Rhino dress a winner after all

Reigning Miss Namibia Suné January has been invited by Cornell University in the United States to discuss poaching issues in the Land of the Brave. January was the talk of town last year when she chose to dress in a Save Our Rhinos-inspired gown during the Miss Universe beauty pageant held in Las Vegas. The dress was ridiculed locally, but earned her international recognition, while some described her choice of dress as the best political statement of the night. January wore a horn headpiece and a cape with the phrase “Save Our Rhino” printed in glittery pink. January, who was also recently appointed patron of the Intelligence Support against Poaching (ISAP) Namibia, is scheduled to fly to the United States on 1 May. “They want me to talk about the poaching situation and why I chose to reflect on it. I will represent the environment ministry and ISAP,” she said. “Young people, including those in the pageant industry, want to get involved. I will continue helping ISAP by raising awareness and creating more attention as I go to the US to help curb poaching.” January was criticised locally when she first displayed her national costume. A local weekly wrote: “Miss Namibia, your national costume for the Miss Universe beauty pageant is horrendous. You look ridiculous, and wearing it will make Namibia a laughing stock. Your national costume is only a caricature; a cliché!” It continued to say that Namibians have been expressing their unhappiness about “this rhino-inspired, quasi-KKK costume” on social media. “Suné, we know that you did not design this monstrosity and that local designer Cobus Moller is actually responsible for this mess. This is NOT a national costume. We 'get' the importance of using an international platform to raise awareness about the devastating and criminal rhino poaching going on in Namibia; but we cannot at the same time define the diverse and beautiful Land of the Brave only in terms of poaching. It is not too late…please get another outfit!” Environment minister Pohamba Shifeta expressed his gratitude towards January for getting involved in the fight against poaching and for specifically raising awareness amongst the youth. “Make us proud on this trip. Joining anti-poaching activities is commendable and others must also follow suit,” said Shifeta. He said young people are the victims of poaching syndicates and are the ones forced into these illicit activities. He added that the ministry and ISAP must coordinate their activities, especially when it comes to poaching on private farms where poachers are now targeting rhinos. “You can really see that it is in-house people that are forming part of these cases,” he said. “I had a meeting with private farmers last year to see how they can be incorporated into the national strategy. We need to do more to ensure that poaching is not taking place anywhere in Namibia.” Shifeta also stressed that information provided by informants is very sensitive and therefore their identity must be concealed so that they will not be scared to do so again. ELLANIE SMIT

Rhino dress a winner after all

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Namibian Sun 2025-11-05

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Rhino dress a winner after all

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Namibian Sun 2025-11-05

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