Summary Execution by Richard Mark Dobson
Rhino poaching is on the increase in South Africa. As world demand for the horn increases in China and the Middle East (used in traditional medicine and to make dagger handles) the number of Rhino poached in South Africa in 2008 was close to 100. The dead animals include the critically endangered Black Rhino.
The rising death toll comes amid allegations that Mozambican authorities are not doing enough to crack down on known suspects and, in some cases, might be abetting poachers. Cross border incursions by poachers into South Africa’s Kruger National Park from neighbouring Mozambique, have been made easier with the formation of the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park (a total area of 35 000 square kilometres) which links the Kruger with the Limpopo National Park in Mozambique.
A recent report revealed that poachers killed at least 43 rhinos between January 2004 and July 2008 in the Kruger Park and around its border. More than 40 rhinos were shot there between January and the end of November last year.
In many cases Mozambicans, allegedly employed by Asian syndicates operating out of South Africa, are the prime suspects. The syndicates are said to provide their local recruits with high-calibre weapons. Crossbows are also used because they are silent.
As part of my recent GEO assignment on South Africa’s borderline, I was given permission to go foot patrol with an anti-poaching task force, whose job it is to search out snares and when possible apprehend and arrest poachers. It’s a difficult and dangerous mission.
Unfortunately after 2 days of walking in the bush with nothing more than my Nikon to protect me (oh and 4 armed rangers with R1 rifles), I had drawn a blank photographically. No pictures of snares, or dead Rhino or dead poachers for that matter, and I was left with the conundrum of how best to illustrate the plight of the Rhino in the Kruger.
This picture of a juvenile White Rhino presented itself a day later. Darted from a chopper and with a blindfold to protect its dilated eyes from the harsh African sun, this female was been relocated to another reserve. I thought the towel created a quirky element to the picture, and raised a WTF is happening here kind of a question. Summary Execution? This demands attention.
My reasoning being, once I your attention, then I guess I can go on and tell you about the plight of the Rhino in Africa.
Want to see more of my borderline pics…go here
Richard,
I really like this photograph. At first, I was scared by it. I didn’t want to read the information you wrote, as I was nervous about what was about to happen to the rhino? Did your title choice have anything to do with this? Yes, as you explain. I think the strength of this image lies in its ambiguity. Important story, and sad. But the picture iteslf could easily have come from a William Eggleston body of work (imho). And that wonder/questioning/uncertainty made me nervous about the fate of this rhino. And therefore made me think about it for awhile, and the whole issue of poaching.
Animals always push my “sad” buttons, and it is interesting that this photograph makes me feel more nervous and worried than the recently posted photograph of the poor guy who was beaten up.
I think that this image would look great as part of the story, and I can imagine turning the page of your article and being struck by it’s power. Having read the information about the cloth protecting the rhino’s eyes, it still makes me nervous. Perhaps it has something to do with human control, no matter whether it is the rangers or the poachers, these poor beasts, massive in size and strength, seem to be at the mercy of a much physicslly weaker species. Also, the rhino’s vision having been taken away, albeit briefly, alludes to a darkness and unknowing. It still makes me sad this image.
Regards.
i love what you’re doing, thank you so much for helping with awareness, your website will spread
Anton
I can’t see “execution”, even in the archive
Gordon L
GORDON…
looked on two different computers and ok here…
Gordon, DAH, Anton etc…
I’ve been having difficulties seeing images and essays on IE8, but not so much problem on Chrome.
Haven’t tried Safari yet.
Can’t see this one on IE either….this one and Beating never appeared – was able to see beating in the archives, will look there for this one as well. it’s not the computer, it’s the browser….
Seems to be an Internet Explorer issue – I know Anton quickly fixed this on some images in the past, saying it was “an error in the posting”….but that’s all I know.
Ok, can’t see this one in the archive, either….
:(
Can see it if I use Safari. It’s a posting/browser thing.
Now, back to your regularly scheduled discussion.
I would just like to say thankyou for this…
Great shot, great story, great education and a great motivator to lobby governments to be more on the case about poaching and smuggling.
Do you know Paddy Brown’s work? Shooting this kind of story is as risky as shooting in a war and the folk that take these issues on are definitely brave, brave people.
Its funny isn’t it that there aren’t more resources put into stopping the destruction of animal habitats and the animals themselves because they are not deemed as valuable as other resources.
Thanks again for this one, the poor old rhino just looks so frightened, it breaks my heart…
Thats Patrick Brown BTW and his website is http://www.patrickbrownphoto.com/
from Panos
to the
blind folded rhino..
and then to the previous photos (beatings),
LOVE the context
of the images
you give us David…
challenge the viewer,
success!!
I was glad to read the text with this one..
when I 1st saw it
I wasn’t moved by it,
almost seemed like an ad
for something…
Thats what I don’t like about the digital world…
perhaps the towel was imposed on the rhino…
but to read the text,
WOW
powerful and
educational….
thank you for that…
I wish I wasn’t so
jaded
with imagery
and
the digital world,
and where it has taken photography….
so nice to read this was a straight photo
and to read
WHY you took the photo….
bravo
bravo
**
A great picture and thank you so much for the story behind the image. I second Lisa’s recommendation about brilliant and long term work about the slaughtering of animals….
This picture broke my heart….the covering of her eyes, the white flag of piece…her hidden spine, her magnificent profile, unloved ’cause of cover, ’cause of being poached….in many ways, both of these photographs today are about isolation, about fragility, about loneliness…
about how much we have lost and taken…and that, we are alone, mostly because we are charged and isolated…
a heart-breaking, poignant and charged photograph…that ephemeral wisp of white as quickly lost as her magnificent, powerful heart that charges the bulk of her stalward and strong frame….
so fragile, that we have wasted for so long…
thank you so much for sharing this photograph…i shall never think again of a rhino without the thought of this white linen draping/protecting/hiding her….
sublime and heartbreaking…
all the best
bob
Richard, i sympathise with you for your effort without hoped for benefit, but more so i think it was great what you came up with at crunch-time and i think the wtf factor is just perfectly delivered. True talent and creativity to make something out of something a bit less than what you hoped for. Best wishes.
typo – ¨My reasoning being, once I *have?* your attention, then I guess I can go on and tell yo….¨
it certainly grabbed attention richard and made me read the whole shebang..
a really interesting illustrative photo and clever title..
congrats on getting the job done in one form or another..
it makes me think that with photography – as much work as we put into preplanned and visualizing the possible photo opportunities.. perhaps the cliches which will get published and make the moula.. having an open mind to what is actually going to happen will always provide the most interesting shots..
in the case of this photo i think that subtlety resulting from determination has provided a much more interesting photograph than the ones you sought richard.. powerful in it´s quiet reminders of so many execution photographs..
one tim page photo springs to mind, but i cannot find it on the web.
:ø)
now.. to work out the common links between this ´execution´ and panos´photo overleaf..
There seems to be a trend at the moment for visual pairing of photographs (motel / summary execution beating / bullet catcher) that does not work for me. I’m fine about pairs of photographs from a photographer but I don’t like them from an editor: I think that a photographers work should be shown in isolation.
As for this photograph, it may be the best that Richard could produce under the (difficult) circumstances but I don’t feel that it is strong enough (for me) to carry the weight of the text. A little too ambiguous for me as a single photograph.
Best,
Mike.
i really like the pairing of photos and have always viewed the posts as a narrative of sorts.. one post which brings a heated debate could be followed with a platitude..
summary execution next to panos could possibly hint at an anticipated onslaught of love-it hate-it ´over there´.. *a tongue in cheek smile*
Can’t see the picture. What do I need to do?
try deleting cookies? different browser?
it´s certainly there
:ø9
gordon –
harry –
should work now… try again?
For what it’s worth. I like the pairing of photographs. It’s like hearing a noise and turning your head.
It’s energetic and thought-provoking and stimulates me to thinking in a narrative vein. Then i may decide that they don’t work, but it does engage me instead of ‘flipping by’
Wendy. you said it. (as did bob black) Where else would we have access to the incredible work here on Burn and ‘listen’ to thoughts and critiques to make us think. It makes me sad to see that rhino and nervous to think of what it was like stalking through the bush. Honestly i can’t stand looking at the bloody man against the wall; i never would have taken that. it’s too close to home. I would have gone stalking the rhino though; that adrenaline rush of danger i could handle but i’d try to hide the rhino so no one would get it. I think it’s a good photograph because it’s not exciting. It’s poignant to think of something innocent being killed. The helplessness. Not too far from what happens in combat. Anne
Nice quirky picture. Rhino poachers are the real deal. They also get shot themselves considering that none of the poachers actually ends up rich it’s a very risky business.
DAVID B….ANNE
thanks for looking at the pairings….i do try to either pace from one day to the next or to publish doubles for interactive thinking…it does not always work, but that is what i try to do..as you may imagine, i am doing this never knowing quite what is coming to me from day to day, so it is definitely “seat of the pants” editing…
cheers, david
Anton
It is working fine for me now.