The issue of ethical and sustainable trophy hunting was again a contentious one at the opening of the Namibian Professional Hunting Association’s 40th annual general meeting this week.
The president of NAPHA, Kai-Uwe Denker, said the respectful treatment of wild animals and the ethical conduct of hunters are absolutely essential if trophy hunting is to be accepted by the public.
He was speaking in the context of the recent outrage that was caused both locally and internationally by anti-hunting activists after the trophy hunting of a Dorob lion in the Torra Conservancy.
According to Denker, there was a time when Namibia had the reputation of being a country of “clean and fair chase hunting”.
“We cannot allow all this to be jeopardised by rogue outfits that just see trophy hunting as an easy way to make a quick buck,” said Denker.
He said trophy hunting needs to be redefined.
“We need to get away from certain practices like thoughtless trophy-collecting safaris. If we are not able to adapt to the refined nature awareness and consciousness of modern man quickly, there will be no future for trophy hunting.”
He was, however, quick to say that there is nothing wrong with true and honest hunting.
“We do not have to hide.”
He said hunters have heard many insulting accusations over the past few weeks.
While arguing that hunters also deserve some form of respect, Denker said that it is time for them to stand up and explain themselves.
“In our materialistic world we tend to think that money is the one and only justification for everything. We all know that financial benefits are a very important in any successful undertaking. But perhaps more important is the fact that in the long run human conscience outweighs all other factors.”
According to him, things like canned hunting or the artificial breeding of wild animals for the hunting industry are ultimately nails in the coffin of trophy hunting.
The hunting industry today faces challenges, Denker said.
However, it has been able to achieve plenty during the past 40 years.
Since the inception of the Hunting Guide Program in 2001, with the cooperation of the Eagle Rock Professional Hunting Academy, a total of 230 previously disadvantaged Namibians have been trained and passed examinations to become fully qualified hunting guides.
At the beginning of the year, NAPHA embarked on a training program to be offered to communal conservancies to run their own trophy-hunting operations. This will enable communal conservancies to reap the full benefits of the sustainable utilisation of their wildlife.
The president of NAPHA, Kai-Uwe Denker, said the respectful treatment of wild animals and the ethical conduct of hunters are absolutely essential if trophy hunting is to be accepted by the public.
He was speaking in the context of the recent outrage that was caused both locally and internationally by anti-hunting activists after the trophy hunting of a Dorob lion in the Torra Conservancy.
According to Denker, there was a time when Namibia had the reputation of being a country of “clean and fair chase hunting”.
“We cannot allow all this to be jeopardised by rogue outfits that just see trophy hunting as an easy way to make a quick buck,” said Denker.
He said trophy hunting needs to be redefined.
“We need to get away from certain practices like thoughtless trophy-collecting safaris. If we are not able to adapt to the refined nature awareness and consciousness of modern man quickly, there will be no future for trophy hunting.”
He was, however, quick to say that there is nothing wrong with true and honest hunting.
“We do not have to hide.”
He said hunters have heard many insulting accusations over the past few weeks.
While arguing that hunters also deserve some form of respect, Denker said that it is time for them to stand up and explain themselves.
“In our materialistic world we tend to think that money is the one and only justification for everything. We all know that financial benefits are a very important in any successful undertaking. But perhaps more important is the fact that in the long run human conscience outweighs all other factors.”
According to him, things like canned hunting or the artificial breeding of wild animals for the hunting industry are ultimately nails in the coffin of trophy hunting.
The hunting industry today faces challenges, Denker said.
However, it has been able to achieve plenty during the past 40 years.
Since the inception of the Hunting Guide Program in 2001, with the cooperation of the Eagle Rock Professional Hunting Academy, a total of 230 previously disadvantaged Namibians have been trained and passed examinations to become fully qualified hunting guides.
At the beginning of the year, NAPHA embarked on a training program to be offered to communal conservancies to run their own trophy-hunting operations. This will enable communal conservancies to reap the full benefits of the sustainable utilisation of their wildlife.
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