Animal-loving cricketer’s anti-hunting tweet sparks online debate – do ‘managed safaris’ actually help conservation?
- Former England captain Kevin Pietersen urges his followers to help shut down a safari company
- Pro-hunters say killing for sport, if managed wisely and ethically, helps to protect species
Former England cricketer and animal activist Kevin Pietersen’s recent social media call to shut down a South African safari company has once again brought the debate about organised hunting as a form of conservation to the fore.
Pietersen, who played 104 tests for England scoring 8,181 runs at an average of 47.28, exchanged Twitter barbs with someone using the name Shaun Lewis, who held the view that hunting actually helped conservation.
The 38-year-old South Africa-born Pietersen called on his 3.7 million followers to bring down outfitters Stone Hunting Safaris, which organises hunting packages in Ethiopia, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania and Zambia, targeting a number of animals including lions, rhinoceroses and leopards.
Referring to the owner of the business, Pietersen tweeted: “His email is there for if you want to tell him what we think of him...! He KILLS lions, elephants, rhinos. Let’s get his business SHUT DOWN?!”
To which Lewis responded: “Kev you making kak with these ppl. Hunters contribute to conservation. Firstly engage with these ppl then make up your mind. Or are you going to employ all the farm workers, skinners and trackers?”
Pietersen replied: “Where’s the contribution? Until you show me where it is and the difference it’s making I’ll listen! It’s very easy to just say it contributes. PROVE IT!”
“You have to look at it holistically, the jobs provided,” Lewis then wrote. “The money generated pays for the fences, diesel for vehicles to patrol the area. Blesbuck population was around 2000 in 1900’s. Now over 250k. 93% of them on private land.”