South Africa's Wildlife Academy fights poaching with forensic training
The Wildlife Forensic Academy in South Africa is a school that helps stop poaching. It teaches people how to investigate these crimes.
The school has real stuffed animals, like a rhino named 'Frikkie' who was killed by poachers. Phil Snijman said that the first people at a poaching crime scene are very important. They need to protect the area so important clues are not lost. Snijman is a trainer at the academy.
South Africa is facing a poaching crisis. More than 10,000 rhinos have been killed since 2007 but not many poachers are caught and punished in court.
This makes it hard to get justice for the animals. Even when poachers are taken to court, they often do not get a strong punishment.
Since opening in 2022, the academy has trained over 500 people. Many of the students are from Europe. Their fees help local rangers train for free.
Answer: to help stop poaching
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South China Morning Post
15 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
Vatican beatifies Congo customs worker for resisting corruption
The Vatican on Sunday is beatifying a Congolese customs worker who was killed for resisting a bribe, giving young people in a place with endemic corruption a new model of holiness: someone who refused to allow spoiled rice to be distributed to poor people. The head of the Vatican's saint-making office, Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, is presiding over the beatification ceremony on Sunday at one of the pontifical basilicas in Rome, St. Paul Outside the Walls. The event is drawing Congolese pilgrims and much of Rome's Congolese Catholic community, who will be treated to a special audience on Monday with Pope Leo XIV. Floribèrt Bwana Chui Bin Kositi was kidnapped and killed in 2007 after he refused to allow rancid rice from Rwanda to be transported across the border to the eastern DR Congo city of Goma. As an official with the Congolese government's customs quality control office, the 26-year-old knew the risks of resisting bribes offered to public officials. But he also knew the risks of allowing spoiled food to be distributed to the most desperate. 'On that day, those mafiosi found themselves in front of a young man who, in the name of the Gospel, said 'No.' He opposed,' his friend Aline Manani said. 'And Floribèrt, I think that for me personally, I would say for all young people, is a role model.'
South China Morning Post
08-06-2025
- South China Morning Post
Wagner Group replaced by Russia's Africa Corp in Mali, security sources say
The Russian paramilitary group Wagner has left Mali and its units there have been taken over by the Moscow-run Africa Corps, diplomatic and security sources told Agence France-Presse on Sunday. 'Officially, Wagner is no longer present in Mali. But the Africa Corps is stepping up,' one diplomatic source in the Sahel region said. A Telegram account affiliated with Wagner said: 'Mission accomplished. PMC Wagner is going home.' Mali's ruling junta, which seized power in coups in 2020 and 2021, broke off ties with former colonial power France and pivoted towards Russia for political and military support. Wagner, Russia's best-known mercenary group, was disbanded and restructured after its leader Yevgeny Prigozhin died in a mysterious plane crash in August 2023 following a short-lived rebellion against Moscow. Mali has never officially admitted Wagner's presence, insisting it only worked with Russian instructors.
South China Morning Post
05-06-2025
- South China Morning Post
Oscar Pistorius competes in triathlon 12 years after murdering girlfriend
South African former Paralympic star Oscar Pistorius was spotted competing in a triathlon last weekend in the coastal city of Durban, 12 years after murdering his girlfriend and a year after his release on parole. Advertisement Afrikaans-language news website Netwerk24 on Wednesday reported Pistorius' participation in the Ironman 70.3 competition. Netwerk24 cited an unnamed source as saying that Pistorius had permission from his parole officer to compete. Conrad Dormehl, a lawyer for Pistorius, confirmed to Reuters that Pistorius had participated in the Durban race. Singabakho Nxumalo, spokesperson of South Africa's Department of Correctional Services, said he did not know whether Pistorius had received permission to compete, but would find out and respond to questions sent by Reuters. He said his parole officer would have needed to approve him travelling from where he lives to another district. Pistorius – dubbed 'Blade Runner' for his carbon-fibre prosthetic legs – shot dead 29-year-old model Reeva Steenkamp through a locked bathroom door on Valentine's Day in 2013, in a crime that drew worldwide attention and shocked a nation inured to violence against women. Oscar Pistorius crosses the line to win gold in the men's 400m final at the London 2012 Paralympic Games. Photo: AFP He repeatedly said he mistook Steenkamp for an intruder and launched multiple appeals against his conviction on that basis. Pistorius, now 38, was freed from jail in January 2024 after completing more than half his sentence and is on parole until his sentence expires in 2029.
