Dear Minister George, deliver us from the ‘rhino wars' and lead us to ‘convivial conservation'

Daily Maverick

2 days ago

South Africa's pervasive 'rhino war' rhetoric distracts us from addressing the root causes of poaching. We urgently need alternative conservation philosophies, practices and policies to tackle wildlife crime.
In January 2025, conservationists were honoured to have you, Mr Dion George, Minister of the Environment, Forestry and Fisheries, at a two-week conservation management course in the Greater Kruger area.
Following this, you assured South Africans that ' poachers' reign of terror on South African wildlife is coming to an end ', that the ' plundering of our natural resources ' would not be tolerated, and affirmed a 'renewed zero-tolerance stance on all forms of poaching'.
Commended for your ' bold stance on poaching ', you instructed your legal teams to oppose bail for any poachers caught within national parks to ' send a clear message that poaching is economic sabotage, and those who engage in it will face the full might of the law '.
You praised rangers as South Africa's ' unsung heroes ' who ' unselfishly place their lives at risk to protect our country's vulnerable wildlife '. Early in March 2025, you reminded the public that rangers were 'at the frontline' of the poaching scourge'.
Minister George, we applaud your on-the-ground engagement with conservationists and law enforcement experts. As proud South Africans, we are inspired by a senior public official with an appetite for learning and a desire to act.
In a recent press release, you affirm that poaching is a manifestation of transnational wildlife trafficking that requires a global endeavour to disrupt the criminal networks. We could not agree more.
All the king's horses and all the king's men
However, we are concerned about your reliance on what we call 'rhino rhetoric' — oversimplified narratives and images that frame the scourge of rhino poaching for both conservationists and the public.
Rhino rhetoric dominates our media landscape and collective imagination with scenes of fearless, uniformed rangers, with K9s at their side, jumping in and out of helicopters, wielding semi-automatic weapons and other paramilitary paraphernalia.
For at least the past 15 years, we have been told by SANParks executives, politicians, celebrities and foreign royalty that poaching is nothing short of a moral war against evil poachers, and that with enough passion, tenacity and firepower, the ' true heroes ' would soon be victorious.
As far back as 2008, the Managing Executive of the Kruger National Park, Abe Sibiya, said, ' society cannot stand by and watch helplessly as international criminals declare war on our nation. We all need to defend our heritage with everything we have.'
In 2009, Dr David Mabunda, then SANParks CEO, warned poachers that ' their days are numbered ', that ' we will seek them out, we will find them and they will be dealt with. This is a war that we plan on winning'.
SANParks went as far as assembling churches to 'pray against rhino poaching' where SANParks' Communication Manager at the time, Mr William Mabasa, confirmed, ' we came here to ask God to intervene in this war '.
In 2010, our then Minister of Environmental Affairs called on South Africans to ' stand together in this war on (the scourge) of rhino poaching '. Years passed, but the rhetoric stuck.
In 2018, SANParks' Chief Operating Officer warned that ' by plundering the species in national parks and other protected areas, they (poachers) are selling their soul to the devil '. In 2023, SANParks was still ' battling poaching ' and taking ' the fight to rhino poachers '. In 2025, we hear you, Minister George, toeing the same line.
The military discourse and where it got us
Rhino rhetoric is rooted in timeworn militaristic approaches to protecting biodiversity, often referred to as ' green militarisation'. In South Africa, we have long cast poaching as a one-dimensional security problem that requires a simplistic, singular (and violent) response.
This framing is effective in garnering public outrage and hones our attention on the seductive drama of valiant men (and the occasional woman) battling it out in the African bush. While widespread violent encounters and gunfights do occur, and have saved the lives of many rhinos, there is more to the story than gallant conservationists chasing devilish murderers through the African bush.
For no matter how expertly rangers detect, ' hunt ' and apprehend poachers, this has not nor will it ' stem the tide against environmental crime '.
Militarised approaches to conservation management, despite their rhetorical appeal, have shown limited long-term effectiveness. A 2023 study in the Greater Kruger landscape surveyed diverse rhino protection strategies in 11 conservation areas and found that paramilitary interventions, like ranger deployment and using K9 tracker dogs, were less effective than dehorning rhinos.
The study details how between 2017 and 2021, when a militarised approach was in full swing, more than R1-billion was dedicated to anti-poaching activities — with R660-million of that spent in Kruger Park alone. Yet, the scourge continued.
Since 2013, the year after SANParks appointed a military expert to convert Kruger's rangers into a ' paramilitary force capable of taking the fight to poachers ', the park lost 59% of its rhino population to poaching. Despite state-of-the art detection technology coupled with exceptional rapid-response teams, infiltration by rhino poachers — typically disaffected and exploited young men — remains high.
Governance: the real rhino frontline
Minster George, you know that the 'frontline' of poaching extends far beyond the boundaries of vast protected areas patrolled by rangers and K9s. Let us delve into the more mundane world of social systems, structures and governance.
The act of killing an individual rhino is a result of transnational organised crime enabled by our country's economic inequality, historical injustices, tenuous relationships between local people and protected areas, the hollowing out of criminal investigations capacity, and broader governance challenges. Addressing these underlying factors, though not as vivid as scrambling helicopters and releasing hounds, is crucial to finding long-term solutions.
Yes minister, our protected areas need you to visit more often — accompanied by your counterparts from land reform, agriculture, education, cooperative governance, finance, health, police, social development, trade, water and sanitation, women and youth.
Is there political will to address the core causes of our environmental challenges? Our ministers — you and your colleagues — do, after all, have the mandate, power and resources to transform our country's governance shortfalls. These are the very problems that enable crime syndicates to gain control over poaching grounds and trafficking routes.
To safeguard South Africa's natural resources — whether rhinos or abalone or succulent plants — a paradigm shift in focus is required, from incidents (a bludgeoned rhino lies dead in Kruger Park) towards systems (corrupt officials steal millions intended for school infrastructure for communities bordering the park).
Minister George, are you prepared to also oppose bail for the (yet unprosecuted) thousands of corrupt officials who have plundered our country's financial resources, contributing directly to our governance woes, and indirectly to the poaching scourge?
Will you consider urging your police minister colleague to target high-level poaching bosses, wildlife traffickers and the corrupt facilitators in airports, courts and police stations who empower them?
If the (unfortunate) war metaphor must be wielded, are unethical government officials not our most insidious economic saboteurs, requiring nothing other than a bold stance and zero tolerance?
Innovations in tackling organised wildlife crime
Your ministry and department is already leading change: supporting long-term safety and security for wildlife and local people under initiatives such as the Integrated Wildlife Zones programme, rooted in the new National Integrated Strategy for Combating Wildlife Trafficking.
We need this increased focus on wildlife trafficking as a transnational organised crime, requiring multidisciplinary, cross-border solutions to dismantle illicit value chains. Your team's recently formed Environmental Enforcement Fusion Centre draws on evidence from the SADC region that specialist investigations halt wildlife crime, with a broader and more sustainable impact than only ranger-led anti-poaching work. Well-trained, suitably equipped, and armed rangers have a crucial role to play, but only within a holistic, systems approach.
Innovative, cross-sectoral initiatives are already under way and deserve more publicity and financial backing.
For example, a prominent conservation NGO in the Greater Kruger historically adopted a narrow focus on military responses to poaching. However, through visionary leadership and concepts such as the Integrated Wildlife Zones, private nature reserves, local communities, civil society and government now collaborate to transform the Greater Kruger landscape into a ' safer place for people and for rhinos '.
The unintended effects of valorising rangers
Minister George, your public utterances consistently portray rangers as brave, dedicated individuals fighting a noble cause. For many rangers, this rings true, but again, there is more to the story.
A recent study chronicles the hidden costs of framing conservation efforts, specifically the fight against poaching, as a 'war'. While it might seem intuitive to idealise rangers as 'soldiers' on the front lines, endowing them with a heroic mantle, this approach can unexpectedly backfire in ways that undermine the very cause it intends to champion.
The constant public pressure on protected area managers and rangers to produce a quick and decisive 'victory', the sheer relentlessness of their struggle, and the constant exposure to fatigue, violence and trauma, has bred disillusionment and dark cynicism.
As a result, frontline conservationists experience a profound loss of perspective that narrows their focus to mere 'survival mode'. The 'war' mentality has led to wide-scale burnout and a fixation on enforcing the law. Protected area managers lose sight of broader conservation goals and the possibility of alternative solutions.
Crucially, casting rangers as heroes and poachers as villains is a binary and limiting framing that distracts us from tackling the complex social, economic and political drivers of poaching.
Simon Sinek's Infinite Game approach offers a helpful alternative that can motivate rangers by shifting their perspective from a finite 'war' to a more fulfilling and sustainable practice. This involves reframing their purpose and meaning by focusing on a just cause that goes beyond solely defeating poachers.
Additionally, promoting resilience helps rangers adapt to changing circumstances and view setbacks not as lost battles, but as opportunities for learning.
Towards conviviality
Convivial conservation is a global movement aimed at transforming conservation practices and policies. Drawing on the concept of 'conviviality', it emphasises inclusivity, reciprocity and fairness.
It champions a move away from exclusionary and coercive approaches towards more collaborative strategies co-developed between diverse actors and sectors. Minister, please consider how such an approach could help us rethink the 'rhino war', so we can:
Tell better, more nuanced stories: we need to recognise and communicate the complexities surrounding wildlife crime if we are going to collectively imagine a more sophisticated response to it.
Direct resources not just at law enforcement but also towards initiatives that address poaching's root causes: no animal or asset in any reserve will ever be safe if they are surrounded by socioeconomic deprivation, inequality, corruption, and organised criminal networks.
Bolster good governance on 'this' and 'that' side of the fence: local communities, municipalities, businesses, traditional authorities, and both park and law enforcement agencies need to view each other as neighbours in a shared landscape, with shared challenges and interests. The Integrated Wildlife Zones initiative is a positive step in that direction.
Promote a more supportive and equitable work environment for rangers: we need realistic societal expectations about what rangers can achieve in the face of transnational criminal networks. In addition, rangers need better pay, decent housing, sufficient training and equipment, and culturally appropriate psychosocial support.
Minister George, declaring more wars will not save our threatened biodiversity. Valorising field rangers and having them bear the brunt of South Africa's governance failures — and leaving them to endure the emotional and physical scars — is not sufficient.
Let us expand our strategies beyond combative reactions to swiftly and fairly tackle organised crime and governance challenges for the benefit of wildlife, their guardians, and the millions of people living on the fringes of protected areas. DM
Dr Lindie Botha is a social scientist working to mitigate the negative impacts of wildlife crime on biodiversity and people. Alastair Nelson leads Conservation Synergies, a non-profit that supports governments and their partners to use approaches from other fields to solve complex problems and improve conservation impact. Eldred de Klerk is a comparative policing and social conflict specialist who focuses on conflict resolution, violence prevention, rule of law and security sector reform.