- The DA continuously receive complaints in which SAPS handles incidents of illegal poaching with dogs
- Illegal poaching with dogs is highly organised and well resourced
- Despite cooperation between farmers, the community and SAPS, lack of resources hamper effective combatting of these crimes
The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Limpopo is concerned by the trivialising manner in which illegal hunting or poaching with dogs is handled by SAPS.
The DA continuously receives complaints from Alldays, Gravelotte, Bandelierkop, Vivo, Ellisras and Tom Burke that SAPS are reluctant or blatantly refuse to open reported incidents of illegal poaching with dogs.
The modus operandi for these crimes is organised and always similar; gravel or tar roads with low volume traffic are used such as the R521, R 522, D1468 between Vivo and Schiermonikoog.
Poachers and dogs are dropped at “hotspots” and gain entry to properties by cutting fences.
After the “hunt” the poachers, their dogs and the kill are collected again at the drop-off.
During a successful arrest SAPS nabbed poachers in the Mara area that was transported from Matoks which is 80 km away with vehicles without licence plates to avoid detection.
Illegal poaching with dogs violates a myriad of legislation:
- The National Environment: Biodiversity Management Act (NEMBA)-hunting without permits or using methods such as dogs, is prohibited
- The Animal Protection Act: provides broad protection for animals from cruelty, and this includes provisions related to illegal hunting with dogs
- Trespassing Act of 1959: Individuals entering a farm without the owner’s permission to hunt (even with dogs) are committing trespassing
While the Animal Protection Act provides a foundation for prosecuting animal cruelty, illegal hunting with dogs is also addressed under other legislation, such as the Conservation of Agricultural Resources Act or the Nature Conservation Ordinances in South Africa. These laws regulate hunting and the use of dogs in hunting, and violators can face additional charges related to poaching or illegal hunting.
Farmers and community members play a crucial role in combatting illegal hunting with dogs but often with minimal effect due to capacity constraints of the local SAPS.
Poaching with dogs have serious consequences; economic impact on farmers due to loss of livestock, it creates tension between farmers and local communities and threaten endangered species.
The DA calls for well-resourced rural units with the capacity to enforce the law to effectively prevent the impact of these crimes.