According to Department of Tourism officials I spoke with over the phone, there was no elephant quota or permits issued where the elephant was taken. Not only was there no quota for the specific concession, but the entire region. Officials say the elephant was originally shot in the Nungo concession. The animal crossed over into a neighboring concession where the hunters followed it and finished it off, according to the official report. Upon hearing that an elephant had been killed in the area, officials were dispatched to the camp where they seized the ivory. At this writing the tusks were at the Lichinga tourism offices. The investigation had not been closed yet, but officials told me that was only because three agencies were involved and each was determining the fines and other sanctions that would be leveled and exactly who would be held responsible. Speculation is that Peter Wood did not know there was no quota and was merely following the boss' orders. Whittall, however, had to know they could not get permits. He had not returned any of my e-mails at press time.
Besides the obvious legal matters and question of ethical conduct, what makes this incident all the worse is that Mozambique has a reputation for not being able........(continued)
