 "Photo: MCT Campus")
There are 6 billion people in the world, and counting. The planet's resources are spread dangerously thin among all humans. But despite our conscious overpopulation problem, we're not going to start systemically killing people to bring down the increasing numbers. Killing isn't the answer, nor is it the answer for South Africa's elephant population "problem." South Africa's lawmakers have overturned the 1995 ban on killing elephants which was initially established to help control the increasing elephant population. Since the law was created more than a decade ago, the elephant population in South Africa has more than doubled and now South Africa thinks there are too many, according to CNN. "Our simple reality is that elephant population density has risen so much in some southern African countries that there is concern about impacts on the landscape," said Environmental Affairs and Tourism Minister Marthinus van Schalkwyk of South Africa. Has van Schalkwyk forgotten that the elephant population, along with other animals that continue to inhabit Africa, is why the continent remains so naturally beautiful and therefore popular for tourism? The purpose of this law is simply to kill so that power-hungry humans can control the population and gain a few extra feet of Africa's wide-open plains. Elephants have finally reached the end of a struggling journey to escape the endangered species list, but the South African government is now worried about how the elephants are "impacting their landscape." When the government refers to this impact, it's talking about how the elephants are eating increased amounts of food and taking up too much space. When envisioning Africa, the word "space" tends to be a little ambiguous. All Africa has is space - the country won't be in short supply of it any time soon. So why can't the African government compromise with the animals that walked this Earth well before human existence and give the elephants some space? The government's greed and arrogance are ridiculous. But the details of the law they put forth are even more absurd. Disturbingly, the "legal" way to kill an elephant includes "quick and humane methods and a rifle with a minimum caliber of .375," according to van Schalkwyk. There is no way that killing any living thing can be done humanely, especially when using a gun. Killing elephants is not only wrong, it's also an ineffective solution for the population "problem." The slaughtering of elephants actually increases the population, because "when elephants are killed, the herd automatically breeds more, and other elephants move into the space of the slain elephants, resulting in a larger population than before the killing," according to CNN. These facts reveal that this outrageous plan to kill elephants will be counterproductive. There are so many other possible strategies to control the elephant population. The South African government could relocate the elephants to different parts of Africa or place them in preservation parks around the world. Either option would prove more effective. South African lawmakers must use their authority to halt the vicious cycle of strategies constructed to control the fluctuating elephant population. They must not use their authority to implement a temporary, bloody "solution" to a "problem" that isn't as serious as Africa's other issues.
-Sabrina Norris-Turin is a pre-journalism and Spanish sophomore.
-This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Daily Aztec. Send e-mail to letters@thedailyaztec.com. Anonymous letters will not be printed - include your full name, major and year in school.
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