This archive report was first published on 2 September 2019.
Published on September 2, 2019, a shocking trend has emerged in Africa where British tourists are hunting monkeys for fun. The practice, which has been ongoing for years, has raised concerns among animal rights activists and conservationists.
According to reports, hundreds of baboons and vervet monkeys have been hauled back to the UK in recent years, with some companies offering cheap trophy hunts and even throwing in the monkeys for free. The hunts are legal under international law, but critics argue that they are inhumane and a crime against nature.
Explorer Sir Ranulph Fiennes has spoken out against the practice, saying, 'It is completely inhuman to shoot creatures who are so like us. What were these people thinking when they bought a 'monkey-hunting holiday'? They're a disgrace to our country. The people who do this should be in jail. This is a crime against nature.'
Some hunt firms encourage customers to use bows and arrows, increasing the risk of inflicting agonising injuries. Nearly 500 trophies from dead primates have been brought into Britain in recent years, including bodies, skins, and skulls, according to data from the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.
Conservationists are also concerned about the impact of the hunts on the remaining monkey populations. Audrey Delsink of the Humane Society International said, 'Vervet monkeys and baboons have a complex social system and hierarchy, and these killings cause havoc in the remaining troops. It's deeply disturbing that hunters, including children, would derive pleasure from such cruel acts.'
Some companies, like Africa Hunt Lodge, even offer 'no kill, no fee' policies, which has raised concerns about the ethics of the hunts. The company also arranges hunts for children, with a photo on its website showing a child named Nolan holding a rifle after a vervet monkey was shot.
Animal rights activists are calling for an end to the practice, with Eduardo Goncalves of the Campaign to Ban Trophy Hunting saying, 'People will be horrified that British hunters are shooting monkeys for fun. We share over 90 per cent of our DNA with monkeys and baboons. Trophy hunters are killing our evolutionary cousins.'
