Wildlife is a national heritage, belongs to the state
Dec 15, 2009
EDITOR—On November 13, 2008, The New Vision published a letter by Karoline Weichert of Frankfurt, Germany, about sport-hunting in Uganda. She wrote that the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) had awarded a hunting concession area in central Uganda to Chris
EDITOR—On November 13, 2008, The New Vision published a letter by Karoline Weichert of Frankfurt, Germany, about sport-hunting in Uganda. She wrote that the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) had awarded a hunting concession area in central Uganda to Christian Weth, of Uganda Wildlife Safaris.
This was the same Weth, who UWA had publicly barred from operating in Uganda for hunting wild animals illegally within the Murchison Falls National Park in 2001! As every sport hunter in this world knows, hunting in national parks is illegal.
I am not aware of any response by UWA to this allegation. Surely, it is serious that UWA can award hunting concessions to an individual who had been barred from hunting in the country. According to the The New Visionof January 1, 2009, UWA awarded two new ‘wildlife management’ concessions (including sporthunting) to Weth and his Uganda Wildlife Safaris.
These are in Ajai Wildlife Reserve in West Nile and in Amuru district ( The New Vision December 5). It is more like the ‘canned hunting’ we hear about in South Africa, and against which that country is now taking action. Wildlife is a national treasure and heritage, belonging to the state of Uganda.
Clearly, if sport hunters are shooting Uganda’s wild animals, the Uganda public should be aware of how these hunting companies are chosen, how many animals are permitted to be killed, and the conditions for this activity. There should be transparency.
Hans Schuetze
Munich, Germany
This was the same Weth, who UWA had publicly barred from operating in Uganda for hunting wild animals illegally within the Murchison Falls National Park in 2001! As every sport hunter in this world knows, hunting in national parks is illegal.
I am not aware of any response by UWA to this allegation. Surely, it is serious that UWA can award hunting concessions to an individual who had been barred from hunting in the country. According to the The New Visionof January 1, 2009, UWA awarded two new ‘wildlife management’ concessions (including sporthunting) to Weth and his Uganda Wildlife Safaris.
These are in Ajai Wildlife Reserve in West Nile and in Amuru district ( The New Vision December 5). It is more like the ‘canned hunting’ we hear about in South Africa, and against which that country is now taking action. Wildlife is a national treasure and heritage, belonging to the state of Uganda.
Clearly, if sport hunters are shooting Uganda’s wild animals, the Uganda public should be aware of how these hunting companies are chosen, how many animals are permitted to be killed, and the conditions for this activity. There should be transparency.
Hans Schuetze
Munich, Germany