Killing conservation

It should have been clear by now to authorities involved in conservation in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) that efforts to save endangered species there are failing. In the second incident in just over three months, another leopard was shot dead by villagers in the Khadorda Village near the town of Bhimber. A similar incident involving the killing of a leopard took place in May this year. There have also been other cases before this, including one in 2010 when a snow leopard, one of the few rare species left in this world — was killed. AJK houses both, the snow leopard — with its distinctive white coat, and the common leopard.

In the latest incident, villagers say a pair of leopards was attacking their cattle. The male was shot dead, while the female escaped. The existing threat from leopards to the villagers is something that has to be considered. Humans have been killed by them in various mountain areas. But this suggests that the conservation strategy needs to be reconsidered and adjusted. Experts say a key reason for the leopards moving into villages is the loss of their habitats as a result of large-scale deforestation and with this, also the loss of their natural prey. Deforestation is visible everywhere in AJK where huge tracts of land have been denuded, in many cases, as a result of the efforts by timber mafias. The conservation problem has to be looked at with a wider perspective; ways have to be found to allow humans and wildlife to live harmoniously in proximity with each other — especially as human populations expand. To achieve this, we need to reforest land and restore the destroyed natural order of things. At the same time, there is a need to build respect for wildlife among people and educate them about the need to protect species such as the leopard, which is in danger of vanishing from our land. So far, efforts have failed completely in AJK, where leopards continue to be killed at periodic intervals by villagers and people alike who have come to perceive them as enemies rather than as creatures in need of protection and help.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 29^th, 2012.