Poachers Should Be Shot on Sight, Says a Top Tanzanian Official

Tanzania is on the front lines of the elephant poaching crisis, with up to 25,000 individuals killed every year. The problem is so large that none other than President Obama has taken note, who chose Tanzania as his spot to announce at $10 million anti-poaching initiative.

But for one Tanzanian politician, spending more money on protecting elephants simply isn't enough. In an interview with a local newspaper, Tanzania's Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism, Amb. Khamis Kagasheki, said poachers should be shot on sight.

"Poachers must be harshly punished because they are merciless people who wantonly kill our wildlife and sometimes game wardens," he told Tanzania Daily News, adding that he "could not help thinking" that shooting poachers would go along way to curbing the problem.

"I am very aware that some alleged human rights activists will make an uproar, claiming that poachers have as much rights to be tried in courts as the next person, but let's face it, poachers not only kill wildlife but also usually never hesitate to shoot dead any innocent person standing in their way," he said, according to the site.

It's rather heavy rhetoric, but not completely unjustified. Elephant poaching has come largely under the control of heavily armed poachers, as well as paramilitary groups like al Shabab and the Lord's Resistance Army. Poachers aren't simply guys with hunting rifles picking off an animal here or there. They're legitimate threats to elephants and humans alike.

That reality is part of the impetus for the Obama Administration's recent efforts to frame wildlife trafficking as a national security issue by arguing that the extremely lucrative trade is helping fund African militant groups. In Tanzania, from which as much as a quarter of the world's illegal ivory flows, the encroachment of al Shabab is a real concern. Adding to the pressure is the fact that the country is one of the so-called "gang of eight" countries at the heart of the ivory trade.

Earlier this year at the CITES Conference of the Parties, where countries that have ratified the CITES international wildlife trade agreement meet to discuss the trade, the gang of eight were handed an ultimatum: Give the world a plan to curb ivory poaching within 12 months, or face sanctions.

It's since been about seven months. While Thailand has pledged to end its legal ivory trade, meaningful action to curb poaching has yet to be taken. So not only is Tanzania seeing its natural heritage disappear at the hands of poachers, it's likely feeling a bit of diplomatic and political pressure as well.

With customs officials worldwide still seizing record amounts of ivory, it would appear that current anti-poaching efforts are still not enough. But is killing poachers on sight really the answer? Nepal has found success in more actively hunting the poachers themselves, but African poaching groups are generally far more heavily armed. Taking the fight directly to them might end up in all-out conflict. Still, as aggressive as Kagasheki's statement is, it's not hard to sympathize with the underlying message that more serious action is needed.

@derektmead