Why do they do it?

I just saw a headline that went something like…. 9 poachers killed by a pride of lions, 3 more injured. It was followed by various ‘likes’, ‘shares’ and ‘comments’ in favour of the lions, implying that the poachers got what they deserved.

I am a vegetarian because I disagree with the way we treat the land and the animals, and I absolutely agree with the idea that we should be protecting wild places, and endangered animals. However, in congratulating the lions on their vengence, there is a judgement being passed on the poachers, which I suspect may be innacurate. Yes, their goal is to trap or kill wild animals for profit, but I don’t believe that all poachers are evil, nor that they hunt these animals for pleasure.

I think it’s important to try to understand the circumstances that drive them to do what they do. It must be horrific, dangerous and at times terrifying, to hunt something that may well be hunting you, whilst at the same time, worrying that the authorities are also out there trying to track you down. I imagine it’s a very desperate person who would choose poaching as a career. What on earth has driven them to this decision?

I haven’t yet read the article, but I suggest that if we’re really interested in stopping the poaching of wild animals, we need to answer the question, why do they do it? Because unless we do, we’ll keep chasing these people around the bush until all the lions have gone.

We need to remove the incentive, because if it’s not profitable and they don’t believe it will help them in anyway, they won’t risk their lives doing it.