Two viral videos of Cape Peninsula baboons attacking visitors have gone viral on social media.
This comes amid outrage by animal activists over the increase in deaths of the animals, believed to be “hunted” by members of the public. Others have been lethally removed under a controversial official baboon-management translocation guideline.
WATCH: CAPE PENINSULA BABOONS ATTACK!
On her TikTok account, a German female student living in Cape Town posted a video of a Cape Peninsula baboon attacking her.
In the clip, the animal lunges at her, stealing her handbag containing various food snacks.
“Going to the beach in Cape Town. But the saxophones are getting louder”, she captioned the post.
@brandonleesteenberg Only in Capetown will you see such k@k…. #capetown #kungfu #kuier #baklei #bobbejaan ♬ Kung Fu Fighting – Carl Douglas
In another viral video, a baboon was seen attacking another female, who quickly escaped into her nearby car.
@brandonleesteenberg Only in Capetown will you see such k@k…. #capetown #kungfu #kuier #baklei #bobbejaan ♬ Kung Fu Fighting – Carl Douglas
TRANSLOCATION BACKLASH, DEATHS
Last year, the Cape Peninsula Baboon Management Joint Task Team (CPBMJTT), comprising representatives from South African National Parks, Cape Nature, and the City of Cape Town, issued a controversial proposal to translocate the baboon population, whose numbers have exceeded available management resources.
The group outlined plans for baboon troops to be captured and relocated to a newly established sanctuary on the peninsula as soon as February.
The animals will be enclosed by a “baboon-proof” fence line, patrolled by rangers to prevent the baboons from accessing urban areas and farmland.
Euthanasia was described as a last resort.
The plan has received backlash from animal activists.
In recent months, activists have also expressed concern at the deaths of several baboons, believed to have been “hunted” by members of the public.
