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Threat to Somali tortoise

by Mohamed Rashid | 10-03-2018 23:33 recommendations 0

Wildlife trade has become common in both Somalia and Somaliland. in particular, tortoise hunting which has been taking place first in Mogadishu since October last year and started in Somaliland sometime in January this year. Somalia stated that it is warning against the illegal trade and hunting of tortoises. The Director General of the Ministry of Environment Mr. Abdiaziz said that tortoises dwelling in our bushes are some of the rare animals spared from the ravages of human activities and they should be protected against the illegal sales.

Mohamed Hussein Yahow is one of the well-known tortoise dealers in Mogadishu who left his job to sell the tortoise living in Somalia illegally. He said, explaining how this takes place, ?When we started selling and hunting tortoises, some people think this is impossible while others believed it. I am telling everyone that this is a true story and the prices of the tortoise depend on its size.? However, selling tortoise has never been heard since Somalia started to pay attention to environmental and wildlife protection.

In addition, on 13th February, the Minister of Environment and Rural Development Hon. Shukri Ismail Baandare stated that her ministry arrested nine people accused selling tortoise to foreigners where six tortoises were released from captivity. Many times, Somaliland government has warned against selling of any type of wildlife and this marks the violation of its wildlife protection policy. Somaliland Regional court sentenced these people for three years and 3.000.000 slsh of fine.

On the other hand, there is growing loss of Somali wildlife in many parts of Somalia due to the dry seasons and prolonged drought which has been present in the country since 2011. Both state and central government agencies for environment protection highlighted that tortoise is one those wildlife that still remain in Somalia and all threats that are endangering its existence will face harsh punishment.

 
Mohamed Hussein Yalow, a tortoise dealer in Somalia

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  • Dormant user Mohamed Rashid
 
 
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3 Comments

  • says :
    Good point to address Mohamed.

    I just heard tortoise trade in Somalia few months ago and at first I thought it was a joke but then I saw on the TV news that few people were taking into custody and sentenced to 2-3 yrs in jail as they were involved illigal tortoise trade.

    Thank you for sharing this with us.
    Posted 11-03-2018 22:13

  • Gyeongrin mentor says :
    Hello Mohamed!!

    Wild life trading should be banned and to that I believe more attention should be paid in this problem. If wild life trading gets extreme, it will definitely effect our eco-system. The numer of those wild life species will decrease, and could even lead to extinction. To prevent such a tragedy, we need strict laws that regulate people from doing it.

    Thanks for sharing the news of wild life trading in Somalia!
    Good report:)

    Posted 11-03-2018 12:33

  • Joon Ho Mentor says :
    Hello Mohamed, thanks for sharing an international news with us
    I just thought Somali tortoise resembles turtles in Galapagos Archipelago, but I found out this species is totally a different one.
    And I saw several articles about selling Somali tortoise too, in Google search results.
    But it is good to hear the Ministry of Environment and Rural Development is working hard on protecting tortoises.

    Share us pics of tortoises if you see them on the road next time! :)
    Posted 11-03-2018 11:57

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