Not Seeing the Cattle for the Elephants: The Implications of Discursive Linkages between Boko Haram and Wildlife Poaching in Waza National Park, Cameroon
The decline of wildlife in Central and West African border parks has been directly linked to Islamic terrorism in the region in media and government discourse. Using Waza National Park in the Far North Region of Cameroon as a case study, we show that wildlife declines in the park long preceded the a...
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2018-01-01
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doaj-1e38bd2b93a0482bb6c642aeeb80c62a2020-11-24T23:29:24ZengWolters Kluwer Medknow PublicationsConservation & Society0972-49232018-01-0116212513510.4103/cs.cs_16_153Not Seeing the Cattle for the Elephants: The Implications of Discursive Linkages between Boko Haram and Wildlife Poaching in Waza National Park, CameroonAlice Kelly PennazMouadjamou AhmadouMark MoritzPaul ScholteThe decline of wildlife in Central and West African border parks has been directly linked to Islamic terrorism in the region in media and government discourse. Using Waza National Park in the Far North Region of Cameroon as a case study, we show that wildlife declines in the park long preceded the appearance of Boko Haram, the extremist group best known for kidnapping over 200 girls in northern Nigeria. We also show that there is no evidence that Boko Haram are using wildlife products from the park to sustain their operations. Instead, the “poacher-as-terrorist” narrative obscures complex, historically embedded reasons for insecurity in northern Cameroon as well as massive losses of biodiversity in this region. The media and governments' focus on the “poacher-as-terrorist” narrative has important implications for the victims of Boko Haram, including mobile pastoralists. It is their cattle that are most likely a major source of sustenance and funding for the operations of Boko Haram. However, because these mobile pastoralist groups are “invisible” in the bush, their struggles remain ignored. We argue that the continued espousal of the “poacher-as-terrorist” narrative allows Boko Haram violence against mobile pastoralists to continue, and makes way for further environmental degradation in Cameroon's protected areas.http://www.conservationandsociety.org/article.asp?issn=0972-4923;year=2018;volume=16;issue=2;spage=125;epage=135;aulast=PennazWildlife conservationWaza National ParkCameroonBoko Harampolitical ecologywar on terrorpoachingborder parksivorypastoralists |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Alice Kelly Pennaz Mouadjamou Ahmadou Mark Moritz Paul Scholte |
spellingShingle |
Alice Kelly Pennaz Mouadjamou Ahmadou Mark Moritz Paul Scholte Not Seeing the Cattle for the Elephants: The Implications of Discursive Linkages between Boko Haram and Wildlife Poaching in Waza National Park, Cameroon Conservation & Society Wildlife conservation Waza National Park Cameroon Boko Haram political ecology war on terror poaching border parks ivory pastoralists |
author_facet |
Alice Kelly Pennaz Mouadjamou Ahmadou Mark Moritz Paul Scholte |
author_sort |
Alice Kelly Pennaz |
title |
Not Seeing the Cattle for the Elephants: The Implications of Discursive Linkages between Boko Haram and Wildlife Poaching in Waza National Park, Cameroon |
title_short |
Not Seeing the Cattle for the Elephants: The Implications of Discursive Linkages between Boko Haram and Wildlife Poaching in Waza National Park, Cameroon |
title_full |
Not Seeing the Cattle for the Elephants: The Implications of Discursive Linkages between Boko Haram and Wildlife Poaching in Waza National Park, Cameroon |
title_fullStr |
Not Seeing the Cattle for the Elephants: The Implications of Discursive Linkages between Boko Haram and Wildlife Poaching in Waza National Park, Cameroon |
title_full_unstemmed |
Not Seeing the Cattle for the Elephants: The Implications of Discursive Linkages between Boko Haram and Wildlife Poaching in Waza National Park, Cameroon |
title_sort |
not seeing the cattle for the elephants: the implications of discursive linkages between boko haram and wildlife poaching in waza national park, cameroon |
publisher |
Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications |
series |
Conservation & Society |
issn |
0972-4923 |
publishDate |
2018-01-01 |
description |
The decline of wildlife in Central and West African border parks has been directly linked to Islamic terrorism in the region in media and government discourse. Using Waza National Park in the Far North Region of Cameroon as a case study, we show that wildlife declines in the park long preceded the appearance of Boko Haram, the extremist group best known for kidnapping over 200 girls in northern Nigeria. We also show that there is no evidence that Boko Haram are using wildlife products from the park to sustain their operations. Instead, the “poacher-as-terrorist” narrative obscures complex, historically embedded reasons for insecurity in northern Cameroon as well as massive losses of biodiversity in this region. The media and governments' focus on the “poacher-as-terrorist” narrative has important implications for the victims of Boko Haram, including mobile pastoralists. It is their cattle that are most likely a major source of sustenance and funding for the operations of Boko Haram. However, because these mobile pastoralist groups are “invisible” in the bush, their struggles remain ignored. We argue that the continued espousal of the “poacher-as-terrorist” narrative allows Boko Haram violence against mobile pastoralists to continue, and makes way for further environmental degradation in Cameroon's protected areas. |
topic |
Wildlife conservation Waza National Park Cameroon Boko Haram political ecology war on terror poaching border parks ivory pastoralists |
url |
http://www.conservationandsociety.org/article.asp?issn=0972-4923;year=2018;volume=16;issue=2;spage=125;epage=135;aulast=Pennaz |
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