The rescue plan that Colombia ignored
Ernesto Zazueta, president of the Mexican Zoo Association, cannot believe what is happening. They have been working for three years on an international strategy to save the 80 hippos from the Magdalena River. And now, the Colombian authorities are simply going to sacrifice them.
“The project did not obtain authorization from the Colombian Ministry of the Environment,” Zazueta explained with obvious frustration.
The idea was brilliant and concrete: move 70 copies to India and another 10 to Mexico. The specialized shrines were already ready. The Ostok Sanctuary and the Greens Zoological Rescue and Rehabilitation Center had everything ready to receive them.
But someone in Bogotá said no.
A decision that smells bad
The most outrageous thing is that there were viable alternatives. The relocation was a sustainable option, supported by international experts. However, the Colombian government opted for the most drastic solution: sacrificing half of the population.
Zazueta insists that this did not have to happen. Three years of meticulous work goes to waste because some bureaucrat decided that it was easier to kill animals than to sign some papers.
How many times have we seen this movie? Conservation promises that fade when the time comes to act. Institutional selective memory where the most vulnerable always lose.
Meanwhile, 80 hippos await a fate that could have been different.
