 Reference Base  Under siege: poaching and protection of greater one-horne... |
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Menon, V., 1995. Under siege: poaching and protection of greater one-horned rhinoceroses in India. Delhi, Traffic India, pp. i-iv, 1-114
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| Location: |
Asia - South Asia - India |
| Subject: |
Distribution - Poaching |
| Species: |
Asian Rhino Species |
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Poacher's profile. There has been considerable debate in conservation and law enforcement agencies about the identity of rhinoceros poachers and traders in India. The most prevalent information that could be gathered during any field visit is that rhinoceroses are generally killed by Nagas (in central and upper Assam), and by Bodos in lower Assam. Both ethnic groups of people are tribal, the Nagas chiefly from the State of Nagaland, and the Bodos being from the plains of lower Assam. The Naga and the Bodo have far greater access to sophisticated arms and are also traditional hunters, which facilitates their entry into rhinoceros poaching. Also, as they are geographically situated near Myanmar and Bhutan, respectively, which are on important trade routes, it is easy for them to act as couriers after the initial poaching. An examination of 123 randomly selected official judicial records of poachers and traders dealing in rhinoceros hom in central Assam, however, shows that attributing the majority of blame to these tribal separatists is probably an error. Only five per cent of the 123 apprehended were Nagas, and otherwise the breakdown was as follows: Nepalese and Bhutanese, 4%; Mising tribals, 11%: Assamese Hindus, 26%; Banladeshis/Muslims, 35%; others, 19%. (There is no mention of Bodos, since the records are for central, not lower Assam.)
A third group often mentioned in connection with rhinoceros poaching is the outlawed insurgency group, United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA). The group has been particularly actively involved in poaching from Laokhawa, which lost all its rhinoceroses at the height of the Assam civil unrest in 1983.
Although there is some evidence of extremist groups such as the NSCN, ULFA and the Bodos selling rhinoceros horn to finance their illegal activities, it is seen that a number of poachers are actually financed by opportunistic traders who take advantage of a breakdown in law and order to achieve a rhinoceros killing. A poacher cannot operate without the active support of some local villagers. Also, there is a need for a local person who has knowledge of routes, location of anti-poaching camps, patrol times and routes.
The rhinoceros poacher in India is typically a completely different sort of individual, compared to the rhinoceros hom trader. It is difficult to categorize a poacher according to his social or economic class. although a general rule of thumb suggests that he would be sufficiently needy to be bought by the sum of money being offered. The Indian poacher's reward is a small fraction of the value of the rhinoceros hom. Poaching is organized by a syndicate of middlemen who recruit two to three men, buy them food and drink and give them a little advance money along with rifles and cartridges. The team, thus prepared, enter a park to poach, usually in the morning or at dusk. Often a poacher is not paid according to horn weight, nor even according to the number of homs obtained, but according to the number of operations conducted. In many cases the poacher is a sharpshooter hired only for the purpose of killing. His team mates have the job of hacking off horn and bringing it to the dealer. In this case the main poacher is paid for just shooting and killing a rhinoceros, and the others get a pittance of the share.
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