[WATCH] Krugersdorpers on Cincinatti Zoo killing
Harambe, a 17-year-old gorilla, was shot by officials at the Zoo on Saturday after a child fell into its enclosure. Krugersdorpers have their say about the Zoo's actions.
The shooting and killing of a gorilla named Harambe after a four-year-old child fell into the animal’s enclosure at the Cincinnati Zoo on Saturday, 28 May has resulted in waves of outrage across the globe. The News, through a poll on Facebook, asked its Krugersdorp readers if they thought it was fair to shoot Harambe.
Storm Joanie Austen said: “Zoos should be banned. Animals should not be kept for people’s entertainment. Imagine living in one enclosure till you die. No thanks.”
Frikkie Jacobie said: “Who should have died? The boy?”
Valerie Hooneberg said: “No, they should have shot the mother and given the child to Harambe. Harambe would have been a better mother.”
Mike Tanski said: “Could they not have darted the gorilla?”
A video, captured by a zoo visitor, shows Harambe dragging the boy through the water:
Harambe was shot dead by officials at the Cincinnati Zoo, Ohio, USA, just one day after his 17th birthday. The Daily Mail has reported that many are placing the blame for the incident squarely on the parents of the child. Investigators believe that the boy crawled through a railing and fell into the moat around the gorilla exhibit before being dragged through the water by Harambe for about 10 minutes.
“The small child said he wanted to get in the water before the incident, to which the mother, who was also watching several other children, replied: ‘No, you’re not, no, you’re not,’ according to a witness named Kim O’Connor,” the report read.
#CincinattiZoo shot the wrong mammal. If the mother was looking after her kid as well as the gorilla did, there would've been no shooting.
— April Hunter (@AprilHunter) May 30, 2016
https://twitter.com/marissaamm/status/737124951786803200?lang=en
The Zoo’s Dangerous Animal Response Team shot and killed the animal, instead of tranquilising it. The Zoo’s Director, Thane Maynard, said “We are heartbroken about losing Harambe, but a child’s life was in danger and a quick decision had to be made by our Dangerous Animal Response Team. Our first response was to call the gorillas out of the exhibit. The two females complied, but Harambe did not. It is important to note that tranquilising the 450 pound (200 kilogram) gorilla with the child still in the exhibit was not an option. Tranquilisers do not take effect for several minutes and the child was in imminent danger. On top of that, the impact from the dart could have agitated Harambe, and caused the situation to get much worse,” he said.
Maynard added that Gorilla World, the section of the Zoo that Harambe called home, opened in 1978, and this is the first time there has been a breach of security.
The child was transported to Children’s Hospital Medical Center after being removed from the enclosure and was discharged on Saturday night.
What do you think of the incident? Was it fair? Let us know in the comments section below or tweet to the News @krugersdorpnews.
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