Botswana threatens Germany with elephants 15:47

Botswana’s President Mokgweetsi Masisi threatened to send 20,000 elephants to Germany. The media group reported that “BBC”.

“We would like to give such a gift to Germany,” Masisi said, adding that he would not accept no for an answer.

Botswana’s Wildlife Minister says elephants outnumber humans in some parts of the country. He sometimes attacks people and tramples farmers’ crops, “leaving Africans hungry.” In March he threatened to send 10,000 elephants to London so Britons could “get a taste of life” with them.

Botswana and other southern African countries make a lot of money from wealthy Westerners who pay thousands of dollars for permission to shoot the animals and take home the heads and skins as trophies.

Germany is the EU’s largest importer of African elephant trophies and hunting trophies in general, according to a 2021 report by Humane Society International. Botswana banned the practice in 2014 but lifted restrictions in 2019 after facing pressure from local communities. The country now publishes annual hunting quotas, claiming that hunting is licensed and tightly controlled.

A spokesman for the German Environment Ministry told AFP news agency that Botswana had not expressed any concerns to Germany on the issue. He believes everything should be done to ensure that the import of hunting trophies is legal. The spokesman added that the ministry is continuing discussions with African countries subject to trophy import regulations, including Botswana.

Botswana, along with neighbors Zimbabwe and Namibia, says it should be allowed to sell its ivory reserves to make money from its large numbers of elephants. At the same time, animal activists believe this will contribute to poaching.

A wild elephant in South Africa before inverted Car with tourists during safari.