| Startseite | | Kontakt | | Impressum |
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Genozid in Zimbabwe Unter bemerkenswertem Einsatz des Tierschutzvereins von Zimbabwe ZNSPCA ( • This is the last update from the ZNSPCA / ZIMBABWE NATIONAL SOCIETY FOR THE PREVENTION OF CRUELTY TO ANIMALS ZNPSCA UPDATE: 30 AUGUST 2006 This has been a truly challenging year for the Society but our valiant band remain undaunted and continue the brave fight to protect the animals of Zimbabwe. ZNSPCA DONKEY REPORT Team Nissan (teams are named by the trucks we drive) went on a trip to Hwange / Victoria Falls / Binga. 252 donkeys were treated - the majority being in the Lupane area along with many dogs and a few cattle. All donkeys had serious wounds due to poor harnesses and carts being overloaded with firewood, thatching grass and water. All donkey owners were issued with wound oil and our Inspectors released most of the donkeys after treatment. The owners were very receptive to our team and eager to learn about the correct way to care for their donkeys. Team Nissan again travelled to Hwange / Vic Falls and treated another 177 donkeys. Some donkey owners recognised the truck and waved the team down before the brake lights were showing! (A ZNSPCA truck never drives past a donkey cart!) One pair of operators jumped off their cart and hid in the bush when they spotted the truck as they knew there was trouble afoot – they had been whipping their animals. In this area there were no yokes found being used, but the harnesses were again of bad quality - so our harness project must be speeded up to enable us to make a bigger improvement in this area. Team Nissan then went off to Kezi / Mupisa and Tuli Makwe on a two day trip in which time they treated 129 donkeys, 20 cattle, 17 dogs, 9 pigs, 2 goats and one lonely sheep. The public want the team back asap as they were very keen to learn and wanted to bring all their other donkeys, dogs, etc. from their houses to a meeting point. The team are organising this meeting. Team Isuzu did a return trip to Masvingo, Chiredzi and diverted down to Chivi to euthanaise a donkey infested with cancer. On this trip the team treated 279 donkeys. Of this figure, 119 donkeys were yoked and team Isuzu were kept warm every night by the big bonfire they had burning all the confiscated yokes! Temperatures were so low that there was ice on the tents every morning. The public in this area were not very receptive to the team as they were left stranded with their donkeys happily grazing next to them. Two carts were left yoked as they were carrying sick people and the Isuzu was so packed that they did not have the room to ferry the passengers to the nearest clinic. On returning to Bulawayo, team Isuzu struggled to find a donkey cart on the route, except for one happy man that waved them down and proudly showed off the new harnesses he had made. Because of the lack of donkeys on the road, team Isuzu decided to call it a Mashava donkey holiday!!! On the trip the team realised that trainee Insp Watson was an accident waiting to happen. By this time, they were ill equipped for the work they were doing as their bolt cutters broke on the way down and the pliers went missing. Undaunted, they used rocks, hands, and wire to break all the chains. Trainee Watson managed to always get her feet and hands stuck in the wire and the other two team members found this quite amusing as they managed to remain uninjured. The crunch came when two members were undoing a yoke and trainee Watson was holding the disselboom between her legs. Once the two team members let go of their sides of the yoke, Watson was raised up in the air by the load of the cart. To her dilemma, she found that the other team members were laughing so hard they could not immediately help her down. She was ‘rescued’ and with only her dignity slightly dented, saw the funny side of things and also enjoyed a laugh. It is these little incidents that help to release some of the daily stresses whilst on the road. Team Isuzu then carried out a local trip (involving abattoirs) to Esigodini and back through Matopos. They treated 77 donkeys on that trip (all harnessed). People in the area were keen to hold a workshop on the care of their animals, so this will be arranged in the near future. With all these figures, it puts the total number of donkeys treated since the beginning of May at 914. For two months work we are proud of that figure as it adds up to about 15 donkeys a day (including weekends). We hope to keep up this work, especially in the areas where the public are requesting workshops. We still have many areas that we have not yet visited but know that we will get there in time, as since the start of this year, many roads have been travelled for the first time and we intend to carry on with this trend. Dies ist der aktuellste Bericht, den wir vom Zimbabwe SPCA erhalten haben. Alle vorigen Berichte inklusive diesem letzten können Sie auch hier als PDF downloaden:
ZNSPCA INSPECTORATE: OCTOBER 2004 UPDATE The small ZNSPCA crew continue to respond to the relentless reports. Their work on farms, of necessity, has increased and this has probably been the team's busiest period yet. Meryl has submitted the following report on recent events: 1. Roy Bennett's invaded farm, Charleswood Estate, continued to occupy much of our time during June and July. ZNSPCA were tipped off that the Government owned Agricultural and Rural Development Authority (ARDA) was going to commence moving Roy's cattle from Chartleswood to their Charter Estate in the Chikoma area. We were appalled as this would entail a journey of some 400 kilometres lasting approximately 12 hours and we knew that many of these cattle were too weak to survive the journey. We also heard that several of the experienced cattle transporters had refused the job because of the very steep gradients between Chimanimani and Mutare. The whole exercise was tantamount to stock-theft, but ZNSPCA were unable to stop it. Simon and I drove down to Chimanimani to monitor the first load - we were not impressed with the two hired trucks and the loading of the cattle by ARDA staff was very rough. The presence of ZNSPCA was vital and we were able to stop several weaners being loaded that would never have survived the trip. We followed the first two truckloads out of Charleswood and were promptly stopped at a Police roadblock just outside the village of Chimanimani. Normally ZNSPCA vehicles are always waved through. This time they ordered Simon and I out of the truck and they just about stripped the vehicle. Then began the long trip to Charter Estate. The two trucks were in poor mechanical shape and several times on the steep inclines, the drivers had great difficulty changing from second to first gear. At Clouds End we left them and droved down to Chipinge to collect an abandoned security dog. At 9.30 pm the ARDA vet phoned me to ask me if I knew where the Charleswood cattle were. They finally arrived at 10 am the next day, having had mechanical breakdowns and 2 punctures. We monitored the off-loading of the cattle, several were 'down' and all were exhausted. It was as if they had not been expected - there was no access to food in the kraal they were put into and ZNSPCA had to start mobilising ARDA staff to provide hay. We returned to Charter Estate the following day to find two 'downed' cows still lying in the hot sun - no water and only a small handful of crushed maize had been placed near them. ZNSPCA cut green grass for them, collected hay and brought them buckets of water. They were extremely hungry and thirsty, but despite our efforts they both died the following day. Over the next few weeks, approximately 600 head of Bennett's cattle were moved by road to ARDA's Charter Estate. ZNSPCA monitored the loading and off-loading when we could, but several more did not survive. We watched whilst ARDA workers superimposed their brand over Bennett's brand. On one of our many trips to Charleswood we had Roy's old mare 'Cutex' euthanaised - she was loosing condition rapidly, had a very bad eye and was not being given the essential medication which we had provided for her. 2. A family was violently evicted from Pendennis Farm in Karoi, this time by an Officer from the Prison Services. Thugs arrived at 4pm and gave the family until daybreak to get off the farm. In the early hours of the morning as they were leaving they went to put the 2 family dogs in the car but 'Sheba' an elderly Ridgeback was extremely stressed and bit the Son as he tried to lift her into the car. Further attempts to catch her failed and the distraught family had to leave without their beloved dog. ZNSPCA were contacted and several days later we drove the 193 km to Karoi. Armed Prison Officers at the farm gate told us that we couldn't go in without a "pass" from Harare. We drove down the road, picked up a female Prison Officer, informed the guards that she was our "pass" and drove in. We soon found Sheba wandering round the garden looking very lost and the house was empty and deserted. However, as soon as she saw us she disappeared into the flowerbeds. This was not going to be easy, but we had brought some steak and tranquillisers with us. She ate the drugged meat hungrily but two and a half hours later she was still running away from us. Finally she walked unsteadily into the garage and we were able to catch her. It was after dark by the time we delivered Sheba to her anxious owners who had rented a house in Harare. There was an emotional re-union that made it all worthwhile. We later heard that Sheba slept for the next 48 hours! 3. When driving through Karoi recently, we found a German Shepherd and a Labrador, both in excellent condition, running around in a very anxious state in the middle of the main Karoi/Kariba road. We managed to catch them and get them into the back of the ZNSPCA truck. We later discovered that their owner's farm had been invaded and they were away. Neighbours rallied round and moved all their possessions to another farm, putting the two dogs temporarily in the garden of the local churchyard. Later a resident, unaware that the dogs were there, left the gate open. The dogs were later re-united with their owners. 4. In mid-August we received a frantic phone call from another farmer, again in the Karoi area. He was the owner of 2 tame Lions 'Beau' and 'Storm. Officials from National Parks had arrived at the farm together with the Police, wanting to arrest him because he did not have a Permit for the Lions and because he had "dangerous animals" on the farm. They had obviously been sent by war veterans in the area who wanted the farmer to leave. He was taken away by the Police and spent two nights in jail for this "offence". In the meantime, we applied to the Parks Department for an urgent Permit. The farmer was released on the Monday but he and his Wife felt it was not safe to go back to the farm. He had left two workers (whom the Lions loved!) to look after them. A few days later, a neighbour phoned to say that the Police and Parks were back again, this time to "confiscate" the Lions. I spoke to one of the officials and informed him that the Permit was being processed, that the female was pregnant and could possibly abort from the stress of being moved. Parks later left the farm, without the Lions. The issue of the Lions' Permit was then held up by a major investigation into corruption taking place at National Parks. In an official's words "all permits will in future go under the microscope". Eventually, it was issued, but by this time the farmer had taken the matter of his arrest to Court where it was ruled that his detention had been unlawful. The harassment continued and he and his Wife decided to leave the farm for good. He requested the ZNSPCA's help with relocating the Lions to another farm in the Karoi area. In the meantime, Storm had given birth to two cubs, but sadly the stress of not having 'Chalkie' with her had taken its toll and she rejected the cubs - one subsequently died, but the other is being hand-reared and is doing well. The Lions were successfully darted by a game-capture unit and relocated to a spacious new boma on the other side of Karoi. It was a huge wrench for Chalkie to say good-bye to his beloved Lions for the last time - he and Sandy left for the UK a few days later. 5. Several months ago farmers in the Odzi area had been violently evicted and left behind many of their possessions, including horses. The owners were concerned about their welfare but it was not safe for them to visit the farm. The ZNSPCA gained permission from the Police Officer-in-Charge to check on the horses. We found war veterans in the garden who had been sent to "guard" the property. They helped us find the horses which were in a pretty bad way - a chestnut pony mare had a wire snare round both hind legs, dragging half a tree behind her, several of the Palominos (these belonged to the farmer who had accidentally shot and killed a war veteran when he was attacked) had bad ear infections caused by ticks, with pus pouring down their cheeks. A young gelding had very bad mange and all the horses were covered in ticks, especially large Bont ticks. It took some time to catch the mare with the snare, but we were able to cut the wire and treat the wounds. One or two of the Palominos were approachable and we were able to treat them, but the young gelding was very nervous, as were the other 5 Palominos. ZNSPCA is grateful to Mark Evans who accompanied us to Mapor Farm and who used all his Monty Roberts cunning to catch the horses. I asked the resident war vets if we could uplift the 7 horses and pet donkey. We were referred to the war vets in Mutare and the Chairman later phoned to give ZNSPCA the necessary authority. Two weeks later, we returned to Mapor Farm with a large lorry borrowed from a local farmer, horse cubes, hay and of course Mark Evans accompanied by wife, Claire. We had a feeling the settlers had been chasing the horses as they were even more elusive. Sadly, in spite of our search, there was no sign of the pet donkey 'Tackies', presumably stolen for ploughing. It took us 6 ½ hours to catch and load them with the little chestnut gelding being the easiest of the lot. Without Mark and Claire, Simon, Mathias and I would still be trying to catch them. Because they were so stressed we decided to move them a short distance to a 'safe' farm on the outskirts of Mutare. Mark offered to leave one of his grooms with the horses for a week whilst he got to know their temperaments and suitability for re-homing. The two owners had given ZNSPCA instructions "to do what you have to do" as they were now living in suburban Mutare unable to have the horses back. We returned a week later. Sadly in this job decisions have to be made and we euthanaised five of the seven, returning to Harare with a Palomino gelding and the chestnut pony. A vet was called in to attend to both of them and in Mark and Claire's care they are looking much better already. 'Alaska' and 'Denver' will be re-homed as soon as the vet has given them the all clear. 6. Brunton Farm, Bromley, was mentioned in our last report (owner's Wife badly beaten and house ransacked). ZNSPCA were monitoring the feeding of the horses, but after a few days workers were chased away by a local war vet (female) who wants the farm. Horses had to be moved and two were euthanaised as unsuitable for re-homing. Three cats were left behind and for over 6 weeks ZNSPCA has been checking the cat traps every day. The cats are very nervous because the house is not empty and settlers are camped in the garden. Tragically a settler with a grievance against the owners took 2 of the cats out of the traps before we got there and their bodies were found floating in a nearby well. We called the Police and had him arrested. He is due to appear in Court soon. As for 'Silver', we are determined to catch her and now have the resident settlers on our side. We have put the trap inside the house and have broken a window in the lounge, which she is now using to get in at night. 7. Distressed Nyanga residents asked ZNSPCA to check on 6 horses that belonged to Brondesbury Park Hotel that, in spite of the hotel being closed, horses are still there. Hotel has been closed for two years due to current decline in tourism, but a skeleton staff remains including two grooms. Horses were not in bad condition, there is plenty of grazing and the grooms are doing the best they can under difficult circumstances. However, ZNSPCA euthanaised one young horse that was very ill - neck and throat covered in abscesses - had apparently been like that for some time. 8. August Hill Farm, Goromonzi, elderly owner violently evicted for the second time. His farm was taken over several months ago by a member of the Central Intelligence Organisation who felled many fir trees and sold the wood, but did not move in. Owner informed the local Police that the farm continued to be unoccupied, so the Police told him to return. He had been living there for several weeks when he was violently evicted again. Extremely traumatised, he left for this original home in Scotland. ZNSPCA was called in to rescue the owner's pet cat for the second time. After two weeks we caught his cat but found her very dehydrated and stressed, however after a week at the vets she had made an excellent recovery and we are hoping to re-home her. 9. The Sable on Tengwe Estate were mentioned in the previous report - ZNSPCA had high hopes that after many weeks of negotiating with all stake-holders, with the Movement Permit issued by the Parks Dept and a Game Capture Unit organised, that we would at last be able to secure the release of the Sable. However, it was not to be. We arrived at the gate of the farm early in the morning. The large trucks to move the Sable belonging to the Game Capture Team were already in place, but so was a large mob of settlers, war vets, ex-workers and their rent-a-crowd. Two armed guards from National Parks arrived to oversee the re-location but to no avail. The crowds were demanding a "percentage" in exchange for allowing the removal of the farmer's Sable - this could run into millions and was pure extortion. All ZNSPCA could do was once again express our concern over the welfare of the Sable as they were being hunted and poached every weekend by Government Officials from Harare. No one would listen to reason and finally a delegation, including war vets, National Parks and the Game Capture Unit departed for the offices of the Urungwe District Council. Simon and I waited outside the gate all day, nearby a beer hall provided loud music and alcohol to keep up the spirits of the waiting crowds. At 5.30 pm, it was starting to get dark and the crowd were getting restless and talking about stoning the ZNSPCA truck - we left, having waited 9 ½ hours. Returning to the farm the following morning, it was to learn that the meeting had not reached any agreement and the crowds were continuing to refuse the trucks entry. We headed back to Harare. Since then a fire has swept through Tengwe Estate and there is virtually no grazing for the Sable. I spoke to the main war veteran at the farm this week who informed me that he was "now bored with the issue of the Sable and wants to get on with farming" - but he will still not allow them to be moved. ZNSPCA will continue to fight for their re-location to a safe place. 10. Lussoff Farm in Featherstone - The Police phoned to report that sheep were dying in large numbers on this farm where the owner had been evicted, but had left the sheep on the farm in the hopes that he would be able to return. ZNSPCA was provided with a Police escort and found the situation critical. There was no grazing and several lambs had died, as their mothers had no milk. We were shown the 'graves' of many adult sheep. The owner was advised and immediately sent supplementary feed and moved all the sheep to an unlisted farm this week. 11. For two and a half years ZNSPCA has been fighting for the release of 90 Sable that have been incarcerated in bomas at Somerby Farm, Norton at the Quarantine Station there. Due to a long complicated dispute over ownership, involving a conservancy and politicians, the Sable have been living a miserable existence in small bomas lined with black shade cloth. The Sables' deteriorating health has resulted in most youngsters that were born not surviving or else the mothers aborting. Adults' hooves have grown too long as they have not worn down naturally. Twice all the Sable have had to be tranquillised in order have their hooves trimmed - on the first occasion this was funded by ZNSPCA. As the wrangles continued in Court and the whole issue became a political hot potato, the Sable began to die because they were not being fed properly. ZNSPCA has now "seized" the sable in terms of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act - we obtained a Court Order from a Provincial Magistrate in Harare and this in effect puts them in our care, until they are strong enough to be re-located. Funding has been set up for their feeding and now that, after many months, they are receiving the correct food - their recovery has been remarkable. One female has died in the last week, but she had recently aborted and for her, sadly help came too late. Ironically the day after ZNSPCA obtained the Court Order, the Supreme Court ruled that the Sable did belong to the original owner (i.e. the farmer and his associates). There are now only 54 sable left from the original 90, but in a few weeks time, they will have their hooves trimmed again and will be set free on a conservancy. ZNSPCA's long fight for their release has all been worth it. We have held meetings with:
ZNSPCA continues with its work in the Chinyika and Rusike communal areas with Trainee Inspector Mathias visiting the villagers there as often as possible. We are currently trying to save a few cows belonging to a widow in the Chinyika area. The grazing is non-existent but we have been taking hay and soya bean stalks to her and so far the desperately thin cows are holding their own. Many of the local people come to our office at Goronmonzi seeking help for their animals - puppies, day-old chicks, donkeys, goats, etc. One old man walked a very long distance to ask us for help for his donkey which had been attacked by a pack of dogs belonging to settlers. It was in a bad state, but we have patched him up and filled him with a long-acting antibiotic. He has found himself a little patch of settlers' wheat to munch on and we do hope he makes it. In addition to the farm issues which take up so much of our time, we have also dealt with the transportation of livestock, security dogs, chicken vendors, baboon control on the timber estates, etc. COURT CASES I have also appeared in Goromonzi Court twice in the Mtetwa case - a woman who was keeping 12 large dogs in small cages. She is very argumentative in Court - case remanded to 30 September. The trial date for our dog fighting case is 17 November. The accused has already appeared in Court and was remanded IN CUSTODY pending Z$200,000 bail. The shocked expression on the accused's face was a picture. His mother paid the bail 2 days later. We have many other cases awaiting trial dates, and several dockets being drawn up before being passed on to the relevant Police Stations. Best regards and appreciation, Bernice • 12th October 2002: "This is the email which I received from Margy today. John and Margy Sankey live in Zimbabwe and have been breeding Rhodesian Ridgebacks for about 40 years. Their kennel name is Umvutcha. They live on Thanadani Farm about 40 km outside of Bulowayo in Matabeleland with their 15 ridgebacks. They have been through difficult period these last 2 years but this weekend they were forced off their land. They have farmed this land for 40 years, it's all they have. ‘Hi folk, having spent the whole of last week moving most of our stuff from the house on the hill and Adie's house as well we had 15 mins yesterday to gap it to avoid getting arrested. We were tipped off that the Police were on their way to arrest us so we only had time to put the computer and the dogs into the car before we left with Daryl following in Frazer's pickup. On the way into town the land cruiser that John was driving with the computer and dogs in it which had just had its radiator fixed up, went out of action. The engine seized as the one hose fell off, and unlike the normal car John did not smell any burning or anything until the engine konked out and he had no more power. I had to tow him to town using the car Dee was driving. We had to leave the lorry on the farm but I managed to get it up to the hill after I got the message the cops were on their way. Daryl has spent all week helping us move the stuff on the hill but we still have three hundred tons of farm machinery and farm property to get out down on the bottom land. The thugs have completely taken over the two plots across the road and their tractors are ploughing there daily. On those plots we have fifteen million dollars worth of produce which is nearly ready to harvest at the end of this month. What is happening is absolutely criminal. Farmers who know how to farm are not being allowed to and the news on Zim on SABC is really conspicuous by its absence. Our crime for being arrested is that we are white and we are still farming. All the farmers now are out of Nyamandhlovu. Yesterday, 11th October 2002, the High Court Ruling on the cases taken to Court by the farmers was that all the farmers that had been arrested were allowed back on their farms. Unfortunately on the ground it does not work that way. The ZRP are not on our side and will arrest them again. Now with the High Court ruling yesterday these farmers will be slapped with a new section 8 which gives them 7 days to get off. Our neighbour is having bad hassles. The thug who wants his place put his own padlocks on the farmhouse gates so their staff have to use a stepladder to climb over to feed their dogs which they were unable to get off. So now - we wait and see what happens next week. Margy’ " |
Informationen über die Arbeit des SPCA in Zimbabwe
Some private game parks are offering the 'walk with the lions' experience or being able to hand feed lion cubs. To fuel this activity, lions need to be hand reared but when the lions reach 18 months, current regulations prohibit the use of lions over this age for close encounters. The big question is where do all these adult lions that do not know how to hunt and that have bonded with humans end up? 
Despite the economic decline and the many logistical challenges, we wholeheartedly commend all the participants of the grueling Blue Cross 2006. The sponsorship raised from this event will help to ensure that our SPCA centres will stay open and our Inspectors on the road for another year. We thank all the organisers and the support crews who worked so hard to ensure the success of the event and that all the participants came home safely, and of course all the sponsors who still found it in their hearts in these difficult times to support those who have no voice.
ZNSPCA-Bericht August '06
