Alternative Africa

Top Menu

  • Home
  • About Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Contact Us

Main Menu

  • Home
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business
  • Environment
  • Politics
  • Sports
  • Reports
    • Africa-Observers
      • Read Reports
      • Submit a story
  • MORE
    • Health
    • News Now
    • World
    • Technology
Sign in / Join

Login

Welcome! Login in to your account
Lost your password?

Lost Password

Back to login
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Contact Us

logo

Alternative Africa

  • Home
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business
  • Environment
  • Politics
  • Sports
  • Reports
    • Africa-Observers
      • Read Reports
      • Submit a story
  • MORE
    • Health
    • News Now
    • World
    • Technology
  • Eight injured after suspected terrorist attack in Sweden

  • Interpol raises alarm after China, South Africa seize large consignment of fake coronavirus vaccines

  • Rwanda govt turns to power tillers to help small farmers mechanize agriculture

  • Covax floods Africa with vaccines to curtail emerging resurgence of covid-19 virus

  • Covid-19: World Bank readies emergency vaccine fund for 30 African countries

News Now
Home›News Now›Public outrage forces Trump to put Elephant Trophy Decision ‘on hold’

Public outrage forces Trump to put Elephant Trophy Decision ‘on hold’

By alternativeafrica
November 18, 2017
1041
0
Share:

Washington, Nov.18, 2017 (AltAfrika)– In the face of widespread public backlash, President Donald Trump announced late Friday that he has suspended — at least for now — his own administration’s decision to reverse an Obama-era ban on the importation of elephant trophies from Zimbabwe and Zambia.

“Put big game trophy decision on hold until such time as I review all conservation facts,” he posted to Twitter. He adding that the issue has been “under study for years” but that he would provide an update after additional review.

Put big game trophy decision on hold until such time as I review all conservation facts. Under study for years. Will update soon with Secretary Zinke. Thank you!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 18, 2017

Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke said in a statement on Twitter that he and Trump “believe that conservation & healthy herds are critical.”

As HuffPost reported Wednesday, the administration opted to lift the 2014 ban after determining that sport hunting of elephants in those African countries would “enhance the survival of the species in the wild,” a spokesperson for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said. It also recently rolled back protections for African lions, releasing new guidelines that allow big game hunters to bring back to the U.S. animal trophies from hunts in parts of Africa.

The decision regarding elephants was made public not by the federal agency but via a celebratory news release early Tuesday from Safari Club International, a trophy hunting advocacy group that, along with the National Rifle Association, sued to block the 2014 ban. Greg Sheehan, principal deputy director of the FWS, broke the news to the hunting organization during the African Wildlife Consultative Forum in Tanzania, an agency spokesperson told HuffPost. The forum, which ended Friday, was hosted by the Safari Club International Foundation and the United Republic of Tanzania.

Conservation groups celebrated Friday’s sudden change in course, which was believed to be a response to public pressure.

“It’s great that public outrage has forced Trump to reconsider this despicable decision, but it takes more than a tweet to stop trophy hunters from slaughtering elephants and lions,” Tanya Sanerib, senior attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity, said in a statement. “We need immediate federal action to reverse these policies and protect these amazing animals.”

In a post to Twitter, Wayne Pacelle, the CEO of The Humane Society of the United States, said he was “grateful” that Trump would reconsider. “This is the kind of trade we don’t need.”

Grateful to @POTUS @RealDonaldTrump for reassessing elephant and lion trophy hunting imports. This is the kind of trade we don’t need.

— Wayne Pacelle (@waynepacelle) November 18, 2017

The elephant trophy decision drew national headlines and a fierce response from celebrities and others across social media. Talk-show host Ellen DeGeneres launched a campaign called #BeKindToElephants. By lifting the ban, she said, Trump was “encouraging Americans to kill elephants.”

African elephants have been listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act since 1978. A provision of the law, however, allows for sport-hunted trophies to be imported if the government determines that hunting will help safeguard the population.

The FWS concluded that Zimbabwe has made strides to improve elephant management and anti-poaching efforts, according to a notice published Friday in the Federal Register.

Rep. Ed Royce (R-Calif.), chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, was among the many people who called on Trump to abandon his trophy hunting decision. In a Friday statement, Royce pointed to the unrest in Zimbabwe — where a military coup is thought to be unfolding — and said he has no confidence that the regime is properly managing conservation programs.

“Elephants and other big game in Africa are blood currency for terrorist organizations, and they are being killed at an alarming rate,” Royce said. “Stopping poaching isn’t just about saving the world’s most majestic animals for the future ― it’s about our national security.”

Hours before Trump’s review announcement, the FWS defended its decision as “part of a robust United States conservation strategy that seeks to eliminate poaching and associated wildlife trafficking.”

SHARE ON:
TagsAfricaBreakingNews
Previous Article

Cyber attacks hit Algerian state telecom operator

Next Article

10 reasons why Zimbabweans want Mugabe out

0
Shares
  • 0
  • +
  • 0
  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

alternativeafrica

Related articles More from author

  • BusinessNews Now

    Barclays Africa reclaims African identity

    March 2, 2018
    By alternativeafrica
  • News Now

    Mugabe will play elder statesman role in Zimbabwe, says mediator

    November 26, 2017
    By alternativeafrica
  • News Now

    Tunisia hit by new anti-austerity protests

    January 11, 2018
    By alternativeafrica
  • News Now

    Nigeria 2019: INEC Partners NCC to Send SMS to Owners of Uncollected PVCs

    September 4, 2018
    By alternativeafrica
  • News Now

    Global Health: In Early Results, Shorter Treatment for Tuberculosis Proves Effective

    October 13, 2017
    By alternativeafrica
  • News Now

    Zambian farmer: ‘Water is becoming a problem’

    October 6, 2017
    By alternativeafrica

Leave a reply Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

You might be interested

  • HealthNews NowWorld

    Covid virus survives for 28 days on banknotes, phone screens, stainless steel-Study

  • News NowPolitics

    Congo: Opposition leader Bemba nominated for presidential election

  • Breaking NewsNews NowPolitics

    South Sudan Leaders agree to permanent cease-fire

Timeline

  • March 4, 2021

    Eight injured after suspected terrorist attack in Sweden

  • March 4, 2021

    Interpol raises alarm after China, South Africa seize large consignment of fake coronavirus vaccines

  • March 4, 2021

    Rwanda govt turns to power tillers to help small farmers mechanize agriculture

  • March 4, 2021

    Covax floods Africa with vaccines to curtail emerging resurgence of covid-19 virus

  • March 3, 2021

    Covid-19: World Bank readies emergency vaccine fund for 30 African countries

  • Popular

  • Comments

  • Lagos govt confirms first case of deadly coronavirus infection in Nigeria

    By alternativeafrica
    February 28, 2020
  • Keynote Address of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo at 2018 Oxford Africa Conference

    By PSJ Africa
    May 14, 2018
  • Morocco begins regional integration by connecting Casablanca Airport with High Speed Train

    By alternativeafrica
    January 4, 2020
  • Kenyan govt pressure Facebook for data on Kenyan users

    By alternativeafrica
    November 20, 2019
  • Nigeria: 32,000 capacity Lagos rice mill to start production in 2020

    By alternativeafrica
    December 23, 2019
  • Ado zagi
    on
    January 12, 2021

    Nigeria: EFCC Academy to begin award of degree

    Diploma leave areply from
  • Ethiopia joins Africa's Artificial Intelligence revolution | Alternative Africa
    on
    October 2, 2020

    Spending on Artificial Intelligence Systems in Africa, Middle East to top $374 million in 2020

    […] Many African countries ...
  • The 5 most popular Africans 2020
    on
    September 25, 2020

    Celebrating Congolese doctor Jean-Jacques Muyembe, the man behind breakthrough of Ebola cure

    […] Dr. Jean-Jacques Muyembe ...
  • Millitants in Central Mali Set Jail Ablaze in Attack Killing Two | taktik(z) GDI (Government Defense ...
    on
    August 11, 2020

    Fifteen gendarmes killed in another attack on Mali camp

    […] attack fol­lowed a January ...
  • Millitants in Central Mali Set Jail Ablaze in Attack Killing Two
    on
    August 11, 2020

    Fifteen gendarmes killed in another attack on Mali camp

    […] attack followed a ...
AlternativeAfrica.com is an independent Pan African News Website dedicated primarily to influencing the negative narratives about Africa. We hope to do this by focusing and showcasing the many developmental strides sweeping across the continent.

Read more >>>

Contact Info

  • info@alternativeafrica.com
  • Recent

  • Popular

  • Comments

  • Eight injured after suspected terrorist attack in Sweden

    By alternativeafrica
    March 4, 2021
  • Interpol raises alarm after China, South Africa seize large consignment of fake coronavirus vaccines

    By alternativeafrica
    March 4, 2021
  • Rwanda govt turns to power tillers to help small farmers mechanize agriculture

    By alternativeafrica
    March 4, 2021
  • Covax floods Africa with vaccines to curtail emerging resurgence of covid-19 virus

    By alternativeafrica
    March 4, 2021
  • Lagos govt confirms first case of deadly coronavirus infection in Nigeria

    By alternativeafrica
    February 28, 2020
  • Keynote Address of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo at 2018 Oxford Africa Conference

    By PSJ Africa
    May 14, 2018
  • Macron in Ivory Coast to launch anti-terrorism academy

    By alternativeafrica
    December 21, 2019
  • Kenyan govt pressure Facebook for data on Kenyan users

    By alternativeafrica
    November 20, 2019
  • Ado zagi
    on
    January 12, 2021

    Nigeria: EFCC Academy to begin award of degree

    Diploma leave areply from
  • Ethiopia joins Africa's Artificial Intelligence revolution | Alternative Africa
    on
    October 2, 2020

    Spending on Artificial Intelligence Systems in Africa, Middle East to top $374 million in 2020

    […] Many African countries ...
  • The 5 most popular Africans 2020
    on
    September 25, 2020

    Celebrating Congolese doctor Jean-Jacques Muyembe, the man behind breakthrough of Ebola cure

    […] Dr. Jean-Jacques Muyembe ...
  • Millitants in Central Mali Set Jail Ablaze in Attack Killing Two | taktik(z) GDI (Government Defense ...
    on
    August 11, 2020

    Fifteen gendarmes killed in another attack on Mali camp

    […] attack fol­lowed a January ...

Photostream

    Follow us

    • Home
    • About Us
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms of Use
    • Contact Us
    © Copyright Alternative Africa 2019. All rights reserved.