Information that the Ministry of Natural Resources & Tourism had last week terminated a hunting block licences belonging to Green Miles Safaris Limited after supposed gross breach of sports hunting laws couldn’t have come at a much better timing than this.
The moves comes when the country is fighting widespread poaching plus issues like the one devoted by the prohibited firm.
These, regardless of using up the natural resources of the country yet still time ruining the economy as well as spoiling its image.
Tanzania is gifted with plenty of natural resources that generally are abused by a couple of people with the financial power to do this. This beats one’s imagination that a number of hunting companies are bending down that they priorities money rather than follow the set regulations.
This move by the ministry is going to go a long away to stopping those companies which were following in the footsteps of Green Miles. Talking to a media news conference in the capital Dar es Salaam, the Tourism Minister Lazaro Nyalandu mentioned that the terminated hunting blocks include Lake Natron GC East, MKI-Selous as well as Gonabis or Kidunda-WMA inside Selous Game Reserve.
He went on to say that this move should work as a powerful warning to all tourism hunting firms within the country regarding violation of regulations, rules plus hunting regulations.
This move as well led to cancellation of all hunting permits issued in the present hunting season. In accordance with the minister, research conducted by a group of experts from the Tanzania Wildlife Department revealed that this had Company violated the Wildlife Conservation Act – No. 5 of 2009, after a couple of irregularities done during their hunting routines.
A number of the irregularities done by this company include, permitting their guests to hunt wildlife that is prohibited within the hunting licenses in contrast to section 19(1)(2) of the Act; guests playing with some young zebras in contrast to section 19(1); permitting their guests to chase and also shoot wildlife (Section 56 (1) (a) 1) as well as hunting below age wildlife (56 (1)).
Additional mistakes also included, permitting children under Sixteen years old to participate in hunting wildlife (Section 43 (20 (a) plus guests scaring the wildlife during the hunting (Section 19 (1) and (2).
The investigations emerged following the Shadow Minister of Natural Resources & Tourism Rev Peter Msigwa, reprehended officials from Green Miles Safari for violating the present regulations on the Conservation of wildlife inside the Selous Game Reserve.