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“I HAD NO IDEA THAT THE LION I TOOK WAS A KNOWN, LOCAL FAVOURITE, WAS COLLARED AND PART OF A STUDY UNTIL THE END OF THE HUNT.”
A Minnesota man has been accused of illegally killing a famed lion in Zimbabwe. Walter James Palmer of Eden Prairie, Minnesota has been named by Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force as the shooter of Cecil, a 13-year-old prized lion. He is now wanted by Zimbabwe officials on poaching charges. The lion was protected and the subject of a decade long study by the Wildlife Unit of Oxford University in the UK. He was outfitted with a GPS collar and was killed in Hwange National Park. The Zimbabwe National Parks and Wildlife Authority and the Safari Operators Association said that two men were charged with poaching in connection to Mr Palmer. Mr Palmer allegedly paid the guides $55,000, however, on Tuesday he issued a statement claiming he had no prior knowledge of the lion’s protection, stating he would fully cooperate
with officials. “I had no idea that the lion I took was a known, local favorite, was collared and part of a study until the end of the hunt. I relied on the expertise of my local professional guides to ensure a legal hunt. “I have not been contacted by authorities in Zimbabwe or in the U.S. about this situation, but will assist them in any inquiries they may have. “Again, I deeply regret that my pursuit of an activity I love and practice responsibly and legally resulted in the taking of this lion.” In 2008, Mr Palmer plead guilty to making false statements to the US Fish and Wildlife Service after he illegally shot and killed a black bear in Wisconsin, the Associated Press reported. He initially faced five years in prison and was sentenced to one year’s probation with a $3,000 fine.
“DISGRACE TO HUMANKIND, AND A DETRIMENT TO OUR SPECIES AS A WHOLE.”
Palmer’s name was revealed Tuesday by the British newspaper the Telegraph, citing sources in Zimbabwe investigating the death of the lion. According to the officials, Cecil was killed on July 1, just outside of the Hwange National Park in western Zimbabwe. His body was found skinned and beheaded on a property bordering the park, thanks to the GPS tag implanted by the scientists studying the lions.
stay active and observe and photograph wildlife is where you will find Dr. Palmer when he not in the office.”
“As far as I understand, Walter believes that he might have shot that lion,” a spokesman for Dr. Palmer told the Telegraph. “What he’ll tell you is that he had the proper legal permits and he had hired several professional guides, so he’s not denying that he may be the person who shot this lion. He is a biggame hunter; he hunts the world over.”
“I don’t agree with capital punishment, but I genuinely wouldn’t care if Walter Palmer was found by a lynch mob and strung up,” one Briton tweeted.
Within minutes of the Telegraph’s revelation, Palmer became a subject of internet hate. Social media users have called him a “scumbag” and a “disgrace to humankind, and a detriment to our species as a whole.” The address, website and phone number of his practice were plastered everywhere, with the practice’s website going down shortly thereafter. According to the page, Dr. Palmer is a married father of two and a native of North Dakota, said to enjoy outdoor activities: “Anything allowing him to
The dentist’s Facebook account has been taken down, and his practice is taking heavy fire on Yelp as well. Over on Twitter, the doctor’s private address and phone numbers have been posted by people claiming to be part of the hacktivist collective Anonymous.
“Have at him,” added one Canadian animal rights activist. One mixed martial arts fighter, who “mostly just tweet[s] about cats and Taylor Swift,” called on “internet lunatics” to “get to work” on justice for Cecil: I demand justice for Cecil the lion. I know at least a few of you are absolute lunatics. Please get to work on this. — Peggy Morgan (@peggymorganmma) July 28, 2015 There were also voices out there urging restraint. “...if you didn’t know who Cecil The Lion was a week ago, you can’t join today’s Twitter Witchhunt,” one Twitter user quipped.
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“THERE IS ONLY SO MUCH I CAN DO OVER THE HAZE.”
Foreign Minister K Shanmugam has appeared to have thrown in the white towel for the Singapore haze, lamenting on Facebook that he is unable to resolve the yearly issue because the fire is in another country. “The frustration of our people is all the greater because the haze can be prevented. The majority of the fires are man-made, by companies seeking to profit while people pay the costs. There is only so much that we can do here in Singapore to stop the fires as they are in another country. We have offered assistance to help fight the fires (including this year, but our offer has yet to be accepted). We passed a bill in August 2014 that would allow us to prosecute errant companies found to be causing or contributing to the haze. We have asked Indonesia to give us the names of the companies so that we can consider if we can take
action against them. Indonesia too has a responsibility to take legal and enforcement action against errant companies since these companies violate Indonesia’s own laws.” The haze has since caused frustrations and major health issues but the Singapore government has done little to introduce domestic measures to help Singaporeans better cope with the haze. When haze indicator levels hit over 200 psi, there was no stop work order and the government’s role has only been at best advisory. Despite being neighbours for 50 years since Independence, relationship between Singapore and Indonesia was revealed to have remained rocky when Singapore’s offer to fight the fire have been flatly refused twice by the Indonesian authorities.
“SINGAPOREANS GET THE GOVERNMENT THEY DESERVE, SO I DON’T WANT TO HEAR ANY MORE COMPLAINTS.”
During a media interview on the night of Polling Day (Sep 11) last week, when the sample counts were released, an agitated Kenneth Jeyaretnam, Secretary-General of the Reform Party (RP), chided Singaporean voters for their incessant complaints. He said: Well, obviously, you know, we were aware from the beginning that we saw this coming. Because we didn’t get the big influx of volunteers and helpers coming forward like we got in 2011, in fact, it was very quiet. And eh…eh… we saw… Basically, we put this down to the novelty wearing off of a new party, but now I see it is absolutely nation-wide there’s been a huge swing to the PAP. We weren’t helped by the fact that we lost Clementi, a ward in which we scored particularly highly in the last election. What I can say is that this is not, as far
as I’m concerned, this is not a mandate for the PAP’s economic policies. We had a better manifesto, a better economic plan. All this is a mandate for authoritarianism and brainwashing, it shows what you do when you control everybody’s housing, you control their savings, you control their jobs because you’re the major employer, you control all the media, and there’s no independent elections department. What I see are similar margins in North Korea and China, it’s just like the Chinese Communist Party. And I guess Singaporeans get the government they deserve, so I don’t want to hear any more complaints. In the end, RP garnered the worst results of all the opposition parties in GE2015, with a scorecard of 20.6% of valid votes. Would you go to Mr Jeyaretnam if you had any problems, now that he has said he doesn’t want to hear any more complaints?
“I AM WORRIED YOUNG PEOPLE ARE WORRIED ABOUT THEIR FUTURE.”
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Thursday (Jul 16) urged young Singaporeans to take heart in their future and chase their own rainbows. He was speaking at the launch of the English edition of the book “Chasing Rainbows”, originally written in Chinese by veteran TV producer Choo Lian Liang. Mr Lee said the book showed how earlier generations chased their dreams and left something lasting and valuable for their children, their country and the future. He said he hopes that many more Singaporeans, especially the young, will read the English translation and be inspired to find out more about their family histories, and the efforts of earlier generations in building the Singapore of today. Mr Lee said: “Knowing what our parents and grandparents went through puts our own lives in perspective. Young people I meet today sometimes tell me that they’re anxious about their future. I find this worrying. Because if we look at Singapore today, we are at a much higher level than before. “We have so much more than what our parents and grandparents had. So, I hope young people - who are worried
about the future, who are sometimes beset by angst, who are anxious that life has become harder - take heart. Chase that rainbow. Be inspired by this book. Do well, and do us all proud.” The book begins with Mdm Choo’s great-grandfather in China in the late 1890s. It tells of the family’s fortunes as they sought a better life in then-Malaya and Singapore. It was translated by Mdm Choo’s daughter, Minister of State for Education and Communications and Information, Sim Ann, to reach a wider audience. Ms Sim said: “This is a story that would have resonance with many Singaporean families, because they may have experienced something similar, or heard of something similar. But I think it is a story that is seldom told in this form, and I hope that readers will enjoy it and find something familiar in it. “The translation I did is actually more of a retelling of the original story in English because I feel that to appeal to English readers - in terms of pacing and clarity - quite a number of adjustments need to be made. I am very glad that my mother, who also happens to be the author of the original version, gave me full rein to make adjustments as I saw fit.”
SAUDI ARABIA OFFERS GERMANY 200 MOSQUES – ONE FOR EVERY 100 REFUGEES WHO ARRIVED LAST WEEKEND
Saudi Arabia has reportedly responded to the growing number of people fleeing the Middle East for western Europe – by offering to build 200 mosques in Germany. Syria’s richer Gulf neighbours have been accused of not doing their fair share in the humanitarian crisis, with Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman and the UAE also keeping their doors firmly shut to asylum-seekers. According to the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, which quoted a report in the Lebanese newspaper Al Diyar, Saudi Arabia would build one mosque for every 100 refugees who entered Germany in extraordinary numbers last weekend. It would be unfair to suggest that the Gulf Arab states have done nothing to help the estimated four million Syrians who have fled their country since the start of the conflict in 2011. Just this week, the al Hayat newspaper reported that 500,000 Syrians had found homes in Saudi Arabia since the civil war began – as workers, not refugees. There have also been significant contributions from rich individuals towards the upkeep of refugee camps round the Syrian border, estimated by
the BBC to total around $900 million (£600 million). The refugee crisis - in pictures But amid a history of competition between the Gulf states and Iranian-allied nations, there is a deep fear that allowing an influx of Syrian refugees could also let in Syrians loyal to Bashar al-Assad. There also exists a more general concern about demographic change, leaving the states opposed to the idea of welcoming refugees. In the UAE, foreign nationals already outnumber citizens by more than five to one. Back in Germany, Angela Merkel welcomed two refugee families at a home for asylum-seekers in the Berlin suburb of Spandau on Thursday. She told reporters after the visit: “Their integration will certainly take place in part via the children, who will learn German very quickly in kindergarten. And I hope and believe that the great majority will want to learn our language very quickly.” Whether she will welcome Saudi Arabia’s reported offer, which Al Diyar noted would “have to go through the federal authorities”, remains to be seen.
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AND IT IS DEPRESSING