Durban - Information leaks and shoddy protection of rhinos by Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife staff were mainly to blame for this year’s alarming increase in poaching inside provincial parks, it emerged in an internal report released by Ezemvelo on Thursday.
Staff working in rhino protection areas could be subjected to continuous criminal and background checks, which may include the use of lie detector tests if necessary. They will also sign a declaration of secrecy.
The report said that more than 40 rhino deaths in Ezemvelo parks since January could be attributed to information being “leaked” by staff which allowed poachers to operate with impunity.
“Timeous and accurate information surrounding the deployment and tactics of law enforcement staff leaked out of the park enables the suspects to identify gaps, such as the timing of law enforcement coverage... they exploit these to penetrate the reserve, poach the rhinos, remove the horns and escape without being detected,” the report said.
The chief executive officer of Ezemvelo, Bandile Mkhize, who was in the Hluhluwe Game Reserve on Thursday to launch a community rhino protection programme, said the internal report had established involvement in poaching syndicates and negligence by some staff in carrying out their duties according to Ezemvelo’s Rhino Security Intervention Plan.
He said the use of a Bantam light aircraft during recent poaching incidents was also confirmed.
Mkhize said the deaths of nine rhinos in provincial parks last month called for “unprecedented” measures to curb any further killing.
The report recommends criminal record checks for all staff and the possible use of polygraph testing.
Radio and communication facilities should be improved with the introduction of a separate channel for security personnel.
Conservation managers and section rangers will now be required to participate in regular patrols and the intensity of clandestine, extended patrols will be upped.
Numbers of community members working on the alien invasive plant programmes in the parks will be scaled down and they will be transferred out of the parks.
Mkhize said using specialised units of the SANDF, as in the Kruger National Park, was being discussed.
He said the installation of surveillance cameras on the Corridor Road was also on the cards.
The road was used by poachers in the most recent incident.
“This equipment must be implemented to reduce the options available to poachers entering and leaving undetected via the Corridor Road.”
Lapses within the rhino protection ranks will not be tolerated, according to Mkhize, who promised that a second Rhino Security Assessment would be carried out at the end of this month.
The Mercury