17/08/2023
Is Islamabad's New Wildlife Protection Law Another Token Reform?
As Salman Sufi's tenure as the Head of the Prime Ministerâs Strategic Reforms Unit came to an end, he wanted to be remembered for the public welfare projects he undertook over the last year. These include his âinitiatives of animal welfare and ethicsâ in Islamabad, ranging from protection of all types of animals, a defunct animal abuse hotline, Pakistanâs first-ever animal welfare course for schools, and most recently, the Islamabad Nature Conservation and Wildlife Management Act, 2023 in collaboration with Senator Sherry Rehman.
What surprises me is that it took more than a year for the wildlife management act, which prohibits citizens of Islamabad from keeping and/or abusing wild animals, to be passed while the provinces are yet to follow what Sufi had envisioned last June.
Unfortunately, my experience of his animal welfare reforms finds them to be nothing more than an eyewash (read my report on illegal dog culling here), which is why Iâm skeptical about the new act. And Iâm not alone. Pakistanâs first animal lawyer, Hira Jaleel, who has been pushing for modern animal protection laws here while working in the US, told me on the phone that she is âcautiously optimisticâ about what it entails for exotic pets.
She highlighted that exotic wild animals, âespecially big cats like lions, tigers and leopards suffer horribly in captivity in Pakistan,â and stressed that residential homes and backyards cannot provide the âphysiological, behavioral and social enrichmentâ they require.
"The new law aims to prohibit this practice, at least within Islamabad. However, on closer reading, the law is vaguely worded and raises more questions than it provides answers. Ultimately, itâll all depend on how the Islamabad Wildlife Management Board decides to enforce the law, and how consistent they can be in taking action against people keeping exotic animals in their homes. If the law is a success in Islamabad, we may see provinces following suit," Jaleel concluded.
As much as I want the latter to happen in letter and spirit across Pakistan, preferably overnight, I donât see the provinces prioritizing animal welfare anytime soon.
Remember Kaavan? He wasnât the only wild animal who suffered because of the government, and he certainly wasn't the last. Madhubala and Noor Jehan are painful reminders of Pakistan's incompetence when it comes to officially taking care of wild animals.
This nation, which is currently grappling with constitutional, political, and economic crises, has never been known to be animal friendly, unlike Turkey â the country we and certain heads of state are often embarrassingly obsessed with, but not when it comes to emulating their animal welfare.
No animal is safe in Pakistan.; not even the national animal.
Ironically, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa annually offers foreigners special permits for markhor hunting. While poaching them is generally a crime, trophy hunting in âprotected areasâ during markhor hunting season is actually permissible. According to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Public Procurement Regulatory Authority, individual permits for the year 2023-23 cost USD 3,500 and USD 160,250. Crazy.
Also, did you know that a man called Nazim Sajawal Jokhio was allegedly killed by a politician in Sindh last year for capturing and posting a video of a foreign guest hunting the Houbara Bustard â an endangered migratory bird threatened with global extinction? His family accused PPP MPA and lawmaker Jam Awais of murdering him, claiming that Awais had called Jhokio to his residence and tortured him to death.
Believe it or not, I was also in danger of being attacked by someone this year for reporting to the authorities that his men were trying to steal wild baby birds from a tree.
Meanwhile, Balochistanâs wildlife department doesnât seem to be doing much. And Punjab, which appears to have the most active wildlife department of all, has not declared whether it is considering introducing new animal protection laws or amending its existing ones.
Will the federal authorities actively enforce the new wildlife management act and set a new precedent for the provinces, or will it remain another empty promise? Only time will tell.
