Please Sign Petition to Save Elephants and Wildlife.

October 13, 2005

Please Sign Petition to Save The Elephants and Wildlife.PLease CLick Here : http://www.saveamboseli.net/Save AmboseliOn the 28th September 2005, The President of Kenya, The RtHon Mwai Kibaki MP, asked the Minister for Tourism and Wildlifeto publish a legal notice in the Kenya Gazettement SupplementNo 20, declaring that Amboseli National Park would henceforthbecome a National Reserve. This would mean that themanagement of the Park would be removed from the KenyaWildlife Service (KWS) and placed in the care of OlkejiadoCounty Council. This change of status would also permit a wider range of humanactivities within the protected area that are not allowed in aNational Park.The reaction from wildlife experts including former director ofKWS, Dr David Western, the East African Wild Life Society, BornFree Foundation and others has

been one of dismay. The factsto consider:1. That the change of status has been done in a manner whichis illegal since it has not, as we understand it, conformed to therequirements of the Wildlife Act which would require that anysuch proposal should be only undertaken following consultationwith relevant stakeholders such as KWS, a 60 day publiccomment period and ratification by the National Assembly. Asfar as we are aware, none of these provisions have beencomplied with.2. Amboseli National Park is a UNESCO Man and the Biospheresite which should mean that it is accorded the highest possiblenational priority in terms of its conservation. Downgrading thePark's status to that of National Reserve is inconsistent with thatobligation3. Amboseli National Park last year generated approximately240 million Kenyan Shillings (approximately 3.5 million US $)funds that would have been

directed to the KWS and whichwould, in part, have been used to support other national parksthat are less well known and less able to generate revenue. Itseems almost certain that other parks will suffer following thiswithdrawal of income source.What can we do about this?A. A number of wildlife and conservation organisations bothKenyan and from around the world, have signed a full-pageOpen Letter to the President, published in the Daily Nation onThursday 6th October 2005.B. We are inviting the public to register their opposition to thedowngrading of Amboseli National Park by voting belowThank you for your concern and support.Save Amboseli!

Music Unlimited - Access over 1 million songs. Try it free.