WILDLEX

This is an appeal by the appellant against his conviction and sentence by the Regional Court magistrate, Upington, on charges of contravention of sections 44(1)(b)(i) and 46 of the Nature and Environmental Conservation Ordinance 19 of 1974.

The court held that in this matter, it was common cause that a South African Court had jurisdiction to decide ownership of the Sable based on the cession agreement. The court found that the cession agreement had been signed by the attorney, acting under the authority of the first respondent.

The appellant was found guilty in the Upington Magistrate’s Court, and appealed his conviction and sentence to the Northern Cape High Court where the conviction and sentence on the first count was set aside, and the conviction on the second count confirmed but the sentence was amended.

The second respondent (“the Minister”) had announced the complete suspension of the commercial fishing of wild abalone in accordance with section 16 of the Marine Living Resources Act 18 of 1998. The applicants were rights holders in the industry. They lodged protests against the suspension.

This case involves a company (HBFI) that was involved in harvesting fish in excess of its quotas and buying illegally harvested fish from other catchers which violated inter alia the Marine Living Resources Act 18 of 1998 (‘the Marine Act’).

On 11 April 2017, the accused persons BIBE Jean & EMANE Marceline received a modern gun and food provisions from a certain MINYONO of Mfem Village to carry out elephant poaching in the Dja Biosphere Reserve.