Elephants for Mugabes Korean allies

The shocking revelation was made last week by the Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force which Mugabe has issued a presidential decree

ordering the Zimbabwe National Parks and Wildlife Authority (ZNPWA) to capture two of every species of animal in the Hwange National Park and

send them to a zoo in North Korea.

We were recently informed that in accordance with a Presidential decree, two of every species of animal in Hwange National Park are to

be captured and sent to a zoo in North Korea, taskforce head Johnny Rodrigues said last week. He said some of the captured animals include two 18-month-old elephant calves, giraffes and zebras.

It is believed that this is a “gift” from Mugabe to North Korean leader Kim Jong-il. North Korea, also known as the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a long-time ally of Mugabe and trained Zimbabwes notorious Fifth Brigade that was responsible for the massacre of at least

20 000 people in the 1980s.

Last month Zimbabwe announced that the North Korean football team was bound for a training camp in the country ahead of the World Cup in

neighbouring South Africa. Opposition groups have pledged to demonstrate against their presence.

The ZNPWA and Wildlife Management Minister Francis Nhema could not be reached for comment last week. But Rodrigues said ZNPWA officials opposed to the captures had leaked details to conservationists.

They reported that some areas of the 8 900 square kilometre park, the biggest in Zimbabwe, were being closed to tourists and photographic

safari groups. Rodrigues said the operation involves an intricate web of capture and spotting teams which have been working round the clock to ensure Mugabes order is implemented.

Groups of armed men have been seen standing around key waterholes at Hwange National Park waiting for the game to appear, after which they

radio the information back to the capture teams. ZNPWA vehicles have also been seen towing cages around the park, according to Rodrigues.

A national parks informant told the taskforce that the animals are being kept in quarantine in holding pens at Umtshibi camp in Hwange

National Park and were due to leave for North Korea soon.

He said conservation groups were trying to find out from civil aviation authorities when the airlift would begin, and were lobbying for support from international animal welfare groups to stop it. He said zoo conditions in North Korea, which is isolated by most world nations, do not meet international standards.

The conservationists fear that most of the animals would not survive the relocation. Two rhinos, a male called Zimbo and a female called Zimba, given to Kim by Mugabe in the 1980s, died only a few months after their relocation.

“This new exercise has to be stopped, Rodrigues said. Conservation efforts in Zimbabwe have suffered major setbacks in recent years as the country’s economy went into meltdown. Reports say rhino poaching, driven by Chinese black market demand for the animals’ horns, has soared.