This is an excerpt from an article written by Sifiso Zulu and published online by Eyewitness News on 03 May, 2021

JOHANNESBURG – The Blood Lions campaign on Monday said private farmers keeping lions in captivity should stop using conservation as an excuse for breeding these animals.

South Africa has for years drawn global criticism for allowing these practices to continue and this has affected the country’s brand in the ecotourism sector.

The campaign, which has been pushing for an end to canned lion hunting, estimated that at least 10,000 lions are being kept in deplorable conditions in about 300 facilities across the country.

A high-level government panel has recommended that South Africa begins the process of banning breeding lions, leopards, and rhinos among others in captivity for hunting.

The Blood Lions campaign has welcomed recommendations to halt and reverse the domestication of lions through captive breeding and keeping as a step in the right direction.

The campaign’s manager Dr Louise de Waal said there was no outright justification that captive breeding practices resulted in the conservation of wild animals.

This is an excerpt from an article written by Mark Steenbok and published online by E-TV News on 03 May, 2021

South Africa is on its way to becoming a world leader in animal conservation. This after Cabinet’s endorsement of a report calling for an end to captive lion farming, captive lion hunting, cub petting and the commercial farming of rhinos. The High Level Panel’s 580-page report on Lions, Rhinos, Elephants and Leopards needs to make its way through Parliament before becoming law.

But it’s decisive particularly on South Africa’s treatment of lions. It calls for an end to the exploitation of the King of the Beasts in our country.

Minister of Environmental Affairs, Barbara Creecy has instructed her department to put in place processes to stop the sale of captive lion derivatives,the hunting of captive bred lions and tourist interactions with captive bred loins.

Watch the full television interview at the link below.

This is an excerpt from an article written by Siyamthanda Matiso and published online by Radio 702. on 03 May, 2021

Blood Lions campaign Manager Dr Louise de Waal says they welcome a ban on the breeding of lions in captivity for trophy hunting.

Minister Barbara Creecy on Sunday announced that there will be a ban when it comes to the breeding of lions in captivity for trophy hunting or for tourists to pet, in a bid to promote a more “authentic” experience.

She has since instructed her Department to put processes in place to halt the sale of captive lion derivatives, this includes the appropriate disposal of existing lion bone stockpiles and lion bone from euthanised lions, the hunting of captive-bred lions, and tourist interactions with captive lions.

Campaign Manager for Blood Lions, Dr Louise de Waal, says they are in support and still coming to terms with the minister’s announcement as it will bring enormous change which they as an organisation has been campaigning for many years since the launch of their documentary in 2015.

Listen to the full interview at the link below.

This is an excerpt from a statement issued by the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) and published online by Polity on 03 May, 2021

The Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) cautiously welcomes and supports the release of the report by the High-Level Panel (HLP) “to review policies, regulatory measures, practices and policy positions that are related to hunting, trade, captive keeping, management and handling of elephant, lion, leopard and rhinoceros.”
 
The IFP has been campaigning against the issue of captive-bred lion hunting since 2014, and IFP MP, the late Mario Oriani-Ambrosini, addressed the first Global March Against Canned Lion Hunting in March 2014. The issue has since been taken up and championed by Narend Singh, the former KZN MEC for Environmental Affairs and current IPF MP and Spokesperson on Environmental Affairs, Forestry and Fisheries.

Hon. Singh facilitated viewing of documentary Blood Lions for the parliamentary Environmental Portfolio Committee, which was then chaired by late Hon. Jackson Mthembu, who later ascended to being Minister in the Presidency.

This is an excerpt from an article written by Jan Gerber and published online by News24 on 03 May, 2021

The end is in sight for the captive lion industry, after a high level panel found it poses a risk to sustainable wild lion conservation and negatively impacts tourism.

Among the panel’s recommendations is that South Africa does not captive-breed lions, keep lions in captivity, or use captive lions or their derivatives commercially.