THE CAREER OF THE NOTORIOUS Indian wildlife poacher Naren Pegu came to an end early on the morning of December 13, 2010, in the Eastern Range of Kaziranga National Park. Tucked away in the northeastern state of Assam, hugging the southern bank of the wide Brahmaputra River, Kaziranga is India’s Serengeti, a mosaic of grass, jungle, and wetlands supporting a staggering amount of biodiversity, including Asia’s highest concentration of endangered one-horned rhinos and Bengal tigers. Since 2005, Pegu had poached about 30 of those rhinos, which live in Kaziranga and almost nowhere else. He’d shoot a rhino, cut off its horn with a machete, and sell it for thousands of dollars in Nagaland, a lawless state that runs along India’s fuzzy border with Myanmar. From there, the horns travel to Myanmar and then to China, where they sell for tens of thousands of dollars a kilo. In powdered form, they cure everything from cataracts to cancer, or so say believers. It’s really just a big fingernail.
Pegu was a member of the Mishing tribe, one of Assam’s many indigenous groups that, like their equivalents everywhere, have lost land and livelihoods. Mishing villages line the park boundary, their inhabitants pressed against it like kids at a candy-store window. If you can’t pay $50 for a jeep safari, you can’t get inside. Growing up here, Pegu learned to sneak past the border; he knew the park like his own backyard. He’d come and go undetected by the forest guards—India’s version of wildlife rangers. Poaching ran in Pegu’s family; his father was a poacher before him.
Most Mishing involved in the trade are content to serve as illegal guides for the bigger regional guns—sharpshooters and brokers from Nagaland—whom they lead in and out of the vast park, taking a small cut. But Naren Pegu was enterprising. He taught himself the rules of the trade, cutting deals in seedy hotels. Learned where to get black-market .303 rifles from the separatists who control the Nagaland hills. He thought big. Typically, poachers blow any money they come into, but not Pegu: he’d saved enough to invest in three vehicles, a big house, even a plot of land, where he was starting his own tea garden in some sort of psychological stab at legitimacy. While Pegu was bringing down more than $20,000 per year through poaching, his Mishing relations scrabbled to earn $200 a year in the rice paddies.
Pegu had every right to feel cocky as he and an accomplice slipped into Kaziranga on the evening of December 12, waiting out the night munching on rotis and precooked rice; a fire would have given them away. At dawn, rhinos scatter across Kaziranga to feed on the rich grasslands, and Pegu was ready. He came upon a mother rhino feeding with her calf. Got out his rifle. Shooting a rhino is like shooting a barn: when you take aim, they stop and stare, deciding whether to charge. Pegu shot the mother dead, hacked off her horn, and left the baby standing there. The park border, his village, and a payday in Nagaland were not far away.
Pegu should have been home free. He knew the landscape, and Kaziranga employs only about 500 forest guards to cover more than 300 square miles of tall grass and jungle—on foot. What were their chances of finding him? Yet, unbeknownst to Pegu, before he even fired his shot three forest guards had entered the area, searching for him. As soon as he fired, they closed on the spot. Unlike most guards in most parks in India, they were armed. And they had license to kill.
Pegu saw the guards first and opened fire. Missed. The guards took cover. As the shooting continued, one guard calmly raised his antique .303 Lee Enfield rifle to his shoulder, lined up Pegu in his sights, and blew his head off.
Pegu’s accomplice was shot in the hip by another guard. An hour later, he, too, had died “from his injuries,” according to the park’s report. Pictures from that day show the two men lying on the forest floor. The accomplice has dried black blood around his eyes, nose, and ears. Pegu’s head is split open like a watermelon.
Krishna Deori, the director of Kaziranga’s Eastern Range, one of the park’s four divisions, proudly shows me the gruesome pictures when I visit his office, a concrete bungalow beside the park entrance, in April. “I almost gave up!” he says. “I was ready to leave this place because of him.” Then, in a red UNITED COLORS OF BENETTON shirt, Deori models for my camera with rifles seized from poachers. I try to envision a ranger in the U.S. doing the same. But nothing in Kaziranga is like anything in the U.S. There’s the superdense concentration of tigers, rhinos, and elephants—and the fact that they’re thriving. The sheer value of that wildlife on the black market. The grinding poverty of the surrounding villages. And the tsunami of money and demand pouring out of China. Kaziranga is an ark bobbing upon a frothing sea of humanity. Yet somehow it keeps on floating.
Comments
The alleged poverty of the surrounding villages is IMMATERIAL. I 100% support shoot them on site. No sympathy here. None whatsoever. They could get a real job in the park...ever thought of that? of course not. As long as a fast buck is to be made, folks will risk it. Shoot them.
Flag Thiswhat's another message from this story my fellow americans? stop buying chinese products. killing an animal solely for its horn, as the culture thinks it's medicinal, perhaps an aphrodisiac......and stop buying japanes too, the japanese and the koreans have raped the hell out of the sea of cortes, baja, mexico with their industrial trawlers. support your fellow americans, buy an american brand, made in america!
Flag Thiswhat's another message from this story my fellow americans? stop buying chinese products. killing an animal solely for its horn, as the culture thinks it's medicinal, perhaps an aphrodisiac......and stop buying japanes too, the japanese and the koreans have raped the hell out of the sea of cortes, baja, mexico with their industrial trawlers. support your fellow americans, buy an american brand, made in america!
Flag ThisThe affected animals are in short supply; the poachers never will be. There will always be plenty of humans. Blast away!
Flag ThisWe need the same policy for American Borders!!! Randy Hall Destin, FL
Flag ThisWow -- lots of armchair morality descrediting poverty as a motive for poaching from people who are likely either reading this story on a $300 smartphone or on their laptops with their flatscreen TVs on in the background. I'm certainly appalled by poaching, but I've also never been in a position in which I had no hope of ever earning enough money to feed my family without turning to despicable acts. Before we urge others to "blast away," perhaps we should consider whether any of our daily decisions wreak havoc on the environment or cause suffering for animals simply for our comfort rather than our survival.
Flag ThisWow -- lots of armchair morality descrediting poverty as a motive for poaching from people who are likely either reading this story on a $300 smartphone or on their laptops with their flatscreen TVs on in the background. I'm certainly appalled by poaching, but I've also never been in a position in which I had no hope of ever earning enough money to feed my family without turning to despicable acts. Before we urge others to "blast away," perhaps we should consider whether any of our daily decisions wreak havoc on the environment or cause suffering for animals simply for our comfort rather than our survival.
Flag ThisI agree Jill. What I take away from the story is there are those who see all sides and are trying to make a difference (ie. Saikia). What I find appaling, is that what seems to be an acceptable solution was brought on by Mr. Saikia, and the poachers agreed to it, knowing they would be endangering themselves from the Nagalanders, and the park director has not upheld his end of the agreement. This will undoubtedly cause future strife and derision between the would be reformed poachers, and the park staff.
Flag ThisI agree Jill. What I take away from the story is there are those who see all sides and are trying to make a difference (ie. Saikia). What I find appaling, is that what seems to be an acceptable solution was brought on by Mr. Saikia, and the poachers agreed to it, knowing they would be endangering themselves from the Nagalanders, and the park director has not upheld his end of the agreement. This will undoubtedly cause future strife and derision between the would be reformed poachers, and the park staff.
Flag ThisI would feel more compassion perhaps if the poachers were shooting the rhinos in the garden patch the rhinos allegedly plunder--and if they didn't leave the entire carcass to rot. if they are truly so destitute that they are starving and have no other options, why would they leave all that meat that could feed so many? They are poachers in it for the easy money, and perhaps the rebellious thrill of sneaking in, breaking the law, getting away with it, and being paid to do it. Since they have so little regard for the laws or lives of others (informants, "witches", etc.), it's only fair they forfeit their own lives.
Flag ThisRowan, thanks, I read it in one breath, it’s awesome and alive story. Hope world can understand the real scenarios. Kamal Azad from Kaziranga.
Flag ThisDont see what the author is trying to convey. Does he want the forest guard to watch while poachers shoot rhinos, tigers and the guards themselves ? Would he ?
Flag ThisSad and true story but age old problem everywhere in India. This regards to wildlife and conservation issues. But, same scenario is happening in our social life all over the world. A man would do almost anything to survive and feed his family.
Flag This"Pegu saw the guards first and opened fire." Pegu's accomplice was shot in the hip and "died from his injuries" with blood all over his face. Really (in sarcasm font)... If that were true, then the shooting is justified. If a National Park Service Ranger encounters a poacher he/she will arrest. If the poacher opens up, all bets are off. If the Ranger fires first, and there are no witnesses, we'd never know and the report would be fudged. We're not all that different, we just like to think that we are.
Flag ThisTotally agree with blasting away at the poachers. And not buying goods from those countries...although that is very hard to do in the USA...try to find all the things made in China, Japan or Indonesia made here...hard to do. but back to the poaching, maybe this will somehow send a message...arm all the guards and park rangers.
Flag ThisBeautifully woven fabric, but the pattern is unsettling. As a first, livelihood security and well-being of all people - tribals and village folk (including poachers), and forest guards - needs to be urgently addressed, in the interests of man and beast alike. We then have the option of harnessing the beauty of this landscape for the world to see and the people of Assam to be proud of and benefit.
Flag ThisCompletely aside from the moral question about shooting poachers, how about harvesting a few animals per year in a sustainable way to make the wildlife REALLY pay the locals so they need not starve enough to resort to poaching and therefore need not be killed for poaching? Then hire the reformed poachers as hunting guides for visiting hunters. Let's say the area is losing 5 tigers per year to poachers. It's all but guaranteed that the first legal tiger hunt in India in decades will net a million dollars from a visiting sport hunter. Subsequent hunts taking place each year would probably not bring that much less. That money would go a long way toward creating a local "investment" in wildlife don't you think? Legally shooting one will absolutely generate enough revenue to save the other four so why not do it? Given the numbers of Rhino they lose per year and the fact that foreigners regularly pay $60,000 to hunt White Rhino and $250,000 to hunt Black Rhino in South Africa, harvesting less than half of their current poaching losses within a legal construct will generate sufficient revenue to protect those that would have been lost otherwise. Again, so why not do it and watch the population increase? Sure, as in Africa there will be leakages due to corruption, but look at the statistics describing Elephant populations in Kenya since hunting has been outlawed and in Zimbabwe since hunting was legalized and tell me that it hasn't worked. The question for ideologue environmentalists then becomes this..."Do you hate hunters more than you love wildlife?"
Flag ThisHow poor are those villagers and poachers going to be when they kill the last one? And with the poachers knowledge of the area and the underground, why not try to get a job at the park on the right side of the law!
Flag Thissolution: mandatory BIRTH CONTROL. now. For humans. For all humans of all races and nationalities, but especially for those humans who think it's our right to kill every other life form on our planet just they have the right to reproduce.
Flag ThisI agree with John and Julie. The solution does not lie in the senseless killing of humans or animals. In nature, all things die. So why not allow it happen in a controlled manner in the best interest of all parties involved? I am personally opposed to game hunting since most animals are usually left to die a slow and painful death so the hunter can hang a pretty head on his/her mantel. But killing an animal to feed a starving village can become the start of a monthly or bimonthly celebration. So why not allow rich foreigners to pay for the thrill of hunting, then have the unique experience of celebration with the locals who will eat it? Perhaps that would be the best way for the Park Director to hold up his end of the deal. Simply taking away the "reformed" poacher's guns will not stop them; neither will killing them. Just because the Park does good by providing protected area to wild animals does not make them God. Death is a natural and unavoidable part of life; murder on the other hand, is not.
Flag ThisIt's really, REALLY hard for me to accept the animal > people equation. I want there to be tigers for my 15-month-old to see when she grows up. On the other hand I think that it's indefensible to argue that animals, any animals, are more impt than people. (Even if they're outside the USA.)
Flag ThisI think this is good. Not just that they can kill poachers on sight, but It scares away potential poachers, which is the most important consequence.
Flag ThisKudos to the rangers!
Flag ThisThis is the most ridiculous thing I've ever read - and especially the comments saying "blast away." Do any of you inhuman callous people have any idea what this kind of power means int he hands of the cops and the Forest Department? Do you know who gets killed when you give these people this kind of impunity? Do you or the besotted author of this article have any proof that those who were killed were actually poachers? Has it struck you that there is a reason that several tiger reserves in India are now controlled by the armed Maoist organisations - because people had no other way to defend themeslves from a rampaging state? Don't give us this weasel talk about how conservation works ina country of 1.2 billion people - there are thousands of community conserved areas in India and more than 20% of India's forests lie outside of government ownership. In the NOrtheast alone most forest lands are controlled by communities, not by the state. Kaziranga is an excellent example of a brutal, out of control state machinery intent on repressing and extorting money from its people. As for poachers and encroachers don't make me laugh - it is impossible to conduct these activities without the connivance of the state machinery. Those who get killed are undoubtedly those who are either innocent locals, strung up to serve as evidence for outsiders like the author of this article, or poachers who didn't pay the right person at the right time. As for shoot at sight policies these are illegal in India too - no one, even the police, can kill anyone except in self defence. Those who are encouraging fake killings are abetting murder and should be prosecuted - the statement quoted here from Aaranyak is more than enough evidence.
Flag ThisA further point. The author of this article seems to have had enough time to talk to everyone except the people who organised the protests he refers to. Had he done so, he would have gotten a very different picture of the NGOs and forest staff he idolizes here. Kaziranga has seen a series of peaceful mass demonstrations, huge in size, by people demanding their legal rights under Indian law. It would be good if conservationists actually started respecting democracy rather than behaving like the feudal kings of old, from whom they have inherited their notions of game parks and game reserves.
Flag ThisOne Further Thought -- As Shankar points out, those who are killed are not necessarily guilty. They are just dead, without a trial, without any way to say anything for themselves. Those who advocate 'blasting away' seem to be mean-spirited people of privilege, as the comment from Randy Hall Destin, FL indicates. He says, "We need the same policy for American Borders!!! " In other words, he wants US Border police to shoot on sight human beings trying to cross into the US in order to better their lives. Their crime? They do not have documents. As a US citizen whose family has been here for many generations, I do not know if the first member of my families came here legally or not. I certainly do not here in our American legends undening praise for the courage and fortitude of those who made sure they had their documents in order and followed the proper procedures for orderly entery into the country. What we get is the reverse -- praising the initiative of those who would take risks to help their families advance. How well this analogy fits with Rhino poachers is clearly a matter of judgment. They are doing something illegal. But let us think about the person shot on sight who has not done anything, because he can't speak for himself and whoever shot him will say he is a poacher not matter what. This policy may likely reduce support for conservation and thus defeat its own purpose.
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