ecosystems and humancivilisations and to the paramount emphasisthat should be given to the conservation ofplants.

Finally, it is important that nationalresearch scientists be given adequate train­ing to deal with the species of plants andanimals likely to be covered by inter­national conventions such as CITES. The

establishment of the necessary researchfacilities and the funding of relevantresearch projects should be given highpriority now! It is only by recognising theurgency of the problems and taking approp­riate measures that we can effectively managethe biosphere so that it may yield the greatestsustainable benefits for present generationswhile maintaining its potential to meet theneeds and aspirations of future ones. l'J

Professor Steven Njuguna has taught at Nairobi,Kenyatta and Moi Universities and since July last

year has been Associate Director of BiologicalResources at the National Museums of Kenya. Hehas had a long association with the EA WLS, havingbeen a member of our council since 1981, and iscurrently also Chairman of the East Africa NaturalHistory Society.

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Carnival event '89

Conservationists in Kenya had much tocelebrate last year. Following PresidentMoi's burning of 12 tonnes of ivory in July,the CITES conference in October voted to

ban the international trade in ivory, and inNovember Kenya's parliament· begandebating an act that would bring intoexistence a new parastatal body, the KenyaWildlife Service.

To celebrate these achievements, theEast African Wild Life Society held a four­day carnival from 22 to 25 November lastyear, mainly in the grounds of Nairobi'sNational Museum. The event was openedby the Hon. Mr Gakunju, the AssistantMinister for Tourism and Wildlife. He

talked enthusiastically about the new paras­tatal body and of the government's successlast year in radically curbing poaching. Healso spoke warmly of the crucial supportthe Society has given the government bothfinancially and in creating an awarenessamong ordinary people of the importanceof conserving our wildlife. As he formallydeclared the event open, he pledged tocontinue the government's efforts toprotect Kenya's wildlife. The AssistantMinister's obvious concern for the survival

of our elephants was echoed by the filmthat followed his speech - the first showingin Africa of Philip Cayford's The IvoryWars.

An exhibition about the Society's workand achievements over the last 33 years wason display at the museum throughout thecarnival. Did you know about the vital rolethe Society played during the 1960s and 70sin generating public revulsion against thewearing of spotted cat skins, zebra hand­bags or giraffe hair bracelets? Or how wewere responsible for translocating the roanantelope to the safe haven of the ShimbaHills National Reserve? Or how in the

1950s we helped arrange for the extensionof the northern boundary of Tanzania'sSerengeti National Park so that it con­nected with Kenya's Masai Mara NationalReserve? The exhibition told it all, andmuch more about what the Society is doingtoday.

The second day of the carnival wasdevoted to programmes for schools.Childen were taken round the exhibition,watched wildlife films and heard MichaelWerikhe, the famous 'Rhino Man', talkabout what's happening to rhinos and howeven young children can help conservewildlife. The hall was full for much of the

day and the young audience very enthusias­tic.

Perhaps for many the highlight of thecarnival was the debate on the Fridayevening on 'The Future of Wildlife in EastAfrica'. "T'here were ten panellists drawn fortheir different areas of expertise. Thechairman of the debate, one of the Society'strustees, Hilary Ng'wenQ, first allowedeach panellist to talk briefly about whatthey saw as the way forward. The first oneto speak was Dr Richard Leakey, the

Society's former chairman and now Direc­tor of Kenya's Wildlife Conservation andManagement Department. He said hebelieved that in the less developed coun­tries of the world, successful developmentdepended on political stability, which inturn depended on economic growth. Astourism was Kenya's largest foreignexchange earner, the development andefficient management of wildlife had to beseen as of equal importance to that of anyother industry. The key to the long-termsustainability of wildlife would not bebiology but proper management.

Professor Frederick Kayanja, Chairmanof the Board of Trustees of the UgandaNational Parks, speaking next, alsoreferred to the importance- of politicalstability. 'It's impossible to manage wildlifeif you're having to dodge bullets.' Hiscolleague, Dr Eric Edroma, Director of theUganda National Parks, reiterated that theexperience of Uganda had shown thatpolitical strife led to a catastrophic declinein wildlife. Uganda was fortunate that thepresent government recognised the

importance of wildlife as a major foreignexchange earner and was prepared to pumpinto the system the necessary resources,such as money, trained manpower andequipment. But, he emphasised, howevermuch backing the government gave towildlife management, unless conser­vationists won the support of the peopleand could demonstrate that wildlife

belonged to them, there would be no futurefor wildlife.

Talking as the head of a non­governmental organisation, the EA WLS'sExecutive Director, Nehemiah arapRotich, said that NGOs in Kenya had beenaccused of stirring up controversy oversensitive issues. He denied the charge andsaid that NGOs played an important role inbringing vital environmental and conserva­tion issues into the public arena for debate.It was not healthy for governments to relyonly on their own employees for informa­tion and opinions.

Professor Steven Njuguna, AssociateDirector of Biological Resources at theNational Museums of Kenya and a long-

19

The Assistant Minister for Toursim and Wildlife, the Hon. Mr Gakunju, chats to EA WLScouncil members about one of the lorries painted under the Society's Wildlife onWheels project.

... Societytime member of the EA WLS's council, saidthat whatever thc reasons we managedwildlife, scientific findings should be thebasis on which management decisions weremade. He thought wildlife research shouldbe multidisciplinary, should concentrate onlong-term sustainability, particularly ofarid and semi-arid areas, and should lookinto such conundrums as why in some casesanimals did better outside protected areas.

Dr Hussein Adan Isack, Head of theDepartment of Ornithology at the NationalMuseum, brought the discussion back tothe views of the ordinary people, thewananchi. In traditional African culture

animals had an important role in ceremony,and as a source of food, utensils andmedicine. When wild animals became the

property of the government and lost theirusefulness, people became eitherindifferent to or resentful of them. Conser­vationists had to think hard about what wasthe benefit of wildlife to the wananchi andhow to demonstrate this to them. As

experience elsewhere in the world shouldhave taught us, people have power, andmass acceptance of conservation policieswould transform the future of wildlife.

An amateur naturalist, lmre Loefler,who will be well known to Swara readers, the government, landowners or the localobserved that for the first time ever, our council.own survival depends on saving ecosystems Dr Esmond Bradley Martin, an expertof which animals are a part. In the past, on the ivory and rhino horn trades who willdevelopers and conservationists were on also be well known to Swara readers, saidopposing sides. What we needed now was a there was no mystery as to how to conserverevolution in attitudes which would allow rhinos and elephants. It all came down tous to work together for sustainable money. The key figure seemed to be $200development. per square kilometre spent each year on

Game hunting has been banned in management and protection. If you lookedKenya since 1977. Former hunter Terry at Africa those protected areas where lessMatthews pointed out that where there is than $100 per square kilometre was beingan excess of animals outside protected spent were a failure, while those that spentareas conservation could receive a boost over $400 were 95 per cent successful infrom the reintroduction of carefully saving their threatened animals. They keycontrolled hunting for which large licence question was where were we going to findfees would be charged, which would go to the US $100 million needed to save Africa's

ort of wildlife in downtown _Nairobi.

oEo2o

~"

elephants.

The final speaker was the game rancherDr David Hopcraft. His main concern wasthe maintenance of the land resource. In

Kenya as elsewhere there was massivedeterioration of the rangeland.' Wildlifehad always been considered a curiosity butwe needed to realise that the animals were

part of an ecosystem. We therefore had todecide how to manage our wildlife so as tostop the country becoming a desert. With­out wildlife, the land would not survive.

For the next hour, the discussion rangedfreely in the packed hall as members of theaudience challenged the panellists and eachother. Did Esmond Bradley Martin reallybelieve that money was more importantthan management? How did David Hop­craft suggest that the subsistence farmerwith only quarter of an acre make use ofwildlife to stop his land degrading? Whatnew policies did the Kenyan governmenthave to allow local people to benefit fromthe wildlife in their midsts? Far too soon the

time was over. On one point all wereagreed: such a debate should become anannual event.

The last day, Saturday, was againprimarily a day for the children. It startedwith a march through the centre of Nairobito the music of the Kanu band. As the

children waved their banners bearingsimple conservation messages, and thebrightly painted 'Wildlife on Wheels' trucksbrought up the rear, the colourful proces­sion attracted a large crowd of onlookers.Back at the museum there were sideshows,habituated wild animals to see and handle,wildlife film shows and, in the afternoon, avisit from Nairobi's popular Magic Man.

In the afternoon some of the braver

adults left the museum to take part in a

20

football match: the Wildlife Conservation

and Management Department versusconservation NGOs. Despite frequentlysubstituting new members into our team,the NGOs lost by two goals to three. Greatfun was had by all on the muddy field ­even by those who hadn't played footballsince they left school twenty years ago ­and the game provided a chance for manygovernment and NGO employees to meetoutside the office for the first time.

The carnival came to a close 'with a

dinner-dance that· night at Nairobi'sJacaranda Hotel. In an easy atmosphere,members, staff and supporters of theSociety chatted and danced together.Several paintings and sculptures by well­known wildlife artists went under the

hammer of a young auctioneer fromSotheby's, and the 18 raffle prizes, sogenerously donated by many local com­panies, were drawn. The evening endedwith a speech from the guest of honour, DrRichard Leakey, remembering his manyyears of involvement with the East AfricanWild Life Society and looking forward tothe challenges that faced him in his new jobas director of Kenya's wildlife department:

'Ladies and Gentlemen, I don't want tosay much but I would like to remind someof you of a few facts. It was in August of lastyear, August 1988, when this country waslosing between three and four elephantseach day from poachers in Tsavo. My wifeand I had been on safari to Lake Turkanaand when on our return we landed at

Wilson Airport, several people approachedme and said, "Would you please stop thepoaching?" 1replied, "How can I? I am onlythe Director of the Museum and have no

responsibility for stopping poaching." Theyasked me to Jl1ake a public statement onbehalf of wildlife, and I said, "Well, get methe facts, and if the facts support yourclaims then I will say something." And Imade a statement which some of youremember, and which was somewhat criti­cal of certain people. It precipitated a slightcrisis in my life - and a slightly bigger crisisin the lives of certain other people who arenot here this evening!

'I was asked within a matter of 48 hours

on what basis I had the courage and daredto criticise the Kenyan government. I said Idid so as a Kenyan citizen, but moreimportantly I did so as the Chairman of theEast African Wild Life Society. This causedmore problems - I won't go into the detailsnow - but throughout the next four or fivemonths I was under considerable criticism

and pressure from certain quarters - andmy shield and my strength was the EastAfrican Wild Life Society. I hope the EastAfrican Wild Life Society, through itsmembership, will always choose peoplewho are prepared to represent the trueinterests of the wildlife in this region ofKenya, Uganda and Tanzania.

'I hope, Mr Chairman, that you or who­ever succeeds you at whatever time in thefuture, with your council, will alwaysremember that government officials do nothave the priority on wisdom nor on beingright. Sadly, more often we are wrong! It isthe people who are usually right and the

Schoolchildren at the exhibition.

Society is a forum through which the gov­ernments in these several countries can be

given useful and often critical advice. Standfirm on that tradition and if your formerchairman should appear to step out of line,I trust you will stand tall and tell him so inno uncertain terms.

'I said yesterday evening at the debatethat I thought the greatest problem facingour country in terms of wildlife was aproblem of management. Managementrequires dedicated people, dedicatedpeople have to have resources and theyhave to have the political good will and sup­port to carryon their duties.

'The East African Wild Life Society hasa long tradition of supporting wildlife con­servation in this region. With that supportand with public support, as opposed tofinancial support, the management teamconcerned with wildlife can continue to

strive to do a better job for our region. Icongratulate all of you this evening andsitting here watching you, I remember well,as do I think one or two other people in thisroom, that many years ago when I firstjoined the Society the council was made upof people who despite their good qualitieswere not the sort of people who would havebeen happy to be with us this evening. Iremember trying to get those people tochange their position on certain issues, try­ing to get them to take a more constructiveposition on what government was doing

while at the same time being critical.Bwana Misoi and Bwana Chumo willremember, as will one or two others, thatone of the things the East African Wild LifeSociety taught me was how to play politics.We had a situation where we needed to

change the council of the East African WildLife Society, but we were in the minorityand we discovered in the constitution that it

was possible to come with proxy votes, thatis votes for other people. Word went outthat the rebels, or the dissidents as we werecalled, were going to try to change thecouncil of the Society and bring inwananchi to be the majority. Wheh it cameto voting for the council the candidates thatwe didn't want appeared to have morevotes in the room than the candidates we

did want, and so I stood up and said wewished to use our proxies and we won theelections very well. That is how the Societybegan its new life, and it was from that thatwe moved on to establish Swara in place ofAfricana, and it was from that that we wenton to do the many things, including startingthe magnificent Society shop that Esther isnow running - a shop that had traditionallyrun in deficit, a shop that had traditionallyput money in the pockets of the employeesrather than the Society's projects. I am veryproud tonight to see Esther here, to seeNehemiah here, to see others here whohave done such a wonderful job in makingthe Society the success that it is today.

21

Event supporters

We are most grateful to the following individuals and organisationswho gave us their time, help Or donations.

... SocietyThere are few parts of the world, partiClI­larly the developing world, that can boastof such an active and strong organisation aswe have here. Your strength, my friends,depends on your standing high, and beingfair but critical when public officers gowrong.

'We can rely on politicians to a certainextent but even people like Dr Misoi [theSociety's Chairman and a Member of Parli­ament) have constraints placed on them.Organisations like the Wild Life Societymust be heard as well. It is terriblyimportant that as we face the difficult yearsahead, the people's voice is heard. And thisSociety is the best forum I know of, inKenya at least, for the representation ofpeople's concerns.

'I am no longer despondent about thefuture. We have already begun to changethings; we are already seeing tremendousimprovements in Tsavo West, Tsavo East,Amboseli, now Meru and in the comingmonths we will move our endeavours to

other areas of Kenya. We have alreadybeen promised considerable sums of

money. It wasn't so long ago that I wasasked how much money I thought weneeded to put wildlife on its feet in Kenya.I indicated that I thought we needed theequivalent of approximately US $300million. That is more money than has everbeen spent on wildlife conservation inKenya since Kenya was first recognised as anation. Since I took over, I have identifiedthe sources from which that money willcome and over the next two or three years,we will invest that money in roads, fences,bridges, staff housing, visitors centres,youth hostels and a variety of otheramenities that will make Kenyan wildlifeareas, the national parks and the gamereserves, the finest in Africa if not theworld.

'One of the things that is most critical ifwe are going to succeed is that the peoplewho work for the new parastatal will bepeople who are happy and proud to do so.For our people to be happy and proud, they

22

Aberdare Country ClubAfrican HeritageAfrican Wildlife Foundation

Amboseli LodgeAntique AuctionsBibaBonar East Africa

Mrs Lucy CammMr Philip CayfordCooper Motor CorporationDamji Devji JewellersDHLD.T. DobieEAWLS staffThe Event CommitteeFarmers Choice

Gallery WatatuMrW. GatotoRobert.GlenGolden Beach Hote]Mrs Lavinia Grant

Ms Jean HartleyHotpoint AppliancesJ adinil Africana Sea LodgeKenya .BreweriesKer and Downey SafarisMr Kamau Kiambo

Kichwa Tembo CampMrs S. KiguruLeisure Lodge HotelEsther Lindstrom

must be paid like other Kenyans, they mustbe paid adequately for their services. At themoment we have men who are fightingbandits, fighting shifta, having their livesthreatened every moment of the day butwho are earning less than people who areselling maize on the side of the street in thecity centre. What we pay our fighting men isa disgrace. Under the new parastatal wewill be able to pay competitive salaries. Ihope not only to attract young men andwomen, but also established people whowant to make a permanent career in aparastatal, a parastatal that will stand talllike the Wild Life Society has and mustcontinue to do. Thank you.'

Conservation Fund

The Society is delighted to have receivedover Ksh 1,700,000 in donations to theConservation Fund over the last two

months. Of this sum, over Ksh 1,600,000 isbeing spent on anti-poaching surveillanceand other special operations in support ofKenya's Wildlife Conservation and Man­agement Department.

We are most grateful to all theindividuals and organisations for theirgenerosity and in particular to the follow­ing, who each gave Ksh 1,000 and over:Abercrombie and Kent, Gladys W. Allen,John A. Altobelli, W.T. Amphlet, HalvorAstrup, Blanche D. Balacek, Mrs PeterBenedict, Carol Cobby Waller, John andJudy Dircks, Dr and Mrs C.E. Dobbs, Mrand Mrs D. Dube, Betty J. Eves, Four

Majestic PrintersMetal Box

Ministry of Tourism and WildlifeNairobi Sports HouseNaro Mom River LodgeNation BookshopNational Museums of KenyaMr H. Ng'weno and all the panellistsMr Tim NicklinMiss Rosalie Osborn

Outspan HotelReef HotelsRivatexRowland WardR.R. Rula

Safari BadgesSafari Beach Hotel

Shelly Beach HotelSweetwaters Tented CampToyotaTsavo Safari CampUniversity of NairobiKamau WangoMr V. Watkins, Regional Director ofWSPCA

Wildlife Clubs of KenyaWildlife Conservation and ManagementDepartmentMiss E. Wilson

Season Travel, Nicholas French, Friends ofConservation, Captain and Mrs R. Frost,M. Fuchs, J.M. Gibson, Warren E.Haggen, Marian M. Haigh, B. Harris,Diana B. Holt, J. Huppler, PatriciaJohnson Luckie, M.P. Kelly, KennethKolbrook, Philip G. Krum, K.L. Peters,Ronald R. Lund, John K. McAnelly, MrsJ. Read, Richard Holstein Co Inc, R.Simon, Tippetts Safaris (K) Ltd, Ms KathrynSawyer, and Wetley Rocks Scout ClubPack.

Save the Rhino Fund

During the last two months, the Society hasreceived over Ksh 38,000 to be spentspecificaHy on projects to save the rhino.We would like to express our gratitude toall our donors and in -particular to AfricanWildlife Safaris, the East African Women'sLeague, Miss F. Feigenspan and GaryPedersen, who each gave Ksh 1,000 andover.

The African Ele-Fund

Donations worth Ksh 13,000 have come into the African Ele-Fund over the last two

months. We would like to thank everyonefor their generosity and in particularAntique Auctions, Mrs J.M. Lowe, BobPrinzivalli, G. Rollason, William M. Taylorand Dannie F. Wall for their donations ofKsh 1,000 and over. "

-BOOK REVIEWS~ -~""''''~~ ",,;,O,',':O,'::~ _'xx':

The Mountains of Kenya: A Walker'sGuidePaul Clarke

Mountain Club of Kenya, Nairobi, 1989,Ksh 245.

A glorious cover photograph invitesimmediate interest in this new pocket guideto Kenya's mountains. What more import­ant excuse is there for climbing hills thanthe view from the top? And the vista acrossthe Hedad Desert from Baio's summit must

rank among the country's finest: Kulal tothe north-west and Marsabit's hazy hump inthe north, while to the south will be thenoble rock of Poi standing guardian beforethe ramparts of the Mathews and Ndotoranges.

My 20-year-old Mountain Guide byPeter Robson was beginning to fall apart,so this is a timely new cdition. None of theoriginally listed mountains has been omit­ted, but several new ones have been added.The format has been updated, generally forthe better, although I cannot understandwhy the chapter relating to the earlyexploration of the East African mountainshas now been relegated to the rear of thebook. This erudite and well-researched

essay by Peter Robson forms a naturalintroduction and mood-setter for the maintext.

This small criticism apart, the layoutand detail is an improvement on the earlieredition. Individual mountains can be traced

in the list of contents under their geographi­callocation, or at the back of the book in analphabetical index. There is an introduc­tory chapter generalising on the weather,the effects of altitude on both health and

culinary aspirations, vehicles to use,guides, maps, clothing and cquipment.There are further discourses on what to do

in emergencies, camping hints and admoni­tions to beware of being devoured by thewicked Aberdare lions, or causing escala­tion of guide fees by overtipping. Indecd, amore comprehcnsive advisory chapter can­not be imagined; it make me wonder how 1have survived to bumble up a great many ofthe handbook's listcd mountains (andseveral unlisted ones) with0ut map, com­pass, secateurs or a waterproof!

The description of each individual

mountain is meticulously detailed,including information on how to motor tothe highest road head , and from thencealong the footpaths to the summit. Themain peaks of all significant ranges andmassifs in Kenya figure in the text. How­ever, I must lament the exclusion of twovery small but dominant protuberances,particularly as that quite obnoxious buts.cenically important cone, Porr, merits anentry! These are Kinu Soga and the Merin­gue, ncar Laisamis. Kinu Soga (TheThumb) lies about 20 miles inland from theeastern shore of Lake Turkana, on a levelwith Moiti (another peak worthy ofinclusion next time round). It is a small vol­canic plug, but dominates the horizon withnobility from many miles off. The Merin­gue was a favourite scramble of the lateLeslie Brown.

1 wholeheartedly agree with theauthor's description of Shompole: 'this (is)the most unpleasant mountain in thisguide'; however, his 'Select a suitable ridgeand go up it' didn't work for us. Afterseveral hours of battling with thorns andcliff faces, our chosen ridge denied us thesummit - I suppose it just wasn't 'suitable'!

The only peaks described in the hand­book which require more than average 'hill­walking' with a modicum of scrambling, areMount Kenya and the glorious rock calledPoi at Ngurunit. The quaint expression 'anairy scramble' I assume translates as 'ahairy ascent along a knife-edge or a yawn­ing abyss', and ordinary mortals may bewell advised to avoid such routes'

The chapter on mountain vegetation byHenk Bcentje is a welcome addition to thfhandbook. He says 'The Mau is probablythe most forested massif left in Kenya;however, people are working hard to cor­rect this ... ' As a pilot, I can add my owndepressing view - the mountain forests arefast being decimated all over the country. Aspecific case is the Kilungu massifimmediately west of Nzaui - a fine day tripfrom Nairobi. Recently, as I crept up thevalley dodging the weather, I noted that thewell forested ridge was already invaded andgreat patches levelled, although it appearedthat care had been taken to Icavc thc

pcrimeters untouched.Towards the end of the handbook,

appearing under the curious group title'Listings', are various interesting glos­saries. John Johnson's 'Meaning and Originof Mountain Names' is enlightening - ofcourse, Shompole has to be the 'place to goslow'! It is quite satisfactory to picture thefirst Maasai struggling uselessly against theimpenetrable thorns and inhospitableridges of that hot mountain, as many of ushave done!

Then there is a copious and carefulbibliography, some useful addresses, a sur­vey of relevant maps and an exhaustiveindex to place names.

The book is of a weight and formateminently suited to a rucksack. The generalprint and layout is clear, and businesslike.

It is a pity that there are several editinglapses throughout the volume, most notice­able in the list of contents and a couple ofphotograph captions. 1 took mild exceptionto the strange intrusion of the profanity onpage 68, when an innocuous 'blighter' orsomesuch would have served just as well!Although the front and back cover colourphotos are well produced, this cannot besaid of the majority of the black-and-whiteones within the text. However, the clarityand impact of those on pages 56 and lJ 6persuade me that this may well be due tothe quality of the photographs themselves.A further small criticism is the quality of themaps. It is accepted that of necessity thesemust be considerably reduced, but some ofthem are indecipherable without a magnify­ing glass. The main difficulty lies in theplace names - if these had been printed inheavier ink, they would be easier to read.The same applies to the cartoons, whichsadly lose their impact due to poorreproduction.

This excellent handbook will be indis­

pensable for both the Kenya-based seriousmountaineer and the weekend camperalike. Even if you don't want to get to thetop of a mountain, the descriptions of howto get to some of the country's most remoteand lovely places make it worth getting thebook. It is available at bookshops through­out the country, although I fear that theextremely steep price may well detract fr.omthe success of its sales.

Fiona Alexander

Seaweeds of the Kenya CoastShakuntala Moorjani and Barbara SimpsonOxford University Press, Nairobi, 1988,Ksh 150.

Some years ago, around 1954, my smallson was taken to the coast to recuperateafter a serious illness. To employ my time Imade colour sketches and plaster casts ofcoral fish and then collected seaweeds.

I managed to dry the specimens afterconsiderable trouble and on return to

Nairobi presented the collection to thebotanists, seeking determinations. Theiranswer was simple, 'We do not have acollection of seaweeds and nobody here canidentify the materials'. With· that I had to becontent, but each time I visited the coast toour plot at Watamu, it niggled me not toknow what seaweeds I was gogglingamongst.

Now after some 39 years, thanks to Bar­bara Simpson and Dr Moorjani, we have asmall book with black and white illustra­

tions of most of the seaweeds of the Kenyacoast. The illustrations are reasonablyclear, with a few a bit fuzzy and lackingdetail, but for the non-botanist they areadequate. I have, at least to my own satis­faction, now identified all the seaweeds,angiosperm,s and algae, that I had met withand collected so many years ago.

I would comment on the layout of thebook. Alongside the descriptive notes for

23

... booksthe various species there are small blackand white photographs, which arereproduced in larger format at the end ofthe book. I started, naturally, with theangiosperms, but found on pages 8 and 9that the two species illustrated were bothalgae. Under my breath I made a ruderemark. On checking the larger picturesagainst these offending illustrations I wasable to correCtly identify them. As theseand the other small pictures do not illus­trate the text they appear alongside, theydistract badly and are quite unnecessary.They also, of course, add to the cost of thebook, although at Ksh 150 the price isremarkably reasonable.

However, despite the above, we mustthank the authors for a welcome addition tothe knowledge of marine botany. If I everget the chance to go to the coast again, I willtake 'Moorjani' with me and renewacquaintance, but this time by name.

C.R. Cunningham-van Someren

Kenya: The first explorersNigel PavittAurum Press, London, 1989, £15.95 (UKprice only)

When taking a first quick flick through thepages of this book I felt an immediate shockof deja vu. There were some very familiarfaces, not to mention pictures of elephantsat bay and sorry groups of slaves beingwhipped towards. the coast. Here wasJoseph Thomson, placid in pith helmet withrifle at rest; there Count Teleki with hisfanatical and unforgettable eyes. And I'dcome across this fellow before, he of thedense black beard which, when first seenyears ago had struck me as false, capable ofbeing flapped up and down on a hinge at thelip, to amuse the children. He is none otherthan that remarkable Maltese sailmaker,James Martin, a man of many parts, with­out whose devoted assistance Thomson, forall his outstanding qualities, may well havefailed in his great explorations. But I anti­cipate.

This book addresses itself to the

activities of the missionaries Johan LudwigKrapf and Johan Rebmann (1844-52); ofthe brilliant scientist Joseph Thomson, whospecialised in geology and natural history(1883-4); and the wealthy nobleman CountSamuel Teleki and his able assistant, car-

24

tographer and naval lieutenant, Ludwigvon Hahnel (1886-8).

Krapf possessed many formidable qual­ities, the most useful being a natural abilityas a linguist. With Arabic, Amharic and theGalla tongue already conquered, hequickly mastered Ki-Swahili and a numberof local vernaculars, into which he event­ually translated the Bible. Rebmann hadthe distinction of being the first white manto set eyes on the snows of Kilimanjaro, buthis report was received with incredulity andderision. Although local cultures have beento some extent damaged by missionarywork, nevertheless Christianity today is apotent force throughout East Africa and itis inspiring to read of these remarkable menwho planted its first seed.

Like Krapf, Joseph Thomson had beeninfluenced by reading Bruce's Travels whilestill a boy, was determined to get to Africa,and in 1882 found himself leading the RoyalGeographical Society's expedition throughMaasailand to Lake Victoria. A naturallyhumane and moderate man, he found that'a gentle word was more potent than gun­powder, and it was not necessary, even inCentral Africa, to sacrifice the lives ofmen ... to throw light upon its dark corners'.Though he had displayed remarkablephysical endurance, the hardships he suf­fered eventually took their toll and he diedin 1895 at the relatively young age of 37.

The final part of the book deals with the'discovery' of Lake Rudolph by CountTeleki and Lieutenant von Hahne!. Swara

readers will already be familiar with thedetails of this expedition from the article inthe March/April 1988 issue which celeb­rated its centenary and dealt in some detailwith the men themselves.

Krapf, Thomson and von Hahnel each,in their day, wrote of their experiences. Butthese volumes are now valued collectors

items, and accessible only in universitylibraries or to the fortunate few whopossess them. Nigel Pavitt's contribution isto make details of these expeditions avail­able to us all. Since copyright long sinceexpired he has been able to reproduce lineengravings from the original books - whichis how 1 came to feel I had been there

before. And he has enhanced his book byproviding some beautifully luminousphotographs of places and traditionallydressed peoples which will not havechanged to any great degree since ourexplorers gazed on them a century andmore ago.

In The Lunatic Express Charles Millergave attributions to the pictures hereproduced from the original books, andthis, I feel, apart from its courtesy, wouldhave given added interest to contemporaryreaders. But this omission was possibly adecision of the publisher rather than theauthor.

Pavitt has quoted from the originalworks and provided linking passages of hisown. As he so obviously loves Africa, iswidely travelled and widely read in itshistory, he has produced an eminentlyreadable book. He pays meticulous atten­tion to details such as always giving theLatin name of any plant, tree or bird he

mentions; and to the Maasai origin of manylocal place names.

Several things in the book remainprominent in my mind. One is beingreminded of the poignancy of the slavetrade. The despair of a parent whose smallchild was abducted for sale into slaverymust be comparable today to those whosechildren are enticed into drug-taking. On amore cheerful note, I was amused by SirCharles Eliot's remark, when the railway­makers were frustrated by continuous theftof their rails and telegraph wires, that 'onecan imagine what thefts would occur onEuropean railways if the telegraph wireswere pearl necklaces and the rails first-ratesporting guns!' It puts things in perspective.

'If it be true,' Krapf remarked in hisbook, 'that yearly about 6,000 elephanttusks are brought to the Swahili coast, it caneasily be understood how quickly these ani­mals diminish and why they recede evenfurther into the interior of Africa.' We havebeen there before too.

Joan Karmali

Flowering Plants of SeychellesS.A. Robertson

Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, 1989, £12

(available by post from Royal Botanic Gar­dens, Kew, Richmond, Surrey TW9 3AE,UK at £13.80)

Vegetation is an important natural resourcefor any country, and it is important to knowthe constituent species. One major task oftaxonomists is to catalogue the plants grow­ing in a particular area, and to produceherbarium collections and publications tohelp others to identify plants. Publicationsfor this purpose range from simple check­lists that are just a list of names, to detailedfloras complete with identification keys,descriptions, literature references, citationof herbarium specimens, and much more.Mrs Robertson's book lies between these

two extremes. Recognising that she hadneither the time nor the facilities toproduce a complete flora, the author hascompiled a valuable annotated and illus­trated check-list.

Seychelles is a group of scattered islandsof various shapes and sizes, just south of theEquator in the Indian Ocean. During thesix y~ars that she spent there, MrsRobertson set out to list all the species ofangiosperms and gymnosperms growing onthe islands, and to record their distribution

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on the different islands. In addition to

consulting earlier literature and herbariumspecimens, the author travelled widely,visiting many of the islands to record plantsobserved personally in the field. Duringthis field work she took the opportunity tocollect specimens and augment the smallherbarium in the Ministry of Agriculturewhich she found on her arrival. The result­

ing list includes about 1,140 species,representing 155 families. Introducedspecies greatly outnumber indigenousspecies. Only about 250 are thought to beindigenous, and many of these areendemic. However, not all of the intro­duced species are likely to be found grow­ing wild or naturalised, for in addition tothe inevitable pantropical weeds andgarden escapes, the list includes cultivatedvegetables and ornamental plants normallyfound only in gardens.

Genera and species are arrangedalphabetically within each family, butfamilies are in the order of the modified

Bentham and Hooker system used in KewHerbarium. The entry for each speciesincludes botanical name, synonyms if any,vernacular name(s), the source of the record(from literature, herbarium specimens, orthe author's own field observations),known distribution in Seychelles, and abrief non-technical description of the plant.For many species there are additionalnotes, mainly indicating economic uses, orcommenting on taxonomic points. Over200 of the species are also illustrated withline drawings. The text was originallycompleted in 1982, but as publication wasdelayed for several years a list of additionsand taxonomic changes has been added asan appendix. The book is rounded off withan index to vernacular names, and an indexto families and genera.

Vegetation everywhere in the world isthreatened by human activity, which caneasily lead to extinction of species. Thisproblem is especially acute on small islands,where geographical isolation has led to theevolution of endemic taxa. One great valueof Mrs Robertson's list is that she indicates

species endemic to Seychelles, and endemicsubspecies on some of the islands.Although the author has not commented onconservation status, some of the endemictaxa are described as rare, and some taxareported by earlier authors are listed aspossibly extinct. It is to be hoped that bydrawing attention to the endemics, thispublication could promote an increasedawareness of the need to conserve rare

plants.Mrs Robertson acknowledges that her

check-list is not complete as she was unableto visit every island in the archipelago, andin the text she also indicates a number of

taxonomic problems still to be solved. Aflora of Seychelles is being prepared, butpreparation of such a work is a long-termproject. Until that work is completed, MrsRobertson's well-produced book is the onlyup-to-date account of plants growing onthese islands, and will De useful forresidents, visitors, and . any othersinterested in the plants of Seychelles.

Len Newton i125

Ivory and elephantsin Indiaby Esmond Bradley Martin

Despite a low per capita income, an expanding human population andthe existence of an ivory industry, elephant numbers in India have remained stable. Does India's

experience have any relevance to Africa?

India's ivory industry is one of the oldest inthe world. Traders have been importingraw ivory from East Africa for over 2,000years and have also been consuming ivoryfrom Indian elephants for at least as long.Today, some 2,000 craftsmen arc employedin the industry, but despite this. India'selephant population has probably beenstable over the past few years. a pheno­menal achievement for a poor country witha huge and expanding human populationcontinually threatening the elephants andtheir habitat. This article will look at some

of the anomalies of the ivory industry ofIndia, concentrating on the present day,and will attempt to explain how Indian offi­cials have been able to protect theirelephants from poachers and at the sametime tolerate an ivory industry. Perhapswildlife officers in eastern Africa may adoptsome of the successful management prac­tices employed in India to improve the con­servation of the African elephant.

The earliest reference to ivory exportsfrom East Africa is contained in a docu­

ment called 'The Peri plus of the ErythraenSea' written around 150 A.D. From a portcalled 'Rhapta'. probably located inpresent-day Tanzania, the major exportswere ivory, rhino horn, and tortoise shell.Some of this ivory was sent to India. Ivorywas probably the most valuable exportfrom East Africa from the era of the 'Perip­Ius' until the late 19th century. From 1820 to1857 an annual average of 234 tonnes ofivory was imported into Bombay and Surat,mostly from eastern Africa; not all of it wasconsumed in India, as some was re­exported to Britain, China and otherplaces. Throughout the 19th and 20thcenturies up until Independence in 1947,India remained one of the largest importersand manufacturers of ivory commodities.However, soon after Independence, theIndian government brought in restrictionsincluding high import duties to increaserevenue, which led to a great reduction inthe amount of ivory imported. For exam­ple, compared with 246 tonnes of raw ivorylegally imported on average each year justafter World War II, the quantity declinedto only 50 tonnes per annum in the 1960sand 13 tonnes per year from 1980 to early1987. Of course, with the advent of highertaxes, there was more. s'muggling of rawivory into India from East Africa and theGulf countries (especially the United Arab

26

Emirates), but even so the total amount ofivory brought into the country was only afraction of what it was in the mid-1940s.

In 1978 when I carried out the first

economic survey of the ivory industry ofIndia, I ascertained that there were approx­imately 7,200 craftsmen widely scatteredthroughout the country with the largestconcentrations in Trivandrum in southern

India (3,000), the Delhi area (2,000),Jaipur (800) and Mysore (600). When Ireturned to India in early 1989 with LucyVigne, my WWF project co-ordinator, wediscovered that the number of ivorycraftsmen had declined sharply by over 70per cent. This was largely because the gov­ernmcnt of India tightencd restrictions onivory imports and ivory product sales.

Compared with India's major com­petitors in thc ivory busincss - China, HongKong and Japan - the government becamestricter. All imports from South Africa werebanned for political reasons, although a lot ofthis ivory came from legal cropping opera­tions in Kruger National Park. The Indiangovcrnment also prohibited any imports ofthe huge Singapore stockpile of 297 tonnes,although this large quantity of ivory wasIegalised by the CITES Secretariat in late1986 and thus accepted as legitimate rawivory by other countries; the Indian govern­ment banned this ivory because most of it didnot have proper country of origin certificatessince much was accumulated from illegalexports from African countries.

Desperate to import ivory, two dealersfrom Jaipur brought in 5 tonnes of mammothivory from the Soviet Union in 1986 and1987. This ivory is inferior to elephant ivorysincc it is hard and brittle and has dark brown

lines, but is much cheaper. As a result ofthesc imports, the Indian government in 1988banned future imports and exports of mam­moth ivory because, once carved, it could beconfused with elephant ivory and provide aloophole. Now these two traders can only selltheir mammoth ivory carvings to the verysmall domestic market.

Although the export of itcms made fromlocal Indian ivory had been outlawed whenIndia joined CITES in 1976, this ivory wasstill legally made into various items for localconsumption, especially in the southern partof the country where many of the craftsmenand elephants were located. Much, however,was exported illegally in the suitcases of

tourists, causing an increase in the number ofelephants poached in southern India in theearly and mid- J 980s. Therefore, inNovcmber 1986, the government amendedits 1972 Wildlife Protection Act stopping allcommcrcial use of Indian ivory whatsoever.This was probably the biggest blow forIndia's ivory industry. The government was,though, partly responsible for the increasedpoaching of Indian elephants because it hadpushed up import duties for African ivory to140 per cent in the 1980s, raising sharply thevalue of raw ivory within India, and givinggreater incentives to the poachers andmiddlemen. Finally, in April 1988, the gov­ernment, realising the problem it hadcreated, eliminated all import duties on rawivory, greatly reducing the poaching pressureon the Indian elephants.

The 1986 amendment to the Wildlife Pro­

tection Act also introduced a licensing systemfor African ivory. All ivory factories, dealersand even individual craftsmen had to be

licensed annually and had to submit monthlyreturns on the amounts of raw ivory purch­ased, the number of pieces made, theirweights, and a record of their sales. Toenforce these new regulations, wildlifeinspectors went around to the shops andcraftsmen's houses. These Indian regulationsare some of the most severe in the world and

have certainly reduced the amount of illeg­ally obtained raw ivory.

However, the added paperwork andharassment by government officials checkingevery stage of the business plus the increasingprices and shortage of raw ivory added to thedevastation of India's ivory industry. Nearlythree-quarters of the craftsmen have aban­doned their traditional.livelihood, and manyhave turned to using substitutes. Some havetried carving camel bones (which cost only$1.50 a kilo) but the demand for them has notbeen brisk. This is because camel bone tends

to turn an· unfashionable yellowish colourand is not shiny. Also, due to the composi­tion of camel bone it is almost impossible tocarve the same delicate details as one can on

ivory. Furthermore, most Hindus and someMuslims do not like to purchase items madefrom any animal bones because they are deadanimal products. Other bones, such as fromwater buffaloes, sheep and goats are alsocarved but they are considered to be evenmore inferior to camel bone and con­

sequently sell cheaply, making it almostimpossible for the carver to earn as much

money as an ivory craftsman.Many craftsmen have switched to carv-

ing wood, especially in the south. The mostpopular is sandalwood, but the supply ofthis is limited. It costs about $9 a kilowholesale. Sandalwood is quite soft andthus the final finish is not as attractive asivory. Because this softer material is easierto carve, more figurines can be produced insandalwood in a week than in ivory. Thecarvers' take-home pay, however, is about30-50 per cent less because sandalwood"figurines sell retail on average for only ~10-30 per cent of what similar ivory pieces ~would cost. Rosewood (55 cents a kilo £wholesale), ebony ($1.30 a kilo) and other §woods are also carved by ivory craftsmen, if ~

Clockwise from top:A craftsman in Delhi carves a pattern on anivory bangle.A domesticated elephant of the KeralaForest Department pulls a log while beingguided by the mahout.Ivory chess sets arepopular items bought bytourists; this one in Delhi is particularlylarge and beautifully carved.This intricately carved sofa is made entirelyof ivory and is part of an ivory furniture seton view in a show room in Delhi.

27

28

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they cannot get ivory. But most people pre­fer carvings in ivory, not only because ivoryis precious and thus a good investment, butalso beca.use the most intricate and beauti­ful pieces can be made from it. One tradersummarised these feelings in the followingwords: 'Ivory has prestige, while bones andwood are considered common withoutmuch value'.

Craftsmen in Mysore used to be famousfor inlaying ivory in pieces of wood. Nowthey have turned to sambar and spotteddeer horn for inlay work, bought from theForest Department at $3.30 a kilo. Thedealers claim that in this case tourists can-not tell the difference between horn andivory, thus sales have not been affected. InDelhi and Rajasthan, some of the artistswho painted detailed miniature scenes of ~Mogul courts and Hindu gods and god- ~desses on thin rectangular plates of ivory ~have had to switch to paper and silk; a few ;have tried painting on animal bones but ~because they are porous the quality of the W

finished paintings is poor. Similar to thecarvers, the painters' incomes have alsodeclined.

A few former ivory carvers in Indiahave managed to increase their incomes byworking gemstones, especially emeraldsand rubies. The carvers can demand ahigher fee for working on them asgemstones are more valuable. Only the

In Bangalore, this master carver adds thefinal touches to his ivory figurine.

This Indian elephant in Mysore Zoo has had

the tips of his tusks removed for safety.

Numbers of ivory craftsmen and regional ivory specialitiesin India in 1988

Specialities i.nivory

Paintings,jewellery, magic balls, tusks, table lamps, boxes. screens, seals, eroticfigures, elephants, paper knives, chop sticks, cigarette holders. dice and toothpicksPaintings, Indian gods and goddesses, charms, Chinese styl~ human figurines, andanimals'Chip work'; ivory chips are used to cover wooden animals and boxesPaintingsChess sets and boxesFans, lamps and boxesBanglesBangles and pendantsBullock carts, peacock boats. and elephants with howdahsChess sets and lampsHuman figurines, Ghanesh (elephant-headed Hindu god) and other figurines ofHindu gods and goddesses, and flower potsHindu gods and goddessesHindu gods and godessesInlay work on furniture and pictures

skilled master craftsman can easily switchto carving prccious stones, and as it isphysically more exacting and a greaterstrain on the eyesight than ivory work, onlythe younger carvers have the stamina forthis. Furthermore, the chips which fly upcan cause eye injuries, and the stone dustmay damage the lungs.

The government is fully aware that itsstringent regulations have forced thousandsof craftsmen to lose their jobs in a countrywith a major unemployment problem, but itconsiders the prOtection of the Indianelephant paramount. R. Sukumar of theIndian Institute of Science in Bangalore hasdone more research on the number of ele­

phants poached in the south than probablyanybody else, and he estimates that from1980 to 1986 a minimum of 100 elephants insouthern India succumbed to poachers eachyear from a population of perhaps 6,500.Elephants in north-east India numberroughly 10,000, but according to theauthority there, D.K. Lahiri Choudhury,poaching for ivory was not a serious prob­lem during this period in that region.

Poaching in the south of the Indianelephant became especially serious at theend of 1986 for a short period, when onegang succeeded in killing at least 15 bullelephants. In response the forest depart­ments of the states of Tamil Nadu,Karnataka and Kerala pooled theirresources and met periodically to co­ordinate their efforts. The departmentssoon acquired more wireless sets toimprove communications with the men inthe field; they increased the number ofmodern rifles, and most importantly theyexpanded their intelligence service to ascer­tain where the gang was located and exactlywho was involved. At the same time the

forest departments increased the number ofmen to patrol the reserves and track downthe poachers. Finally, the gang was foundin 1987 and a shoot-out occurred. Althoughthe gang leader escaped, he is on the'wanted list' with his name and photographand has not dared to return. Since then, thepopulation of Indian elephants has onceagain increased in the south but still theadult females, which are tusk less, signific­antly outnumber the mature males.

While the numbers of Indian elephantshave begun to go up in certain parts ofIndiasuch as the south, the numbers of ivorycraftsmen continue to fall. In early 1989only the craftsmen in Jaipur were doingreasonably well, while in the south,formerly the region with the most carvers inthe country, the industry had collapsed withonly 3 per cent of the number of craftsmenworking in ivory compared with 1978. It isimportant to note that, for India as a wholeduring the late 1980s, the averagecraftsman probably consumed less ivorythan in any other major ivory manufactur­ing country: about 7 kilos a year. The mainreasons for this, besides the general short­age of raw ivory, are that in the north manyof the remaining craftsmen paint ivory,whicl1.requires only small thin plates, and inthe south only hand tools a.re used insteadof electric drills, and so a craftsman maywork for many months on one piece. For

Location NumberDelhi

450

Jaipur

760

Jodhpur

190Udaipur

300Amritsar

25Lucknow

30Ahmadabad

30Bombay

15Mursh.idabad

40Varanasi

20Trivandrum

45

Madras

10Bangalore

40Mysore

5Others

100

contrast, in Japan the average craftsmanconsumes 100 kilos of raw ivory a year,while in Hong Kong the carvers work at amuch greater speed and for very longhours, using very modern and efficientmachinery, with the result that the averageHong Kong craftsman consumes on aver­age per year about 250 kilos of raw ivory.

The future of India's ivory industryappears bleak. It is now largely dependentupon the import of legal African ivory,which is becoming more expensive andharder to obtain. In May 1989 an averagetusk imported into India cost about $250 akilo. Traditional exporting countries suchas Kenya and Tanzania prohibited all legalexports by mid-1989, and Hong Kong, alsoa major supplier to traders in the 1980s,banned all exports of raw ivory in June1989. For several years now, few youngpeople have entered the industry becausethey see no long-term future in it. Old,experienced carvers have retired with theeffect that in some places quality ivory carv­ing can no longer be done, making theindustry less competitive with those inJapan and Hong Kong. If the industry hadto shut down for a few years due either to alack of raw ivory or the closure of the mainmarkets in the western world for finished

products, the ivory carvers' skills could belost to the extent that if the industry wereever to be re-opened, the carvers' workwould of course be inferior.

The Indian government was correct ininstituting harsh controls on the ivory busi­ness in the 1980s in order to conserve the

Indian elephant. There have, however,been some government excesses, especiallyof a bureaucratic nature, aimed at the largeivory retail outlets and at some of the illiter­ate craftsmen. Nevertheless, India has nowmanaged to sustain both an ivory carvingindustry employing more people than anyother country, and probably a stableelcpl'dtlt population totalling approxi­mately 20,000 animals.

What aspects of India's law enforce­ment can be relevant in east and central

Africa? India, having one of the lowest percapita incomes in the world and possessing

the second largest human population, hasbeen able to manage its wild populations ofelephants, rhinos and tigers so successfullythat their numbers have all been stable or

increasing recently. The forest departmentshave accomplished this by allocating thenecessary equipment, motivated. man­power and commitment to deter mostpoaching efforts. In addition, concerningthe elephants, the forest departments haveimproved their intelligence gatheringcapabilities, and increased and enforcedtheir regulations on the local ivory industry.They have done this with very little moneyfrom abroad, and virtually no foreignexperts have been brought in. Some ofthese successful management practicescarried out by national and state forestdepartments in India should be studied withthe aim of implementing those which maybe relevant to conditions in Africa today.

Acknowledgements: The author would liketo thank WWF for funding this project andLucy Vigne for helping with the research.

L'j

Stop press

At the recent CITES meeting held inSwitzerland in October 1989 (see page 8),the African elephant was transferred fromAppendix II to Appendix I. This meansthat unless India takes out a reservation,which is unlikely, all commercial importsand exports of African elephant ivory willbe illegal from the middle of January 1990.This will probably result in almost thecomplete collapse of India's ivory industry.

Esmond Bradley Martin is a geographer who firstvisited India in 1968. In 1978 and 1979 he travelledextensively through India to collect data for the firstcomprehensive survey of ivory craftsmen. In 1980and1986 he spent time in Assam, studying the illegalkillings of the greater-one-horned rhinoceroses andthe trade syndicates which were involved in exportingthe horns. In 1989 he returned to India for two monthsto up-date his information on the ivory industry.

Later in.1989, Dr Martin travelled to eastern Asiaas the trade consultant for the BBC and DiscoveryChannel (USA) film Ivory Wars. He works for theWorld Wide Fund for Nature (WWF-International).

29

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SlflriliIith

Chili IIPlltatk

Ivory smugglingin Sudan

Story and photos by Alfredo Guillet

While world attention has focused on banning the ivory trade and on the battle to stop elephant poachingin Africa, little is known about how some of the poached ivory from eastern and central Africa has been

smuggled across Sudan and on to the world market.

The debate that has raged over the last fewmonths as to how best to save Africa's

elephants peaked but did not end with theCITES decision to ban the international

trade in ivory (see the article by CynthiaMoss on page 8). Questions are still beingasked as to which are the most appropriatemeasures to counteract the decline in

elephant numbers and as to how long andwith what international support they shouldbe implemented. While attempts are beingmade to find the most viable solutions both

internationally and locally, what is un-

SUDAN

ZAIRE

doubtedly true is that if the present rate ofdecline remains unchecked, the bulk ofAfrica's elephant populations will drop tounsustainable levels.

And yet, for all the attention that hasfocused on international efforts to halt the

ivory trade and local struggles to end thepoaching, there is an area that has beenlittle touched upon. In Sudan, this gap isexploited by gangs of organised smugglerswho buy ivory and meat from localpoachers, and who, unlike the localpoachers, are capable of transporting large

Key

quantities of ivory over difficult terrain tomiddlemen who smuggle it oversea·s. Thelocal poachers often only carry handmadeguns, but the organised smugglers arearmed with automatic weapons which alsoenablc them to carry out occasionalelephant massacres.

As long as ivory has an inflated value inthe market place, these gangs will contmueto encourage the killing of elephants,exploiting the local poacher's natural needfor meat. This demands for meat will never

be fully controllable and efforts to curtail itmust not be allowed to drain the resources

of wildlife conservation departments. Thisis particularly important since in theabsence of the high rewards provided byivory, local poaching would automaticallybe redirected to easier and safer food

specIes.If we want to close the time gap between

international agreements taking effect andelephant survival, it is urgent that natiortaland international efforts are redirected

against these particular gangs of raiders.Where necessary, action must involveorganised paramilitary campaigns. How­ever, as John Boshe pointed out in theMay/June 1989 issue of Swara, the respon­sibility for these operations must not rest onthe shoulders of wardens and rangersalone. Other government departments,such as the general police force, fhejudiciary, customs and excise and intelli­gence services must also be involved.

There is a limited number of majorroutes through which organised raidergangs can move large quantities of ivory. Itis on the cutting of these routes that conser­vation efforts should be concentrated

immediately. Shrinking the number ofviable outlets for the web of ground trafficwill help identify the remaining outlets onwhich both co-ordinated field action and

international pressure can be focused. Inaddition, the loss of ivory outlets will dis-

31

The Equatorian Anti-Poaching Unit at work: Inspecting part of a herd of 46 elephantsindiscriminately killed by a raiding gang (top); one of the baggage camels, its legs still hobbled,which was caught in the crossfire between rangers and the gang (above).

... Sudancourage the killing of elephants by localpoachers, particularly in isolated andremote areas, which are otherwise moredifficult to control.

Repeated evidence over the past fewyears has confirmed that a major route forthe smuggling caravans cuts through west­ern Sudan across the borders of the Central

African Republic. Furthermore, the indica­tions are that· the favourite meeting andloading stations for the smugglers arelocated south-west of Sudan's Southern

National Park in Western Equatoria. Thisregion stretches from rain forest in thesouth on the Zaire border, through moredry woodland, up to savannah mosaic in thenorth. The area's fame as top elephantcountry has survived since time immemo­rial, even during the present civil war,because of the habitat and the isolationfrom human settlements and livestock

caused by the presence of tsetse fly.The region's relatively high measures of

wildlife diversity and abundance, togetherwith its levels of endemism are reflected inthe number of well established conserva­

tion areas. Elephant numbers in thesereserves have been healthy. For example,Southern National Park was estimated to

have had over 15,000 elephants in J 981,and in Sire Kpatuos and Bangangai GameReserves several groups, each of around500 head are regularly seen (the last countwas in 1989). The unprotected areas arefilled with a continuum of hunting blockswhere both forest and savannah elephantswere intensively hunted until the deteriora­tion in security brought about by the pre­sent war. These elephants, which oftencome across in large numbers from theCentral African Republic and Zaire, forexample in the feral mango season, are nowsubjected to large-scale poaching.

One drawback of the area's traditionaltsetse-induced isolation is its remotenessfrom main human settlements and efficient

road systems. This advantage is exploitedby the gangs of ivory raiders when choosingthe path (see map) taken by their large andheavy convoys, which would otherwise beeasily spotted and intercepted by anti­poaching patrols.

The ivory is moved in full caravanswhich are equipped with powerful radiosets, protected by automatic weapons andmay include around a hundred baggagecamels and as many horses and donkeys.After efficiently negotiating the sandy,dryer northern soils, the camels and thebaggage are left at loading stations on thefringes of the woodland. Only the hardhooved horse and donkeys can travel oninto the more heavily wooded areas such asthose found in the Southern National Park.

From local poachers' camps and from thesites of massacres (which are occasionallyperformed by the gang itself), the gangbrings ivory and meat back to the camelstations.

The loading statioris unfortunately donot only attract locally poached elephantproducts. The northern route represents,

32

now more than ever, the major alternativeto eastern and southern overland outlets for

the illicit ivory trade, and important trafficfrom central and eastern African countries

converges on the area.The most effective way to disrupt the

raiders' caravan system would be to use theexisting experience, discipline and fightingability of the local anti-poaching unitdeployed by the Equatorian Wildlife Con­servation and National Parks (WCNP)Forces. A boost to the Equatorian Anti­Poaching Unit could help the establishmentof an efficient, permanent field base for theprotection of local wildlife from poachersand international ivory smuggling. Thecompetent deployment of anti-poachingpersonnel has, in countries such asZimbabwe, made possible the creation of acontrolled ivory trade, which has beenbeneficial both to the economy of thesecountries and to the protection of theirelephant populations. Other African coun­tries, some of which benefit from extensiveinternational aid, have not organised

effective anti-poaching measures and, in allfairness, it cannot be said of them, as is thecase with worn-torn Sudan, that localpolitical and security conditions havejustified their dramatic loss of elephants.

Viewed in this perspective, theSudanese Equatorian Wildlife Conserva­tion and National Park Forces deserve

more attention and support than anybodyelse, particularly as despite the tryingconditions under which they have to oper­ate, and in spite of the heavy securityresponsibilities imposed on them by thewar, they have not stopping struggling tofulfil their duties as the defenders of

wildlife. The isolation caused by the warhas meant that their continuing efforts topreserve wildlife have so far goneunnoticed by international conservationorganisations. The photographs whichillustrate this article show just one of atypical series of operations which couldhave been greatly enhanced by additionalmoral and material support.

The Equatorian Anti-Poaching Unit is

A local poacher arrested with a .303 rifle and strips of smoke-dried meat while waiting for theraiding gang's horses and donkeys to come and take the meat to the camel loading station(top); ivory, rhino horns, handmade guns and python, leopard, serval, civet and bongoskins captured from poachers (above).

well trained and disciplined and has parityof firing power with the best equippedpoaching gang. Their means of communica­tion and transport, however, are grosslyinadequate. In the case illustrated here, thelack of proper radio contact meant a delayin identifying the raiding gang's returnroute and once this was established, ashortage of transport frustrated the unit'sattempt to overtake the caravan as it fled.Although in their battle with the Anti­Poaching Unit the gang lost their horses,donkeys, meat and baggage, they managedto escape with their ivory haul after killing alocal fisherman and forcing others at gunpoint to carry the ivory to the camel station.How much more effective the operationwould have been if in addition to the local

poachers, the raiders and their ivory hadbeen caught as well. Only grave financiallosses and personal injury are likely to deterthese gangs from undertaking large-scaleoperations in remote areas.

Their anti-poaching operations are onlyone aspect of the Equatorian WCNP

Forces' conservation efforts. A shortage ofteaching materials, references and equip­ment has not stopped them from doingsmall-scale but good quality work. Theyhave established a Wildlife Education and

Conservation Unit to teach the generalpublic about the country's wildlife andother natural resources and how best toconserve the environment. Particular

emphasis is given to the younger genera­tion, with support to the development ofwildlife clubs in schools. A Research Unit

has also been set up and has successfullypursued some field surveys. Althoughobviously restricted to secure areas, theresults of these field activities, which haveincluded a large mammal population studyin Nimule National Park and an ecologicalsurvey of the Juba Forest and WildlifeReserves, have contributed to managementand conservation policies. A study is atpresent in progress on the status ofchimpanzees in Western Equatoria.

The WCNP Forces' lack of contact withinternational scientific and conser~ation

institutions has, in the last six years of war,emphasised a bias towards security in theirtraining and responsibilities. In order tocounteract this the Director, BrigadierHenery Minga, has started a programme toboost conservation training. This includeswildlife managcmcnt refresher courses forofficers as well as basic wildlife monitoringtasks for personnel dcployed on securitypatrols.

I myself have been a personalbeneficiary of the support given by WCNPForces. Without their active collaboration

the completion of my bio-geographical andecological research would have been incon­ceivable, particularly during theseemergency years.

It is unfortunate that conservation

organisations which spend so much efforton the protection of wildlife, particularlyelephants, do not make better use of - andindeed sometimes even ignore - the poten­tial of such important organisations in thebattle for the preservation of wildlife inAfrica. The need to recognise the Equato­rian WCNP Forces is made all the more

urgent because, hopefully, the state ofemergency in the Sudan will come to anend. If it does wildlife will, paradoxically,no longer be protected by the currentunderpopulation of rural areas. Instead theanimals will face the danger of a returningrural population bearing firearms. Now istherefore the time to prepare for the futureso as to be ready to cope with the additionalpressure on wildlife. 'My plea,' writesBrigadier Minga in an official paper, 'is forhelp now, not when hostilities cease. Forseveral species, some of which are endemic,it will be too late .... '

In conclusion, the battle to save Africa'selephants should not be carried out througha multitude of isolated efforts. As in the

battle to save the global environment, toomany components are linked together anddemand a comprehensive response. Theworld-wide interest in saving the Africanelephant is a positive and welcome - evenif belated - response. What is needed nowis not additional schemes, but better use ofexisting local structures such as the Equato­rian Wildlife Conservation and NationalPark Forces. In co-ordination with otlier

local government departments and thoseacross the border, these are the mosteffective conservation organisations, butultimately not the only ones on whichshould fall the responsibility for the survivalof African wildlife. ~

Alfredo Guillet is an Honorary Research Fellow of theFaculty of General Agriculture, University CollegcDublin. He has a doctorate in political sciences and aPhD in zoology. His research has focused on theecology, conservation and bio-geography of Africaninland waterbirds (the shoebill and the great whitepelican being key species) and on the classification andmanagement of tropical ecological communities. Hisexperience in the Sudan spans two decades andincludes work as biological consultant in the JongleiEcological Programme. an EEC project aimed atassessing the impact of the JOl1glei Canal; in an Italian­Sudanese co-operative progrnmme for the formula­tion of a ma~ter plan for the Southern National Park;and in several environmental and emergency reliefconsultancies on behalf of the Italian Ministry ofForeign Affairs.

33

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1 LETTERS~ ":~"H"~:"~"~"C:"':C"''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''_''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''_"""""",,,,,_,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,~C·",. ••c.u••cm••••'mom __ ~~"""'-.~~~~;.~~- ••••4....•..A..•~~r!j ~J."",,'V J. ~v~~~nnm:~.l~

From Steve Graham, Director,Detroit Zoological Parks, USAI have been concerned about recent cover­

age in the United States press regardingtravel to Kenya and the possible danger totourists while in that country.

More than 700,000 tourists visitedKenya in 1988. I th'ink the world press hasrather dramatically covered two or threeunfortunate incidents, which appears to meto be statistically an extremely smallnumber and one that J would like to see

compared to travel in Europe, Asia andother tourist hot spots around the world.

I have visited Kenya almost every yearfor the last dozen years and feel that J knowthe country, the people and the politicalclimate pretty well. J have always beenamazed by the lack of violent crime againstpeople in Kenya, certainly in comparisonwith the United States.

As a tour leader during many of thoseyears, J have been responsible for the safetyof hundreds of visitors and have felt totallysafe. J will continue to feel that way onfuture trips.

There is, however, a larger issue hereeven than safety of visitors: wildlife conser­vation. How can African nations protecttheir dwindling reserves of wildlife for theeducation and enjoyment of visitors fromcountries like the United States (where wehave systematically destroyed most of ourplains animals)?

The only possible method of conservingAfrican wildlife and at the same time feed­

ing hungry nations is tourism. Indeed, inKenya the second largest industry afterfarming is tourism, and if tourists (forreasons real or imagined) shun travel tosuch areas, African governments will haveno choice but to plough their game reservesto create more farmland to offset the loss of

foreign-trade dollars brought in by tourism.The increased affluence of the Ameri­

can public has made us quite mobile, andwith that mobility there are risks. In fact,the most dangerous part of most travelseems to be the act of getting there and thengetting back.

It appears to me that the risks once youare in Kenya arc extremely small and thatthe benefits to this planet's wildlife areextremely high. I would encourageeveryone to conti n ue to visit these import­ant wildlife areas. as I certainly intend todo.

FromA.F.T. Monck-Mason, Kampala,Uganda .The recent article on Uganda's QueenElizabeth National Park by Imre LoefJer(J uly/ August 1989) was 1110Stinteresting.

As one who helS been working in west­ern Ugelnda for nearly three years, I passthrough the park regularly and I also enjoyfairly frequent weekend visits at MweyaLodge. I would therefore hasten to endorseImre LoefJer's encouraging commentsabout the general situation there, and hopethat such positive publicity will help tobenefit the Queen Elizabeth Neltional Park

in particular and the Uganda NationalParks generally in the form of more outsideassistance and tourism. It must be every­body's wish that the present improvementscontinue and that Uganda regains its pastreputation.

Imre Loefler's comments about the

elephant, as with all other comments in thearticle, are absolutely correct. Theelephant, though such a small percentage oftheir numbers in the J 950s and 1960s, whenthe faded notices which still proclaim that'Elephants have right of way' were veryrelevant and demanded observance, are

very much in evidence.r think that the 'government's avarice

for foreign currency' may have abated alittle since the article was written! I have

recently heard that the regulation requiringall non-residents to change US$l 50 on arri­val at Entebbe at the official rate has beenwithdrawn.

From D.K. Bedwall, Dorchester,England

In view of the recent disturbing news of thetrapping of lovebirds in Kenya, membersmay be interested that the problem rearedits ugly head thirty years ago when I was onthe executive council of the Kenya WildLife Society and also President of the E.A.Natural History Society.

The then governor set up an advisorycommittee comprising Dr L.S.B. Leakey,Mr Noel Simon, Mr John Williams andmyself to advise the government on allmatters concerning the capture, sale andexports of live animals and birds and to con­sider aU applications for permits for thesepurposes.

The committee met regularly and thereis little doubt that its influence on the con­

servation of wildlife was significant and amajor step towards the preservation ofKenya's precious fauna and avifauna.

From E.M. Ng'ang'a, Treasurer,Young Conservationists Wildlife Club,Nairobi, Kenya

The remarks made by Mwamba Shete in his'Co111ment' in the March/April 1989 issue ofSwara were welcome and long overdue.

Conservationists frequently sponsorresearch projects and hold workshops tostudy some aspect of the environment. Atthe end, recommendations arc made and

Monitor lizards abound around the lakes of Queen Elizabeth National Park.

35

From Imre J.P. Loefler,Nairobi, Kenya.

I refer to the recent correspondence aboutbone chewing giraffes. Osteophagia - orbone eating - is a well-known phenomenonamong herbivorous animals. It is a sign ofmineral deficiency, usually phosphorus. Ithas been thoroughly researched in cattle,

then the policy makers are expected toformulate suitable policies and implementthem.

But wait, instead of being allowed tofeel satisfied with the work they have done,the conservationists are in for a rude shock

as nothing happens. Is it that the recom­mendations are impossible to implement oris it the implementation of the recommen­dations that is impossible? It is no wonderthat conservationists begin to despair.

It is high time that something was doneabout the propensity of the institutionsconcerned to procrastinate and even alterdecisions. It is of utmost importance if weare not to be blamed by posterity for failingto arrest the deterioration of our environ­ment.

Last year's burning of 12 tonnes of ivoryworth Ksh 60 million by Kenya's PresidentDaniel arap Moi and the decision to givethe African elephant protection underAppendix I of the Convention on Inter­national Trade in Endangered Species areencouraging steps in the right direction.

From Marianne White, Trigg,Western Australia

At the recent Perth Royal Show I wasdrawn to a display at the AustralianCustoms Service stand of prohibitedanimal imports - a grotesque collection ofcurios fashioned from skins, tusks, horns,shells etc., which when viewed alongsidebeautiful photos of the animals themselvesreally brought the conservation messagehome.

The customs officers were delightedwhen I offered to let them have more

'ammunition' on long term loan: a delveinto my childhood memorabilia produced aleopard skin handbag (with permit), lionclaw brooch,dikdik horn pen9ant, and theubiquitous elephant hair bracelets withoutwhich no Nairobi teenager of the 1960s wascomplete.

Of special interest was an ivory paper­weight, with a sticker proclaiming 'thissouvenir has been fashioned from ivoryrecovered from poachers', because Presi­dent Moi's ivory bonfire received goodmedia coverage here; Australians agreethat there should be a total ban on ivory.

So I urge your expatriate readersaround the world to dig up their curios fromthe Bad Old Days and lend them to theirlocal customs department or museum foreducational purposes; what was commonplace and high fashion in the 1950s isabhorrent in the ] 980s and eloquentlydemonstrates our need to preserve wildlife.

Too manypassengerscould end upin a pile upOver-loading your vehicle putsextra weight and strain on yourtyres and suspension. It makes fordifficult driving and hardersteering. It puts your wheels out ofalignment, and weakens yoursuspension. Do not carry morepeople than your vehicle wasdesigned TO carry. Check your tyrepressures every time you fill upwith petrol.

IiZZmmrncaring for your safety

mistaken for a bone, the observation wasprobably correct.

This correspondence is now closed. Editor.

From Philippe Oberle,P.O. Box 30579, Nairobi, Kenya

Your magazine is fantastic. I have most ofthe issues and would like to bind them.

Unfortunately, I am missing all of those for1978 and 1979 (Volumes 1 and 2), issues 1,3,4 and 5 from 1980 (Volume 3), and issues2, 3 and 4 from 198] (Volume 4).

Might any readers be able to help me

find and buy the missing issues? i'J

and it has been observed in wild animals as

well; particularly in deer, camels, wil­debeest - and giraffe.

Nesbit Evans attributed unusual feed­ing habits to translocation - 'The reactionof a group of Rothschild's Giraffe to a newenvironment', East African WildlifeJournal: 8.53 (1970). Western saw 'MaasaiGiraffe chewing the bones of a Grant'sGazelle carcass', East African WildlifeJournal 9.156 (1971). And Wyatt expandedon the matter further - 'Osteophagia inMaasai Giraffe', East African WildlifeJournal 9.157 (1971).

So despite the contention of an EastAfrican Wild Life Society officer that thetongue of the giraffe may have been

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