No one is using the n-word (never) at this point, but the amount of time that has passed since Namibia allowed hunting on government concessions is getting very worrisome indeed. A way simply has to be found around the current logjam, which appears to be rooted in black empowerment - the issue that is roiling the industry all across the continent.
It is probably not politically smart for The Hunting Report to weigh in on an issue this sensitive, so we will refrain from doing so except to point out that there are workable models available in the US and elsewhere that could be used to fashion an African solution to this continuing problem. Take the model available in Alaska, for example, where Native Alaskans have priority in bidding for the provision of all sorts of government services around the country - from hauling garbage in the distant state of Alabama to providing security services at nuclear power plants. Native Corporations have earned millions of dollars this way, and that money has flowed down to Native shareholders across the state.
This kind of thing is not a long-term solution to the problem of Native Alaskan alienation and poverty, of course, but it does generate money for a disadvantaged group and generally move things forward. Importantly, it does not result in deteriorating service. Government regulation prevents that. Similarly, can't blacks be allowed some kind of priority in the bidding for some hunting areas, within a framework that forced them to deal with competent, long-term operators? High-quality hunting would go forward. Whites and blacks would make money. Hunting would thrive. The Hunting Report's pages are open........(continued)
