A Flawed War: Rethinking ‘Green Militarisation’ in the Kruger National Park

ABSTRACT

Drawing on both a historical analysis of wildlife conservation in South Africa and the experience of other countries in Africa in countering wildlife poaching, some scholars have labelled the process of responding to rhino poaching in the Kruger National Park as ‘green militarisation’. The term is broadly employed to denote the use of military-style techniques and approaches, as well as the military itself, in countering poaching. Several proponents of this approach have concluded that rhino trafficking has become increasingly defined in a ‘national security’ frame, with the result being that community orientated and other related responses are downplayed or not adopted. While there is evidence of the increased militarisation of the response in the Kruger National Park, we argue that the term ‘green militarisation’ runs the risk of simplifying what is in reality a complex and more contested process than is being given credit for. For ‘green militarisation’ to be retained as a successful analytical tool, at least in the context of the Kruger National Park, it requires drawing on a wider range of sources and a better understanding of processes of political and institutional change outside of the immediate conservation discussion.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. This paragraph is our interpretation of the literature, but elements of the argument are found in a number of recent articles that we cite in this study. The most extreme case is Humphreys and Smith (2014).

2. Interview, former advisor to Minister of Safety and Security, Cape Town, 9 December 2015.

3. These are the most recent figures available from the IUCN/SSC African Rhino Specialist Group, updated on 13 October 2013. New figures are to be published in December 2015. Africa's other rhino range states account for only 1491 white rhino and 3013 black rhino.

4. Interview, Pretoria, 2 November 2011.

5. Kruger National Park Management Plan, December 2008.

6. SANParks annual reports 2005/2006 and 2014/2015.

7. In contrast, in what is perhaps a profound irony, the symbols of African liberation often drew on those of industrialisation.

8. Interview, Peter Gastrow, Cape Town, 5 December 2015.

9. ‘Why Do White People Despise Blacks?’, Sunday Times, January 10, 2016, Johannesburg.

10. Interview, Pretoria, 2 November 2010.

11. ‘South African National Parks Media Release: SANParks Enlists Retired Army General to Command Anti Poaching’, December 12, 2012. Accessed November 5, 2015. http://www.sanparks.org/about/news/?id=55388.

12. Interview, Cape Town, 12 September 2015.

13. Department of Environmental Affairs and SANParks media briefing, Pretoria, 30 August 2015.

14. Interviews, rangers in the Kruger National Park, July 2015.

15. http://city-press.news24.com/News/R440-spent-but-rhinos-still-slaughtered-20150630. Accessed December 10, 2015.

16. http://www.gov.za/sites/www.gov.za/files/dfencereview_2014.pdf.

17. ‘Soldate Kyk Sokker Erder as Stropers Soek – Youtube’. Accessed November 15, 2015. https://www.youtube.com/watch?y=qWBIjtdx4aQ.

18. Quoted in Reuters, ‘Nearly 500 Mozambican Poachers Killed in South Africa's Kruger Since 2010: Chissano,’ September 22, 2015. Accessed September 23, 2015. http//af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFKCN0RM0IL20150922.

19. E-mail communication, September 24, 2014.

20. Interview, September 15, 2015.

21. Telephonic interview, December 10, 2015.

22. Interview, Skukuza, October 5, 2015.

23. Interview, Pretoria, November 2, 2015.

24. Interview, Skukuza, October 5, 2015.

25. Presentation made by a specialised wildlife crimes prosecutor to the meeting on ‘Wildlife in Crisis’, University of Cape Town, May 25, 2015.

26. Briefing to Parliament, Cape Town, June 2015.

27. Interviews, former crime intelligence officers, Pretoria, September 15, 2015.

28. This has been apparent, for example, in relation to the recent prosecution of the ‘underworld figure’ Radovan Krejcir.

29. Interview, Skukuza, October 5, 2015.

30. The Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) is tasked with conducted investigations in such cases. We acknowledge that the system is weak and IPID under-resourced, but it at least provides a system where cases can be investigated. Experiences of police brutality also suggest that a major disincentive to illegal police actions is a combination of surveillance and follow-up.

Additional information

Funding

This work is based on research supported by the South African Research Chairs Initiative of the Department of Science and Technology and the National Research Foundation (NRF) of South Africa as well as the Global Initiative against Transnational Organised Crime (GITOC). Any opinion, finding and conclusion or recommendation expressed in this material is that of the authors, and the NRF and GITOC does not accept any liability in this regard.