Eleven people have been sentenced to death in Tanzania for the 2017 killing of South African anti-poaching activist, Wayne Lotter.
The verdict, which came more than five years after Mr Lotter was shot dead while travelling in a taxi in the Masaki district of Dar es Salaam, is being described as a significant win in the fight against animal poaching in the East African nation.
Mr Lotter was the co-founder of Pams Foundation, a non-profit that supports anti-poaching initiatives across Africa by providing expertise and help to communities and governments.
At the time of his death, he had been a leading conservationist and central figure in East Africa’s fight against poaching, partially responsible for some of the biggest ivory busts in the continent's history.
In 2015, with Mr Lotter’s help, Tanzania’s elite anti-poaching National and Transnational Serious Crimes Investigation Unit arrested Yang Feng Glan, a Chinese citizen, who led one of the biggest ivory syndicates in East Africa.
Yang, who was called the Queen of Ivory, is serving a 15-year sentence for trafficking 860 elephant tusks worth more than $6 million.
Between 2009 and 2014, ivory poachers decimated Tanzania’s elephant population, reducing it by more than 60 per cent.
Before his killing, Mr Lotter had received multiple death threats for the work he and his organisation were carrying out, the Pams Foundation said.
Since 2012, the NTSCIU has arrested nearly 3,000 poachers and ivory traffickers leading to prison sentences over 90 per cent of the time.
It took investigators years to build their cases against the 11 people convicted in Mr Lotter's murder, who include the two gunmen and nine accomplices.
“It really feels like we finally achieved our milestone that we've been plugging away at for so long,” said Krissie Clark, executive director of Pams Foundation, who co-founded the organisation with Mr Lotter. “It just feels amazing to be able to close this chapter.
While the 11 were given death sentences, that equates to life in prison, as Tanzania has not carried out an execution since 1995, Pams Foundation said.
The case took half a decade to wind its way through the Tanzanian justice system, with multiple attempts to derail it, explained Mary Rice, Executive Director of the Environmental Investigation Agency.
Ms Rice described Mr Lotter’s death as “well planned” and a “co-ordinated assassination.”
"Someone who was threatened by the success of Wayne and Krissie’s efforts to address organised poaching and ivory trafficking networks that had been operating out of Tanzania for so long. Someone with influence, protection and financial backing."
She credited the Tanzanian government with seeing the case through.
“That Tanzania has recognised this and has ensured the case was followed through with due process demonstrates a positive step in the fight against the corruption that plagues so many similar cases,” she told The National.
Ms Clark, who was in the car with Mr Lotter when he was murdered, said the last five years had been “challenging” and that she was looking forward to “moving on” and continuing Mr Lotter’s life work.
“He was an incredible guy with dedication, passion and integrity,” she told The National. “If everyone could work with the same passion, dedication and determination as he did, this [world] would be an incredible place.”
In her sentencing, Judge Edith Mgonya said “[Wayne’s] death did not only affect his family, his foundation and his friends but Tanzania as a destination and the world at large.”
Super 30
Produced: Sajid Nadiadwala and Phantom Productions
Directed: Vikas Bahl
Cast: Hrithik Roshan, Pankaj Tripathi, Aditya Srivastav, Mrinal Thakur
Rating: 3.5 /5
Company: Instabug
Founded: 2013
Based: Egypt, Cairo
Sector: IT
Employees: 100
Stage: Series A
Investors: Flat6Labs, Accel, Y Combinator and angel investors
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Tips for SMEs to cope
- Adapt your business model. Make changes that are future-proof to the new normal
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UK-EU trade at a glance
EU fishing vessels guaranteed access to UK waters for 12 years
Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products
Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries
Smoother border management with use of e-gates
Cutting red tape on import and export of food
The Lowdown
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Director: Jordan Peele
Starring: Lupita Nyong'o, Winston Duke, Shahadi Wright Joseqph, Evan Alex and Elisabeth Moss
Rating: 4/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Six tips to secure your smart home
Most smart home devices are controlled via the owner's smartphone. Therefore, if you are using public wi-fi on your phone, always use a VPN (virtual private network) that offers strong security features and anonymises your internet connection.
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Most sought after workplace benefits in the UAE
- Flexible work arrangements
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Credits
Produced by: Colour Yellow Productions and Eros Now
Director: Mudassar Aziz
Cast: Sonakshi Sinha, Jimmy Sheirgill, Jassi Gill, Piyush Mishra, Diana Penty, Aparshakti Khurrana
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La Mer lowdown
La Mer beach is open from 10am until midnight, daily, and is located in Jumeirah 1, well after Kite Beach. Some restaurants, like Cupagahwa, are open from 8am for breakfast; most others start at noon. At the time of writing, we noticed that signs for Vicolo, an Italian eatery, and Kaftan, a Turkish restaurant, indicated that these two restaurants will be open soon, most likely this month. Parking is available, as well as a Dh100 all-day valet option or a Dh50 valet service if you’re just stopping by for a few hours.
Abu Dhabi traffic facts
Drivers in Abu Dhabi spend 10 per cent longer in congested conditions than they would on a free-flowing road
The highest volume of traffic on the roads is found between 7am and 8am on a Sunday.
Travelling before 7am on a Sunday could save up to four hours per year on a 30-minute commute.
The day was the least congestion in Abu Dhabi in 2019 was Tuesday, August 13.
The highest levels of traffic were found on Sunday, November 10.
Drivers in Abu Dhabi lost 41 hours spent in traffic jams in rush hour during 2019
Six large-scale objects on show
- Concrete wall and windows from the now demolished Robin Hood Gardens housing estate in Poplar
- The 17th Century Agra Colonnade, from the bathhouse of the fort of Agra in India
- A stagecloth for The Ballet Russes that is 10m high – the largest Picasso in the world
- Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1930s Kaufmann Office
- A full-scale Frankfurt Kitchen designed by Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, which transformed kitchen design in the 20th century
- Torrijos Palace dome
