Zambia halts culling of hippos

The Zambian government on Monday said it has halted the culling of hippos in one of its rivers following concerns raised by stakeholders.

Mass outrage has poured on social media when images of a hunter standing next to a slain hippo on the banks of the Luangwa River situated east of Lusaka, the country's capital, emerged.

Animal activists have condemned the Zambian government for allowing the culling of 2,000 hippos in the river.

The United Kingdom-based Born Free strongly condemned the decision to kill about 400 hippos every year for the next five years, describing the move as "abhorrent". Reports suggest the move is meant to stop the spread of anthrax.

But Ministry of Tourism and Arts Permanent Secretary Stephen Mwansa said the culling program has been halted in order to take into considerations views from stakeholders.

"For now it is halted until further notice. We would like to take into consideration the concerns raised by the stakeholders," he told Xinhua in a telephone interview.

"You know there are some many things we have to look at such as the communities where the culling is taking place, internal issues as well as external factors," he added.

He however defended the culling program saying it was meant to control the population of the animals in the river, adding that the increased numbers of the animals poses challenges to the health of the animals.

According to Department of National Parks and Wildlife, a South African firm was awarded the contract to cull the animals last year and that the culling only started last month.

The Hippotamus is listed as vulnerable by the International Union of Conservation of Nature. Endit