Angolan police crack down on environmental crimes
As first appeared on Radio Ecclesia in Angola, here. Broadcast by Pedro Tchindele.
January 3 2023
The arrest of two suspected poachers in a wildlife rich region follows an uptick in slaughter and sale of elephant products
According to a 2016 census, there are 3,300 elephants in southern African nation.
I
mage by David Clode.
The Criminal Investigation services in Angola are developing a series of operations in order to detain and hold accountable individuals involved in the slaughter and sale of elephant tusks. In recent days, two citizens have been arrested accused of having killed elephants and appropriated the said ivories, in the municipality of Pango Aluquém, in Bengo province. Pedro Tchindele interviewed a spokesperson from Angola’s Criminal Investigation Services, who reaffirmed that the authorities will continue to investigate and deal with crimes against the environment, especially since the area provides habitat for several species, some of which are endangered.
Listen to Pedros’s full report here (in Portuguese).
This article is reproduced here as part of the African Conservation Journalism Programme, funded in Angola, Botswana, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe by USAID’s VukaNow: Activity. Implemented by the international conservation organisation Space for Giants, it aims to expand the reach of conservation and environmental journalism in Africa, and bring more African voices into the international conservation debate. Written articles from the Mozambican and Angolan cohorts are translated from Portuguese. Broadcast stories remain in the original language.
