What is a houbara bustard and what is its correlation with ‘Sheikhonomics’, a field of study whose arrow comes pointing towards Pakistan during the hunting season and beyond? Should this thing be safeguarded? Why does it keep coming to Pakistan while various species including humans are trying to quit it? These are Pakistan Studies’ current questions thatpoliticians fail to answer and resort to being marked as ‘ungraded’ because they perhaps have an utter disregard for the threatened species, including perhaps the resident Pakistanis, but that’s a broader and a separate topic altogether.
The houbara bustard, scientifically named Chlamydotis undulate is a shy bird, the size of a chicken, and is registered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in its red list of ‘threatened species’. Unfortunately, every year about 40,000 of these birds migrate from Central Asia to Pakistan to the arid parts of Southern Pakistan in the winter season, thus becoming prey to human politics and diplomacy.
The Sheikhs consider houbra meat as an aphrodisiac, and the poor birds’ arrival gives Pakistani politicians a chance at stirring soft diplomacy in the cauldron of lucrative Shiekhonomics. Permits are perpetually issued-dareI say granted? -tothe Arab elite by the Pakistani government.The variable that changes; however, the former being a constant remains in indirect possession of these endangered species, and this industry flourishes every year!
The Sheikhs consider houbra meat as an aphrodisiac, and the poor birds’ arrival gives Pakistani politicians a chance at stirring soft diplomacy in the cauldron of lucrative Shiekhonomics
Let’s not forget that our now prime minister was once vocal regarding the houbara bustards’ wellbeing when he mentioned in his tweets:”Never thought I would see the day when hunting of the endangered Houbara Bustard would become a ‘pillar of our foreign policy’.” (January 23, 2016). He also tweeted: “For $s we are allowing the killing of Houbara Bustard, an endangered species.”
With hopes of witnessing positive change, we are still feeble in our own existence as Pakistanis. Whether it is political acquiescence or soft diplomacy, we continue walking on eggshells as a nation, and nothing much seems to change amidst the ‘tabdeeli’ (change) jingle. Hunting of houbara bustards is banned but of course that varies based on one’s nationality and worth. Pakistanis are not allowed to hunt the migratory aphrodisiac! The rights have been reserved.
Back in 2015, even at the time of the blanket ban on the hunting of these birds, partridge hunting licences were issued.Of course, it wasn’t partridges that were killed but it was rather a temporary synonym being used instead of bustards. The blanket later developed holes and the ban was lifted in 2016.The Lahore High Courtslapped a ban on houbra hunting in January 2018. It is thus a game of hide and seek, with the bustards losing every time, irrespective of the imposition of the ban whose effectiveness is doubtful to begin with.
Houbara bustards’ current global population is estimated to be between 50,000 to 100,000. The rate at which the species reproduces is rather not remarkable and does not justify hunting, given the dwindling population. For instance, in a year, the bird lays about two clutches, which could go up to three sometimes, and each clutch contains onlytwo to four eggs. The combination of their habitat destruction and hunting has had them classified as threatened.
Nowadays, for a 10-day, person-specific permit given, the hunter can hunt 100 houbara bustards during the three-month hunting season falling between November 1, 2019 and January 31, 2020. This 10-day permit costs $100,000. While at least the present government has set a price, the previous one made an open offer to foreign hunters without charging any fee or setting any limits.
The foreign ministry’s Deputy Chief of Protocol Mohammad Adeel Pervaiz, while issuing such permits, can perhaps formulate an answer based on what greater good this will do to the image of Pakistan and its diminishing wildlife or even for the welfare of its people. Let alone enacting laws, the country lacks the implementation of laws that would protect wildlife. Take for instance, the sale of poached birds on roads by mendicants who set the birds free against a price that they demandand that they label as charity. Hence, there is a great need of instilling civic sense in the nation in order to make everyone realise the importance of such matters that may appear trivial to begin with.Then only wouldthe nationraise voice against the hunting of wildlife that may make it endangered and eventually extinct.
The officials will argue that the funds collected are to be spent on the development of a few particular areas while a percentage will be kept aside for the Houbara Foundation for the progression of these birds. However, given the limited clutch they produce and their declining population one shouldn’t keep high hopes.
According to surveys, the population of houbara bustards in Punjab in December 2017, December 2019, and December 2019 was 6,223, 6,759, and 5,302 respectively, a 21.5 percent decline as compared to the preceding year. In Cholistan, thehoubra population was 4,299 in 2017 versus 3,575 in 2019, while in the Thal area it was recorded to be 591 in 2017 and zero in 2019. In the Rajanpur-Rojhan area, these birds’ population was estimated to be 1,333 in 2017, 1,880 in 2018, and 1,729 in 2019. It should also be noted that in September 2019, 500 captive birds were released at the Cholistan site before the surveys were conducted, which means that the population decline would have been even more severe otherwise.
In this season, countless districts in Sindh, Balochistan and Punjab have been given the permits for bustards’ hunting.
The question remains: is the hunting of houbara bustards really sustainable or the cornerstone of our relationship with wealthy dignitaries? Our in-house corruption has shackled us in the alms that we receive as we go on the brink of defaulting every now and then. Perhaps there never will be any answers.
The writer is a communication professional and a wildlife photographer