On Wednesday, US President Donald Trump announced that he will abolish the ban on importing elephant trophies from Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The ban was introduced by Barack Obama in 2014 to protect wildlife in the area.
Animal rights organizations are now raging over the decision.
In 2014, Barack Obama imposed a ban on importing elephant trophies from Zambia and Zimbabwe to the United States. The then government considered that the imports threaten various animal species in the area.
But Trump’s government thinks differently. Instead, they consider that exports of these trophies benefit these countries economically. They have therefore removed the ban.
Revenue for conservation
“Legal, well-regulated sport hunting as part of a sound management program can benefit the conservation of certain species by providing incentives to local communities to conserve the species and by putting much-needed revenue back into conservation,” the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said in a statement.
But the decision has outraged many animal lovers, who say that the change will lead to more poaching. Elephants are hunted for their tusks, and have been a threatened species since 1978, writes Fox news.
Will lead to more poaching
“Reprehensible behaviour by the Trump Admin. 100 elephants a day are already killed. This will lead to more poaching,” The Elephant Project wrote on Twitter.
Reprehensible behaviour by the Trump Admin. 100 elephants a day are already killed. This will lead to more poaching. https://t.co/rld67eM018
— The Elephant Project (@theelephantproj) November 16, 2017
The Trump family are known to be avid hunters themselves. Trump’s sons have previously received backlash over their love of hunting.
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