Why should a nation that is, in many areas, affected by hunger, poverty, high unemployment and loss of life, care about their environment, let alone their wildlife?
Well, the Elephant Aware rangers, a group of Kenyans committed to saving their wildlife, have a few reasons in mind that they would like to remind their fellow Kenyans of…
“I am Kenyan and I am certainly not what you would call wealthy. I come from a fine and proud Maasai family but we have dealt with plenty of hardships in our lifetimes. Never once have I reverted to breaking the law, even when I needed money. I am aware of the suffering my fellow Kenyans are experiencing all across the country and when I look at wildlife from the point-of-view of people in Kenya who are stricken by poverty and famine, people who can barely feed themselves or their families, I can understand how wild animals in remote places like the Mara can have little to no importance in their daily lives. They say it takes a village to raise a child, and I say it takes a world to save a species. But how can we motivate entire nations to care?” Ranger Siranka asks, as he and some of the other rangers discuss these issues whilst watching a group of elephants. “One thing all Kenyans need to remember is that, poaching is no longer a crisis confined within the conservation world…it is a global crisis that poses a serious threat to everyone.”
These words ring frighteningly true. It has been recently discovered that the activities of terrorist groups such as al Shabaab, Boko Haram and Janjaweed (to name a few) and ultimately al Qaeda, are funded by ivory. In the past couple of months, Kenya has been the target of horrific terrorist attacks, leaving scores dead and injured. The recent events at the large and busy Nairobi shopping mall, Westgate, which was held hostage by a group of terrorists last September, claimed the lives of over 67 people (48 Kenyans) and the recent explosions in markets, aboard public transportation and others have inflicted equally heavy blows to the overall security of the average Kenyan. If ivory and the killing of elephants has any kind of role in assisting these heinous acts, is that not reason enough to sit up and pay attention? The Ivory Trade has become a major culprit of economic, ecological and global security sabotage. With each elephant that is killed, the world has one more wealthier criminal and one less secure citizen.
These terrible events that follow the death of elephants are literally a “chain-link” reaction. Poachers make away with the tusks of the elephant they have just butchered, without hesitation, then the ivory reaches China. Within the lucrative network of criminals who assist the passage of the ivory, there is a connection to terrorism, followed by terrorist acts in countries around the world. In Kenya, the aftermath of such attacks does not only destroy lives, they also destroy revenue, income and the sustenance thousands of Kenyans within the tourism industry rely on. The lifeline of an enormous sector’s populace is destroyed.
“One act in desperation can have severe consequences to many people who you don’t even know,” says Ranger Lilanka. Meaning, though many of the actual poachers, those who do the killing, are (in our experience) comparatively wealthy, there are others who are turning to poaching because of no income and no employment. A particularly worrying factor amongst the youth. One of Elephant Aware’s community outreach initiatives is to enourage young Maasai to seek careers in conservation and by doing so, help protect their wildlife and wilderness lands.
So, why should all Kenyans care about their wildlife? Because we have a valuable resource right on our doorsteps that is being overshadowed by a terror generator; terrorism. Because we are losing our national heritage to something that, if we truly united against, we could stomp on. Because it doesn’t matter who you are or how wealthy you are, your country is connected to you and you should care about these developments, especially the ones that put you, your families and your children at risk. Kenyans are renowned for our pride in our diverse culture.
“We must ask ourselves, do we want our elephants? Or will we accept terrorism?”
