Botswana threatens to send 20,000 elephants to Germany

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00:00 And finally, amidst the disputes over the import of hunting trophies and poaching,

00:03 the president of Botswana has issued an unusual warning.

00:06 He's threatening to send 20,000 elephants to Germany to see how they cope with what

00:11 he says is his country's overpopulation of the animals.

00:14 Broadcast 24's Monty Francis has this report.

00:20 Botswana is overflowing with elephants.

00:23 Thanks to conservation efforts, the country is home to some 130,000 of them, making up

00:28 a third of the world's elephant population.

00:32 A success story to be sure.

00:34 The many in Botswana have come to regard the massive creatures as a huge menace to property,

00:40 crops, and even human life.

00:43 So when Germany's environment minister suggested imposing stricter limits on hunting trophies,

00:48 Botswana's president had some choice words.

00:51 Speaking to a German newspaper, Magwitzi Massusi threatened to export 20,000 elephants to Germany,

00:58 saying, quote, "If you like them so much, then please accept this gift from us," and

01:02 adding, "This is no joke."

01:05 Massusi says his country is paying the price for the world's conservation efforts, and

01:10 that bans on hunting trophies hamper wildlife conservation, make anti-poaching efforts harder,

01:16 and impoverish residents who depend on tourism.

01:20 Adult elephants have no real natural predators in Botswana, and in an effort to control the

01:25 population, the country has exported 8,000 of them to neighboring Angola.

01:29 Also, as of 2019, for a hefty price, foreigners can buy a permit to hunt an elephant and take

01:35 its head or skin home as a trophy, a practice denounced by animal rights groups.

01:41 Germany is the largest importer of elephant trophies in the EU, a practice banned by others

01:47 in the bloc, including France and Belgium.

01:50 Last month, Botswana's wildlife minister made a similar threat to send 10,000 elephants

01:55 to London's Hyde Park, as the U.K. argues over its own restrictions on hunting trophies.

02:03 As the West debates a practice considered cruel by many, Botswana is eager for outsiders

02:08 to be like it, unable to ignore the elephant in the room.

02:13 (water splashing)

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