Ethiopian president comes to rescue of rare Abyssinian lion cubs

The Associated Press, 11.12.2006

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia: The Abyssinian lion, famous for its black mane, adorns statues as well as the local currency.

But while Ethiopians have long been fascinated with the rare lion, this is a perilous place to be one.

Only 3,000 Abyssinian lions remain, according to the country's wildlife officials. Last month, the administrator of Addis Ababa's Lion Zoo announced the government's flagship zoo had begun poisoning Abyssinian lion cubs and selling the corpses to be stuffed, because it couldn't afford to care for the animals any longer.

So when an Italian aid group found two orphaned cubs near the Somali border, it took them to the Italian Embassy 800 kilometers (497 miles) away, not the zoo. Chantal Benaben, the wife of the Italian deputy ambassador and a well-known animal lover, has been caring for them inside a fenced garden outside the embassy.

"They were on the verge of death when I got them, and now they have all of their vaccinations and they are healthy," she said.

On a recent afternoon, the orphaned cubs, nicknamed Janu and Andrea, rolled and leaped on the ground, nipping at each other like puppies. They played, oblivious to the Ethiopian president, their most recent admirer, who watched from the sidelines.

But the cubs are getting bigger, and officials from the government-run Ethiopian Wildlife Association are concerned about the thin chain-link fence holding them in. They told the Italian diplomat's spouse that she would not be allowed to keep them much longer. If a permanent home was not found, the cubs would be killed, Benaben was told.

Officials at the state-run agency did not return calls seeking comment.

Enter the cubs' next savior, President Girma Wolde-Giorgis. He learned about the orphaned cubs and found them a new home in the country's eastern, fertile Awash Valley, more than 600 kilometers (373 miles) from Addis Ababa.

"I have been able to find a home from a private individual who will be able to take the cubs in and give them a good home," Girma told The Associated Press.

Abyssinian lions, living only in Ethiopia and easily distinguished from other lions for their black manes, roam the country, but are rarely protected. Although government wildlife officials say there are 3,000 Abyssinian lions, conservationists say the real tally is closer to 1,000. They blame lax enforcement of laws against poachers for their dwindling numbers.

In November, Muhedin Abdulaziz, the administrator of Addis Ababa's Lion Zoo said the zoo is being forced to kill the rare lion, poisoning six cubs this year due to a lack of space and funding.

The zoo costs around US$6,000 to run each month, but gets only US$5,000 in entrance fees, said Abdulaziz. Taxidermists pay US$170 for a dead cub.

Ethiopia, home to 77 million people, has long associated the lion with their monarch, whom they refer to as the lion of Judah.

It's a symbol that merits saving, says Benaben — an effort that could begin with Andrea and Janus.

"I'm really hoping that these cubs are properly taken care of — because if you look at how the zoo treats their lions, you just never know what can happen," she said. "They (Ethiopians) could use these lions like the Chinese use the Panda bear, or how Pakistan has used the snow leopard, to promote their countries."

International Herald Tribune