Locals Don’t Respect The Rules

I am a Canadian birdwatcher on a visit to Namibia.

I am having an exciting and fascinating trip to your beautiful and friendly country. When I was in Swakopmund I walked to the river mouth with great anticipation hoping to see the birds taking advantage of the water in the river to feed and to breed.You can imagine my shock and sadness when I saw local citizens abusing the conservation area.There is a sign saying no vehicles or camping as well as a low cable fence there.The fence had been taken down and while I was there two large 4×4 vehicles drove over the fence into the lagoon area.The people in the cars were married middle-aged couples who looked quite prosperous—they were not young punks.As well as these two vehicles, I saw others in the lagoon area and even spotted a camper’s tent! This river mouth is a haven for birds and I think it is sad that local residents are ignoring the rules and putting the fence down and crossing it.There are not many places like this on the Namibian coast and I wish that the local people would respect the rules that the local authorities have made and not force the local government to spend a huge amount of money on enforcement.I am glad to say that when I returned five days later, the rope fence had been put back and the camper was gone.I did however still see one vehicle out in the river mouth.I am writing this letter to express my sadness at the blatant disregard for law and our fellow creatures on this earth and hope that the citizens of Swakopmund will be responsible citizens in the future.Alexandra Eadie Via e-mailWhen I was in Swakopmund I walked to the river mouth with great anticipation hoping to see the birds taking advantage of the water in the river to feed and to breed.You can imagine my shock and sadness when I saw local citizens abusing the conservation area.There is a sign saying no vehicles or camping as well as a low cable fence there.The fence had been taken down and while I was there two large 4×4 vehicles drove over the fence into the lagoon area.The people in the cars were married middle-aged couples who looked quite prosperous—they were not young punks.As well as these two vehicles, I saw others in the lagoon area and even spotted a camper’s tent! This river mouth is a haven for birds and I think it is sad that local residents are ignoring the rules and putting the fence down and crossing it.There are not many places like this on the Namibian coast and I wish that the local people would respect the rules that the local authorities have made and not force the local government to spend a huge amount of money on enforcement.I am glad to say that when I returned five days later, the rope fence had been put back and the camper was gone.I did however still see one vehicle out in the river mouth.I am writing this letter to express my sadness at the blatant disregard for law and our fellow creatures on this earth and hope that the citizens of Swakopmund will be responsible citizens in the future.Alexandra Eadie Via e-mail