Grahamstown will take part in the Global March for Lions on Saturday 15 March, joining 44 cities around the world in the aim of exposing the practice of canned lion hunting and putting it to an end.
Grahamstown will take part in the Global March for Lions on Saturday 15 March, joining 44 cities around the world in the aim of exposing the practice of canned lion hunting and putting it to an end.
The international march was organised by Chris Mercer and Bev Pervan, the founders of charity Campaign Against Canned Hunting (CACH).
Canned hunting is a legal activity in South Africa, and involves breeding lions in captivity.
These lions are first used as cubs in the cub-petting industry.
Once they reach maturity, they are placed in enclosures to be shot for a large sum of money.
The aim of the march is to expose the practices of the industry and make an argument for banning the sport.
It also calls on the South African government to put a stop to canned hunting in general.
According to the organisers of the march, there are only 20 000 lions left in South Africa, 900 of which are legally hunted each year as trophy animals.
They also claim that there more lions are being kept in captivity than there are in the wild.
Over 160 canned lion hunting camps have been established in the last 15 years, reads a statement on the CACH website.
Because of these factors, activists fear that lions are at a higher risk of becoming extinct than the rhino.
The march in Grahamstown will be led by CACH representative Jenny Copley-Foster. It starts at 9.45am at the Drostdy Arch, ending at Church Square at noon. For more information, please visit the even page on Facebook: "Global March for Lions – Grahamstown South Africa".
