South African judge rejects ban on rhino horn trade
A South African judge has struck down a government ban on the domestic rhino horn trade, alarming some conservationists who say the decision could intensify the slaughter of the threatened species.
Judge Francis Legodi said the government had failed to properly consult the public before imposing the moratorium in 2009.
He also questioned the effectiveness of the moratorium in a 39-page judgment and noted that rhino poaching surged to record levels after it was imposed.
The South African government has not yet commented on whether it would appeal the ruling.
Rhino breeders and game reserve owners took the South African government to court to try to overturn the ban on the domestic trade of rhino horn.
They argued that harvesting the horn from living rhinos at their ranches and selling it legally will drive many poachers out of business.
Allison Thomson, founder of an anti-poaching group in South Africa, said she was bitterly disappointed by the ruling.
She said: “South Africa does not have a market for rhino horn domestically and the opening of trade locally will only lead to the smuggling of rhino horn by criminal syndicates into the black market in Vietnam and China.”
An international ban on the rhino horn trade has been in place since 1977.
South Africa has proposed that the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, which oversees the trade of wild animals and plants, discuss lifting the ban at its next meeting in Johannesburg in September 2016.
