;)
Operation RAMP ran from September–October and involved national wildlife enforcement authorities, including police, Customs and specialized units from participating countries.
The Operation focused particularly on illegal activities relating to the trade and possession of endangered reptiles and investigations were carried out on individuals and companies as well as inspections of premises such as seaports and wholesalers.
INTERPOL’s Environmental Crime Programme unit acted as a key operational communications and intelligence centre during the two-month operation, facilitating the exchange of information between the participating enforcement agencies.
“Our goal in Operation RAMP was to detect and apprehend suspected wildlife criminals, whilst also furthering co-operation and collaboration between agencies and countries in an effort to enhance the fight against organized environmental crime,” said Bernd Rossbach, Director of INTERPOL’s Specialized Crime unit.
“While investigations will continue well beyond the conclusion of Operation RAMP, this operation has shown what the international law enforcement community can collaboratively achieve against suspected environmental criminals and their networks.
“The success of this operation would not have been possible without the close co-operation and dedication of the police, customs, wildlife law enforcement agencies and specialized units in all of the participating countries.”
John Scanlon, Secretary-General of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), who was briefed on the results of the operation during a visit to INTERPOL headquarters on Tuesday, said"The fact that INTERPOL helps co-ordinate such worldwide operations illustrates the level of serious criminality that is now commonly linked to illegal trade in wildlife.
“I congratulate all the national agencies that participated in Operation RAMP, and the INTERPOL officers here in Lyon who supported them. Such operations reinforce the very close working relationship that exists between CITES and INTERPOL."
Illegal international trade in reptiles is a serious threat to species such as tortoises which are highly prized as pets. There have been a number of recent high profile cases involving illicit trade in reptiles, includingtwo seizures a month apartof hundreds ofMalagasy tortoises found in luggageby Customs officers in Malaysia and the arrest and subsequent conviction of notorious wildlife traderAnson Wong, also in Malaysia.
The issue of wild-caught reptiles being mis-declared as captive-bred to enable their export from Asia into the European Union was examined in a recentTRAFFIC report for the European Commission(PDF, 340 KB), and the issue of how to tell the origins of reptiles in trade was the subject of a jointUK Border Agency (UKBA)–TRAFFIC Europe workshopfor enforcement officers across the EU earlier this year.
Operation RAMP is the second global operation led by INTERPOL against wildlife crime, and results to date have exceeded those of its predecessor,Operation TRAM(February 2010), which targeted the illegal trade in traditional medicines containing wildlife products and resulted in the seizure of products worth more than EUR10 million.
понедельник, 31 января 2011 г.
TRAFFIC - Wildlife Trade News - INTERPOL’s Operation RAMP targets illegal reptile trade
воскресенье, 30 января 2011 г.
TRAFFIC - Wildlife Trade News - Wong’s sentence increased to five years
;)
The change followed an appeal by the Attorney-General's Chambers over the earlier sentence.
In his judgement, Justice Mohtarudin Baki of the Shah Alam High Court said that the Sessions Court judge, who initially sentenced Wong, had not taken into account the large number of snakes in Wong's possession in his ruling.
Had the snakes escaped, the safety of the airport staff and passengers would have been in jeopardy, Justice Mohtarudin Baki said.
He added that the accused was motivated by profit and was willing to smuggle with no concern for the safety of those around him and had no regard for the law. In reaching his decision, Justice Mohtarudin also took into account public interest in the case, noting that it should always prevail.
He then said the earlier sentence of six-months jail and RM190,000 (USD61,500) in fines was overruled before going on to announce the new, increased jail term to a packed courtroom.
In addition to the longer prison sentence, the court also ordered the RM190,000 fine imposed on Wong in the previous judgment be returned to him as this was his first offence in the country.
Wong’s defence counsel Datuk Seri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah immediately announced his intention to appeal the sentence.
“The message to wildlife smugglers in Malaysia is loud and clear: carry on as you are and you will be spending years of your life behind bars,” said TRAFFIC Southeast Asia senior programme officer Kanitha Krishnasamy.
TRAFFIC Southeast Asia Regional Director, William Schaedla also expressed optimism over the sentence.
“This is a great start. We hope Malaysia’s new‘get-tough’ stance will continue with investigations and convictions of other large-scale wildlife smugglers still operating in the country.
“We also hope other nations in Southeast Asia take notice of today’s watershed ruling. For far too long, countries in this region have allowed their reputations to be tarnished and their natural treasures to be taken by thieves.
“This bold sentence shows they can address wildlife crime when the will is there.”
суббота, 29 января 2011 г.
TRAFFIC - Wildlife Trade News - More than 1,000 Tigers reduced to skin and bones in last decade
;)
Reduced to Skin and Bones(PDF, 4 MB) shows that from January 2000 to April 2010, parts of between 1,069 and 1,220 Tigers were seized in 11 of the 13 tiger range countries—or an average of 104 to 119 animals per year.
Of the 11, India, China and Nepal ranked highest in the number of tiger part seizures, the report states, with India by far the highest number of Tiger part seizures at 276, representing between 469 and 533 Tigers. China, with 40, had the second highest number of seizures, or 116-124 Tigers, and Nepal reported 39 seizures, or 113-130 Tigers, according to the report.
“Given half the world’s Tigers live in India, it’s no real surprise the country has the highest number of seizures, and while a high number of seizures could indicate high levels of trade or effective enforcement work, or a combination of both, it does highlight the nation’s tigers are facing severe poaching pressure,” said Pauline Verheij, joint TRAFFIC and WWF Tiger Trade Programme Manager and an author of the report.
“With parts of potentially more than 100 wild Tigers actually seized each year, one can only speculate what the true numbers of animals are being plundered.”;)
Tiger parts reported in trade ranged from complete skins, skeletons and even whole animals—live and dead, through to bones, meat, claws, teeth, skulls, penises and other body parts.
They are used by a variety of cultures for decoration, in traditional medicines and even as good luck charms.
“First and foremost, the report demonstrates that illegal Tiger trade continues despite considerable and repeated efforts to curtail it by many governments and organizations in both consumer and range countries,” said Mike Baltzer, leader of WWF’s Tigers Alive initiative. TRAFFIC is a joint programme of WWF and IUCN, the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
“Clearly enforcement efforts to date are either ineffective or an insufficient deterrent,” said Baltzer.“Not only must the risk of getting caught increase significantly, but seizures and arrests must also be followed up by swift prosecution and adequate sentencing, reflecting the seriousness of crimes against Tigers.;)
“But good enforcement alone will not solve the problem. To save Tigers in the wild, concerted action is needed to reduce the demand for Tiger parts altogether in key countries in Asia,” said Steven Broad, Executive Director of TRAFFIC.
Enforcement efforts to date, the authors conclude“point to a lack of political will among those responsible at national and international levels for protecting Tigers from illegal killing and trade.”
“A paradigm shift in terms of commitment is needed and all stakeholders will have to join forces to create an intelligence-driven, well co-ordinated, trans-boundary and sustained push against forces driving one of the most legendary species on Earth to extinction,” says the report.;)
Wild Tiger numbers are in steep decline, caused by a combination of poaching and illegal trade in the animals themselves, coupled with habitat loss and encroachment and excessive poaching of key prey species. A century ago there were around 100,000 wild Tigers; today the figure is believed to be as few as 3,200.
The report comes as heads of governments from tiger range states prepare to meet at a tiger summit later this month in St. Petersburg, Russia to finalize the Global Tiger Recovery Program, a plan that aims to double the number of tigers in the wild by 2022. It will include a major enforcement push by the International Consortium on Combating Wildlife Crime (ICCWC), which comprises CITES, INTERPOL, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, the World Bank, and the World Customs Organization. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin will host the International Tiger Forum from 21–24 November and representatives from all 13 tiger range countries are expected to attend.
“The forthcoming summit is a vital one for the future of wild Tigers, their very future hangs in the balance,” said Broad.
ENDS
More information
Richard Thomas, Communications Co-ordinator, TRAFFIC. Tel: +44 1223 279068, mobile + 44 752 6646 216, email: Richard.thomas@traffic.org
Ian Morrison, Media Officer, WWF International. Tel: +41 22 364 9554, mobile: +41 79 874 6853 email: imorrison@wwfint.org
Notes
Reduced to Skin and Bones. An Analysis of Tiger Seizures from 11 Tiger Range Countries (2000–2010)(PDF, 4 MB) by Pauline Verheij, Kaitlyn-Elizabeth Foley and Katalina Engel.
TRAFFIC works to support government agencies in law enforcement networking across Asia and globally to combat illegal wildlife trade. Technical assistance across the enforcement continuum, including facilitation of inter-governmental dialogues, engaging the judicial sector, and working with WWF to improve linkages from national level agencies to field-based rangers, is provided on demand to member countries of the ASEAN and South Asia Wildlife Enforcement networks, as well as to China and its immediate neighbours.
пятница, 28 января 2011 г.
TRAFFIC - Wildlife Trade News - Myanmar border markets act as deadly trade gateway for Tigers
;)
Bangkok, Thailand, 19th November 2010—Black markets along Myanmar, Thailand and China’s shared borders play a crucial role facilitating the deadly illicit trade in Tigers and other endangered species say TRAFFIC and WWF in the lead up to the International Tiger Forum taking place next week in St Petersburg, Russia.
The Big Cat Trade in Myanmar and Thailand(PDF, 1.5 MB) report documents black market sales of large wild felines. Live big cats, including endangered Tigers and a rare Asiatic Lion were observed in trade. Hundreds of Tiger and leopard parts, representing over 400 individual animals, were also observed during nearly a decade of investigations in Myanmar and Thailand.
The report is accompanied by a short documentary calledClosing a Deadly Gatewaythat illustrates the illegal trade described in the report. The film shows interviews with poachers and alarming footage of butchered tigers.
“With as few as 3,200 wild Tigers worldwide, the ongoing large-scale trade documented in this report cannot be taken lightly. Illegal trade poses the most immediate and dire threat to the survival of Tigers. Moreover, it puts all Asia’s big felines at serious risk,” noted TRAFFIC Southeast Asia Regional Director, Dr William Schaedla.
“Wildlife laws in Myanmar and Thailand clearly prohibit trafficking in Tigers and other big cats. We urge authorities to bring the full weight of the law to bear upon traffickers.”;)
The report comes as Tiger range country governments, including representatives from Myanmar, China, and Thailand, are expected to meet in St. Petersburg, Russia hosted by Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
“A critical part of saving wild Tigers must be to shut down the illegal trade in Tiger parts,” said Michael Baltzer, head of WWF’s Tigers Alive initiative.“With all the Tiger range countries convening this month in Russia for a groundbreaking summit on the future of the Tiger, illegal trade such as this must stay front and centre in the negotiations.”;)
“There is an urgent need to step up efforts if the region is to save its declining Tiger populations. We need to enhance information gathering and ensure government and non-government agencies share information in transparent and timely ways from the local level to the regional scale,” said Peter Cutter, Co-ordinator for WWF Greater Mekong Region’s Tiger conservation in Thailand.
Tiger populations in the Greater Mekong—an area that includes Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand and Viet Nam—have plummeted from an estimated 1,200 during the last Year of the Tiger in 1998 to about 350 today.
“Alarmingly, the landscape between Myanmar and Thailand holds the greatest hope for Tiger population recovery in this region,” said Cutter,“but this can only happen if there are unprecedented and co-ordinated regional efforts to tackle illegal wildlife trade.”;)
TRAFFIC Southeast Asia Director, William Schaedla, summarized the problem.“The area is struggling with governance and Tigers are easy money for everyone from mafia types to anti-government opposition groups. Some of these players should be countered with direct enforcement actions. Others might be receptive to work through regional agreements and international bodies in order to address the problem.”
For further information please contact:
Elizabeth John, Senior Communications Officer, TRAFFIC Southeast Asia, T: +603 7880 3940, +60122079790 Email: jlizzjohn@yahoo.com
Nicole Frisina, Communications Manager, WWF Greater Mekong Programme, Mobile in Thailand +66837878859. Email: nicole.frisina@wwf.panda.org
To download the report visit:
http://www.traffic.org/species-reports/traffic_species_mammals61.pdf
High-res photos from the report visit:
http://www.divshare.com/gallery/796497-3a9
B-roll footage of Tigers and Tiger trade as well as high resolution footage fromClosing the Deadly Gatewayare available on request.
About TRAFFIC
TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network, works to ensure that trade in wild plants and animals is not a threat to the conservation of nature. TRAFFIC is a joint programme of IUCN and WWF. Across Asia, TRAFFIC works to support government agencies in law enforcement networking to combat illegal wildlife trade. Technical assistance across the enforcement continuum, including facilitation of inter-governmental dialogues, engaging the judicial sector, and working with WWF to improve linkages from national level agencies to field-based rangers, is provided on demand to member countries of the ASEAN and South Asia Wildlife Enforcement networks, as well as to China and its immediate neighbours.
www.traffic.org
About WWF
WWF is one of the world's largest and most respected independent conservation organizations, with over 5 million supporters and a global network active in over 100 countries. WWF's mission is to stop the degradation of the earth's natural environment and to build a future in which humans live in harmony with nature, by conserving the world's biological diversity, ensuring that the use of renewable natural resources is sustainable, and promoting the reduction of pollution and wasteful consumption.
www.panda.org/media for latest news and media resources
четверг, 27 января 2011 г.
TRAFFIC - Wildlife Trade News - Experts can tell the wood from the trees
;)
The conference onGenetic and isotopic fingerprinting techniques—practical tools to verify the declared origin of woodwas organized by the German Technical Development Co-operation (GTZ) and WWF Germany.
Although pieces of timber appear identical to the untrained eye, each has a unique composition that can be determined through analysis of the genetic and chemical characteristics of the timber, the so-called“genetic and stable isotope fingerprint.”
The technique of genetic fingerprinting is already widely used in other applications, for example in paternity tests and forensic analyses, while isotopic analyses are already widely applied to identify the origin of agricultural products and food. Applying the tests to timber would allow its origin to be checked independently from any documentation system.
“Unlike common methods of marking timber, such as tags, ink and barcodes, timber‘fingerprinting’ uses information that is fixed inside the wood and can not be tampered with,” said Stephanie von Meibom, TRAFFIC’s European Programme Co-ordinator.
“The potential for verification of the legality and origin of timber in trade is obvious.”;)
GTZ and WWF together with their partners, The Forest Trust (TFT), Johann Heinrich von Thünen-Institute (vTI) and TÜV Rhineland / AgroIsolab presented the results of two projects to demonstrate the applicability of fingerprinting techniques for timber from managed natural forests in Central Africa and for CITES-listed species such as Mahogany.
“The common application of timber‘fingerprinting’ would be a massive support for implementation of regulations like the US Lacey Act, the EU Illegal Timber Regulation and the FLEGT Voluntary Partnership Agreements,” said von Meibom.
Around 70 workshop participants included scientists, private sector representatives, non-governmental organization representatives including TRAFFIC, plus agencies involved in the timber sector such as the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna) and FLEGT (Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade) authorities in timber producing and importing countries.
вторник, 25 января 2011 г.
TRAFFIC - Wildlife Trade News - Customs meet to tackle Russia-China cross-border smuggling of wildlife
Representatives from the Federal Russia Customs, Far East Customs Directorate, Far East Operative Customs, Siberian Customs Directorate, General Customs Directorate of China, TRAFFIC Russia and TRAFFIC China met from 16–18 November in Vladivostok, through a programme supported by WWF Russia, Germany, the Netherlands, and the UK.
During the meeting, participants carried out an analysis of the current situation regarding wildlife trafficking across the Russian-Chinese border, and discussed practical ways it could be addressed.
A trans-boundary“Action plan on International Co-operation between the Customs of Russia and China to control illegal cross-border trafficking of wild animals, plants and their derivatives” was drafted based on a needs analysis and information provided by Russian and Chinese customs officers and by TRAFFIC representatives.
The draft Action Plan builds upon the Protocol between the Government of the Russian Federation and the Government of the People’s Republic of China on Tiger Protection of 10 November 1997, and lays down a sound framework for co-operative actions between the two countries. It is anticipated it will lead to a formal bilateral agreement between Russia and China.
“Once endorsed, the Action Plan will provide important and practical steps towards co-operative and effective enforcement actions to regulate cross-border wildlife trade,” said Alexey Vaisman Senior TRAFFIC programme co-ordinator and WWF representative in Russia.
The meeting took place just ahead of the International Tiger Forum in St Petersburg, where leaders from the 13 Tiger range countries issued a Declaration and adopted a Global Tiger Recovery Programme (GTRP).
The Declaration commits the countries to a variety of measures to protect Tigers, including a commitment to work“collaboratively to eradicate poaching, smuggling, and illegal trade of tigers, their parts, and derivatives.”
Demand for Tiger parts is fuelling the poaching of Tigers, especially in South-East Asia and India. Currently the estimated number of wild Tigers is around 3,200 animals, down from 100,000 a Century ago.
“Tigers are in serious danger because of the illicit trade in Tiger parts,” said Vaisman.
“The meeting of Customs officers on both sides of the Russian-Chinese border was a timely one in preparation for implementation of the commitments made at the St Petersburg Tiger Forum.”
понедельник, 24 января 2011 г.
TRAFFIC - Wildlife Trade News - International collaboration to strengthen Viet Nam’s wildlife trade enforcement
The two-day workshop will bring together Vietnamese and international enforcement agencies to share challenges and best methods in combating illegal wildlife trade, with the goal of enhancing existing mechanisms in controlling the illegal cross-border trade. Discussions will also draw from the knowledge of enforcement experts in other fields of illegal trade, such as international drugs and human trafficking.
Representatives from international organizations including INTERPOL, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, CITES Secretariat, World Customs Organization, ASEAN-Wildlife Enforcement Network, and South Africa National Wildlife Crime Reaction Unit, TRAFFIC Southeast Asia and Wildlife Conservation Society will be joining nearly 30 representatives from national Vietnamese enforcement agencies.
“This workshop is a unique opportunity for key enforcement agencies from Viet Nam and international organizations to learn from each other and co-ordinate efforts against international wildlife crimes in the ASEAN-WEN and CITES frameworks,” said Dr Ha Cong Tuan, Deputy Director of the Directorate of Forestry.
CITES is the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora and is the main multilateral agreement regulating the international trade in wildlife.
Despite an increase in enforcement efforts by international organizations and governments to control illegal wildlife trade at the national, regional and global level, this trade continues in many countries, threatening species such as Tiger, rhinoceros and elephants with extinction. Complex routes involving organized trans-boundary crimes connect illegal wildlife to consumers around the world. Southeast Asia, including Viet Nam, has become both a consumer of wildlife and a conduit of products destined for other countries.
The workshop will have a special focus on the illegal Tiger trade. In 2010, this iconic species has received a great deal of international attention, culminating in the International Tiger Forum held in St Petersburg, Russia last week, where delegates from Tiger range States, including Viet Nam, signed commitments to protect Tigers, Tiger prey and Tiger habitat, in order to increase the world’s tiger population by the year 2022 to 7,000 from the current 3,200 individual tigers remaining.
“The hope is that discussions such as these, which draw on the expertise of both international and local agencies, will aid in the global fight against illegal trade in key species such as the Tiger,” said Dr William Schaedla, Director of TRAFFIC Southeast Asia, the wildlife trade monitoring organization providing technical support for the event.
For more information, please contact:
Sarah Morgan, Communications Officer, TRAFFIC Greater Mekong Programme, Tel. +84 4 3726 1575 Ext 204, E-mail: smorgan@traffic.netnam.vn
CITES Management Authority of Viet Nam
A3, 2 Ngọc Hà, BaĐình, Hà Nội
Tel. +84 4 3733 5676 ; Fax: +84 4 3734 6742, Email: cites_vn.kl@mard.gov.vn; fpdvn@hn.vnn.vn
Thomas Osborn, Co-ordinator, TRAFFIC Greater Mekong Programme, Tel. +84 4 3726 1575 Ext 201, E-mail: tosborn@traffic.netnam.vn
NOTES
Vietnamese participants include officers from the Viet–WEN, Forest Protection Department, Customs anti-smuggling Department, Environmental Police, Agricultural and Rural Security, Border Army, Economic investigation police, Transport police, INTERPOL National Central Bureau, and Supreme People’s Procuracy.
The event is being funded by the World Bank’s GEF programme, implemented by the Forestry Directorate of Viet Nam, with technical support from TRAFFIC and the Wildlife Conservation Society.
воскресенье, 23 января 2011 г.
TRAFFIC - Wildlife Trade News - Beluga caviar seized in transit
The contraband was found in the luggage of a passenger travelling from Istanbul in Turkey, en route to Casablanca in Morocco, although the caviar is believed to have originated in Iran.
International trade in caviar is regulated through CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora), and while limited trade is permitted, shipments must be accompanied by appropriate documentation.
Initial tests reveal the caviar is from the Beluga Sturgeon, a species that can live to 100 years and weigh more than two tonnes, and whose caviar is considered the most valuable of all.
Caviar, the eggs or roe of sturgeons and paddlefish, is considered a delicacy, and is especially popular around Christmas time. However, there are serious concerns over the sustainability and legality of the trade in caviar from the Caspian Sea region, which has known links to organized crime.
Numbers of Beluga Sturgeon, like the other five sturgeon species found in the Caspian Sea region, have plummeted in recent years—some by more than 95%, such that all are now listed as Critically Endangered in the wild by IUCN, the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
This September, European Union Member States decided to suspend the import of wild sourced caviar from countries in the Caspian Sea region, because of deep concern over the conservation status of sturgeon species.
“The future for wild sturgeons in the Caspian Sea is very bleak indeed”, said Rob Parry-Jones, Director of TRAFFIC Europe.
“Strong measures need to be adopted and enforced by the range States, supported by actions in consumer countries. The EU’s decision to suspend imports of wild sourced caviar from the Caspian Sea region, following the advice of its Scientific Review Group, is one such step.”
“Border enforcement actions for caviar coming into or transiting through the EU are another necessary step. The Italian authorities are to be warmly congratulated on this significant seizure.”
суббота, 22 января 2011 г.
TRAFFIC - Wildlife Trade News - Key tropical timber trade meeting in Japan
;)
The ITTO is an intergovernmental organization whose members represent about 80% of the world's tropical forests and 90% of the global tropical timber trade.
TRAFFIC will be present at the meeting as observer and through its role on ITTO’s Civil Society Advisory Group (CSAG).
A key topic on the agenda will be ITTO’s interaction with CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna).
CITES is the principle intergovernmental agreement dealing with trade in all wildlife species, yet at the most recent meeting of Parties to CITES, proposals for listing timber species in the Convention’s Appendices were conspicuous by their near absence.
“The role of CITES in helping regulate a sustainable global timber trade is a crucial area where the ITTO can make substantial progress this week,” said Chen Hin Keong, TRAFFIC's Global Forest Trade Programme Leader.
Tropical timber species already listed in CITES include Big-leaf Mahogany, Cedrela, Afromosia, Guayacan, Almendro, Ramin and Red Sanders. Other tropical tree species listed due to their non-timber values include African CherryPrunus africana, Asian yews and agarwood.
TRAFFIC’s input into the workings of the ITTO include investigations into the discrepancies in timber trade export and import figures between countries trading within Asia and recommendations on how and why these arise—and crucially, how they can be used to determine if illegal trade is taking place.
Another key topic is the role of tropical forests in mitigating the effects of global climate change.
2011 has already been designated the International Year of Forests.
“2011 could mark a watershed in the fate of the world’s forests, whose potential for maintaining a stable world economy and a healthy planet ecosystem is only ignored at our own peril,” said Chen.
пятница, 21 января 2011 г.
TRAFFIC - Wildlife Trade News - Experts link up to combat illegal wildlife trade in Sri Lanka
National wildlife enforcement network formed;)
Leadership from the country’s Department of Wildlife Conservation, along with Police, Customs and other relevant government institutions and experts, has seen the birth of the Sri Lanka Wildlife Enforcement Network (SLaWEN).
The Hon. Basil Rajapaksa, Minister of Economic Development, was Chief Guest at the“Linking up with South Asia” meeting that brought together representatives of the Sri Lanka Wildlife Enforcement Network with those from international agencies involved in regulation of wildlife trade, including INTERPOL, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), IUCN and TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network.
Emerging from years of civil conflict, the economy of Sri Lanka is rapidly developing, and the nation’s rich biodiversity offers great potential for increased ecotourism. But the need for safeguards is clearly apparent to combat any illicit activities that may accompany the country’s nascent trade boom.
Briefing participants, Dr Chandrawansa Pathiraja, Director General of the Department of Wildlife Conservation said:“In an era where the country’s economy is moving forward, the Department of Wildlife Conservation has a major role to play in developing the ecotourism industry which has the potential to be one of the county’s main foreign revenue earners.
“This will be nullified if the biodiversity, including wildlife, is not conserved properly.
“Hence it is time for action and this is the grid, law enforcement agencies should get together and protect nature for the betterment of both the present generation and generations to come.”
Leopard are at risk from poaching to supply demand for their parts elsewhere in Asia, while the Sri Lanka Navy has reported a number of recent arrests of people allegedly involved in the illicit conch trade; the polished shells are smuggled to India and beyond.
James Compton, TRAFFIC’s Senior Director for Asia-Pacific, noted:“The strategic need for wildlife enforcement networks in tackling illicit activity has been amply demonstrated, and it is extremely heartening to witness the initiatives here in Sri Lanka to forge national structures as a backbone for collaborative action throughout the wider Asia region.”
“Through active implementation of such enforcement networks, the region is entering a new era in tackling international wildlife crime effectively.”
Later this month, the South Asia Experts Group on Illegal Wildlife Trade will meet in Bhutan to take forward priority actions under the South Asia Wildlife Enforcement Network (SAWEN).
TRAFFIC’s efforts to catalyse national and inter-governmental wildlife enforcement networking in South Asia are generously supported by the US Department of State.
четверг, 20 января 2011 г.
TRAFFIC - Wildlife Trade News - Thai Customs gear-up to fight ivory trafficking
;)
Already this year, Royal Thai Customs officers at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi International Airport have intercepted close to 4.5 tonnes of ivory, all of which is believed to have originated from Africa. Almost half of the total was seized in a single bust comprising 239 tusks in February.
“In order to suppress the illegal ivory trade completely, the Royal Thai Customs is conscious that good co-operation both internationally and domestically is the most effective way to uncover any illegal shipments among the 5,000 transiting the airport each day. Teaming up with TRAFFIC will help bring us up-to-date on the latest ways to ensure criminals don’t avoid detection. Further, this workshop will benefit all Customs officers at the operational level to offer them support and to exchange work experiences too,” said Mr. Tanat Suvattanametakul, Director of Suvarnabhumi Airport Cargo Clearance Customs Bureau.;)
“This type of training should be institutionalized into existing curricula so that all newly graduated Customs officers are fully aware of the issues,” said Mr. Suvattanametakul.
The two day workshop between 13–14 December will involve more than 40 participants drawn from various Customs Departments who will receive training from national experts and technical resource staff from TRAFFIC Southeast Asia.
“TRAFFIC is pleased to help with Thailand’s efforts to step up the fight against the illegal trade in ivory and other endangered wildlife products,” said Chris Shepherd, Deputy Director of TRAFFIC Southeast Asia.
“The time is ripe for building on the achievements of the past year, and to stop those who profit from robbing the world of its wildlife.”
Thailand has the largest unregulated ivory market in Asia. It is home to a skilled industry of carvers who turn the raw tusks into works of art including statues, amulets, jewelry, and figurines for sale to domestic and international buyers.
The industry survives, in part because of a legal loophole that allows a legal domestic ivory market to thrive, and into which illegally imported ivory is laundered.
“Once ivory has been smuggled into the country, it becomes almost impossible to distinguish the illicit goods from those acquired through the legal loophole,” said Shepherd.
“While further commitment to effective law enforcement at Thailand’s borders is a welcome initiative, these efforts will be severely undermined unless the country puts in place an effective domestic ivory registration and certification scheme.”
Large numbers of African Elephants are killed each year for their tusks, and represents a major factor in the decline of the wild population which currently stands at about half a million. Much of the poaching is to supply illicit ivory markets in Asia”
For further information please contact:
Elizabeth John, Senior Communications Officer, TRAFFIC Southeast Asia, T: +603 7880 3940, +60122079790 Email: jlizzjohn@yahoo.com
Notes
1. Major ivory seizures at Suvarnabhumi International Airport by Royal Thai Customs in 2010:
February: 239 tusks weighing two tonnes
April: 1.4 tonnes
July: 117 tusks weighing 765 kg
August: 16 pieces of cut ivory weighing approx 90 kg
2. International trade in ivory is banned under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).
3. Poaching of elephants in Africa has been increasing in recent years. Currently the Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus) is regarded as Endangered and the African Elephant (Loxodonta africana) as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. Both are threatened by a variety of issues including poaching and illegal trade, habitat loss and degradation.
About TRAFFIC
TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network, works to ensure that trade in wild plants and animals is not a threat to the conservation of nature. TRAFFIC is a joint programme of IUCN and WWF. TRAFFIC works to support government agencies in law enforcement networking across Asia and globally to combat illegal wildlife trade. Technical assistance across the enforcement continuum, including facilitation of inter-governmental dialogues, engaging the judicial sector, and working with WWF to improve linkages from national level agencies to field-based rangers, is provided on demand to member countries of the ASEAN and South Asia Wildlife Enforcement networks, as well as to China and its immediate neighbours.
среда, 19 января 2011 г.
TRAFFIC - Wildlife Trade News - Agencies in Borneo forge closer co-operation on wildlife trade issues
;)
The three-day workshop, funded by the Goetz Foundation and WWF, has been jointly organized by the Sabah Wildlife Department and TRAFFIC Southeast Asia. The workshop began with a call for greater regional collaboration in conserving the island’s biodiversity among the three countries that share the island of Borneo.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, the Assistant Minister of Culture, Tourism and Environment Datuk Ellron Alfred Angin said:“A course such as this is not only aimed at increasing knowledge and skill of enforcement officers, but also aimed at building effective networks to allow all of you to support each other in your respective workplace and also in this region.”
“We also believe that full commitment to our responsibility as custodians of this precious natural treasure is most important to ensure that those who are violating the law shall not escape from punishment.”
The three day Wildlife Trade Regulation Course takes place from 14–16th December and involves around 40 participants from a variety of Borneo’s enforcement agencies, including the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency, Sabah Wildlife Department, Sabah Forestry, Royal Malaysian Customs, Department of Fisheries and the Brunei Darussalam Departments of Forestry and Agriculture and Agrifood.
They will receive training from national experts and technical resource staff from TRAFFIC Southeast Asia.
Ellron also told participants that nature in Borneo was facing a crisis with rainforest disappearing rapidly, with illegal hunting and trade threatening its wildlife.
He cautioned that good legislation alone was not enough to would not guarantee protection of natural resources. Effective law enforcement was crucial if countries were successfully to combat illegal wildlife trade and conserve Borneo’s riches.
The island of Borneo is renowned for its great biodiversity which attracts thousands of tourists each year. That same biodiversity is also becoming increasingly attractive to illegal wildlife traders who take advantage of the long and often remote borders around and within its shores.
In order to combat such transboundary crime, it is vital that enforcement agencies work closely together. This workshop provides a valuable opportunity for agencies from the countries and states that make up the island to meet and learn about regulating and investigating the wildlife trade. This workshop is the fourth to be conducted by TRAFFIC Southeast Asia for Borneo’s enforcement agencies within the past 18 months.
вторник, 18 января 2011 г.
TRAFFIC - Wildlife Trade News - Building wildlife law enforcement capacity to combat illegal wildlife trade in South-East Asia
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South-East Asia has long been a hotspot in the multi-billion dollar global trade of wildlife but many wild species, including timber, birds, reptiles and mammals are illegally traded in the region.
According to statistics compiled by the ASEAN Wildlife Enforcement Network (ASEAN-WEN), more than 16.9 tonnes of wildlife products were seized in around 200 law enforcement actions across South-East Asia between January and September 2010.
The ASEAN-WEN also estimates that 13,000 tonnes of turtles are illegally shipped to China every year from ASEAN countries.
Experts from ASEAN-WEN and TRAFFIC-Southeast Asia will serve as trainers during the four-day“Training of Trainers” workshop where a number of illegal trade case studies will be presented.
“If left unchecked, currents trends in the illegal wildlife trade will result in massive and irrevocable biodiversity loss. The Training of Trainer workshop presents a unique opportunity to reduce this trend and to safeguard the region’s precious plant and animal resources for generations to come” said Mr. Rodrigo U. Fuentes, Executive Director of the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity (ACB).
Mr Manop Lauprasert, Senior Officer of the ASEAN-WEN Program Coordination Unit added“the criminals involved in the illegal wildlife trade are well organized and financed. It’s only by working together and pooling our skills, knowledge and resources across the region can we hope to combat wildlife trafficking effectively.”
The current course aims to equip wildlife law enforcers with skills in identifying threatened reptile species that are commonly traded, familiarize them with international regulations governing wildlife trade, such as those under CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora), and upgrade participants’ skills in conducting their own training courses on wildlife regulation.
Regional Director of TRAFFIC Southeast Asia, Dr William Schaedla said,“We really are starting with the basics. Most law enforcement personnel never get any training in areas related to wildlife crime. With this course, we’re imparting necessary skills to the right people.”
It is the second in a series of training workshops that seek to involve and enhance the capabilities of ASEAN and neighbouring countries in the understanding and application of taxonomic knowledge as part of a project on“Taxonomic Capacity Building and Governance for Conservation and Sustainable Use of Biodiversity” funded by the Japan-ASEAN Integration Fund.
The project aims to promote the science of taxonomy which is increasingly considered a fundamental tool required by the global community to implement the Millennium Development Goals and the development targets set by the World Summit for Sustainable Development.
The current training course takes place from 17th-21st January at the Novotel Hotel in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and will be conducted by the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) and TRAFFIC Southeast Asia with support from Japan’s Ministry of Environment, and the ASEAN Wildlife Enforcement Network (ASEAN-WEN).
Notes to Editors
• The ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) is an intergovernmental regional organization that facilitates cooperation and coordination among the 10 ASEAN Member States (Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Viet Nam) and with relevant national governments, regional, and international organizations on the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity, and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the use of such natural treasures. ACB facilitates discussion and resolution of cross-country biodiversity conservation issues and envisions capacity development of the ASEAN Member States for policy development and coordination through education on key biodiversity-related multilateral environment agreements, as well as increased knowledge and skills to assess regional/national situations and develop appropriate response mechanisms. ACB also aims to enhance competence of Protected Area managers of the ASEAN Member States through the conduct of capacity building series workshops and conferences with partner institutions.
• The ASEAN Wildlife Enforcement Network (ASEAN-WEN) aims to address illegal exploitation and trade in CITES-listed species within the ASEAN region. It is an integrated network among law enforcement agencies in the 10 ASEAN Member States (Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Viet Nam), involving CITES authorities, customs, police, prosecutors, specialized governmental wildlife-law enforcement organizations and other relevant national law enforcement agencies. This ten member network also aims at facilitating cross border collaboration to fight against illegal wildlife trade in the region. For more information, visit www.asean-wen.org
• TRAFFIC works to support government agencies in law enforcement networking across Asia and globally to combat illegal wildlife trade. Technical assistance across the enforcement continuum, including facilitation of inter-governmental dialogues, engaging the judicial sector, and working with WWF to improve linkages from national level agencies to field-based rangers, is provided on demand to member countries of the ASEAN and South Asia Wildlife Enforcement networks, as well as to China and its immediate neighbours.
понедельник, 17 января 2011 г.
TRAFFIC - Wildlife Trade News - New regulation denied opportunity to prevent illegal abalone harvesting
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Abalone are types of sea mollusc (known locally as perlemoen), in great demand in East Asia for their meat and shell. Overfishing and disease have caused serious declines in several species world-wide.
Numbers of one species found only in South African waters,Haliotis midae, have declined dramatically since the 1990s, largely because of highly organized illegal plundering of stocks.
The illegal fishing industry has known links to domestic drugs trafficking and Asian crime syndicates, with the majority of the catch smuggled to Hong Kong.
In an effort to regulate the harvest and prevent unsustainable and illegal exploitation ofHaliotis midae, in 2007 the South African Government placed the species in Appendix III of CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora).
An Appendix III listing is a means by which a country can ask for assistance from all other CITES member States to help control trade in a particular species.
The measure was aimed to highlight abalone trade passing illegally through neighbouring countries and was the first time CITES measures had been used to regulate international trade in any abalone species.
“While it seems clear that the listing only had a temporary impact on illegal harvest and trade in the species, it was never properly implemented in South Africa and its potential as a regulatory and monitoring tool was therefore never properly tested,” finds the TRAFFIC study.
The listing was withdrawn in May 2010 with the South African Government citing administrative difficulties, principally owing to misunderstandings around the role of the various government agencies in CITES permit endorsement.
“The withdrawal ofHaliotis midaefrom CITES Appendix III is troubling as it appears to be based on institutional constraints, rather than a fundamental flaw in the CITES instrument and process,” said Markus Bürgener, Senior Programme Officer with TRAFFIC East/Southern Africa, and author of the report.
According to Bürgener, the Government should investigate affordingHaliotis midaeand similar looking abalone species greater protection under CITES, backed up with adequate resources.
“Almost all abalone range States experience illegal harvest and a CITES listing could assist compliance efforts for species found in these countries,” he said.
Other features in the latest edition of theTRAFFIC Bulletin—the only peer-reviewed journal dedicated to studies of the global trade in wildlife—include an investigation into the poaching of Malayan Sun Bears in Malaysia where they are in demand for use in traditional medicines and for their meat. It is hoped that new legislation introduced in that country will have a deterrent effect on this illegal trade.
TheBulletinalso includes a comprehensive report of the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to CITES. An editorial on this theme examines the future direction of this Convention in the light of the Doha meeting and the failure there to address some serious conservation management challenges.
TRAFFIC Bulletin 23(1)(PDF, 1.5 MB), including all the above articles plus much more.
воскресенье, 16 января 2011 г.
TRAFFIC - Wildlife Trade News - Rapid demonstration of illicit slow loris trade
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Slow lorises are seriously threatened by trade, and wildlife markets in many parts of western Indonesia openly display these totally protected primates for sale, with little or no fear of prosecution.
In the Jati Negara Market on 10th December, slow lorises were seen displayed in cages at several stalls fronting a main road. At one stall, TRAFFIC staff counted six lorises crowded into a single cage.
“These animals exemplify the threats slow lorises and other protected species face in Indonesia—trade is carried out openly and dealers do not fear reprimand or penalties”, said Deputy Regional Director of TRAFFIC Southeast Asia, Chris R. Shepherd.
Other species observed for sale alongside the lorises in Jati Negara market that day included Crested Serpent-eagle, Changeable Hawk-eagle, Black-winged Kite and Leopard Cat. All are totally protected under Indonesia’s laws and cannot be commercially traded.
Speaking at the Slow Loris Conservation in Indonesia seminar a day earlier, Shepherd had called for urgent efforts on the part of the authorities to stop the illegal trade in such species.
He said slow lorises were sometimes confiscated by authorities but there was little or no deterrent to those dealing in them because penalties were rarely handed down.
“Dealers are well aware of the illegality of their trade in these species. Only with successful prosecution and sustained efforts by authorities to close down this trade, will the situation change. Anything less is meaningless.”
Indonesia is home to three species of slow loris: the Greater Slow Loris (Nycticebus coucang), the Bornean Slow Loris (N. menagensis) and the Javan Slow Loris (N. javanicus).
The latter is the most seriously threatened, and is considered Endangered by the IUCN and included in the top 25 most threatened primates in the world. These small, nocturnal primates are valued as pets in Indonesia.
Seminar participants also requested the Indonesian government revise the list of nationally protected species to include all species of slow lorises under the genus Nycticebus. Current only one species is recognized, while taxonomists have agreed three species are native to Indonesia.
The seminar, organized by International Animal Rescue Indonesia (IAR), also saw the participation of rescue centres in Indonesia that care for confiscated lorises.
The IAR rescue rehab centre reported that it has received more than 150 lorises in the past three years, mainly surrendered by pet owners. Less than a quarter of these animals came from confiscations.
“These primates are traded openly in main bird markets in Jakarta and some pet shops in malls in Bandung and many other parts of the country. It is obvious that people do not take the Indonesian laws seriously,” said Karmele Llano Sánchez, Veterinary Director of International Animal Rescue Indonesia.
“Only a small percentage of traded lorises are rescued and even those can rarely be returned to the wild as traders remove their teeth prior to selling the animals. If we seriously want to protect these threatened species, tackling the illegal trade must be taken seriously”, she added.
суббота, 15 января 2011 г.
TRAFFIC - Wildlife Trade News - TRAFFIC India helps effort to strengthen wildlife law enforcement in India
The workshop was inaugurated by Mr Ajesh Kumar, Additional Director General, of the National Academy for Customs, Excise& Narcotics (NACEN), and took place as part of a collaborative effort supported by the UK Government’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), under the UK-India Sustainable Development Dialogue between the Governments of India and UK.
Mumbai has excellent air, sea and land route connections, making it a key area through which illegal wildlife traders smuggle their goods, such as seahorses, shells and corals and other marine species, ivory, live birds and animals for the pet trade.
Guest of Honour, Dr Asad R Rahmani, Director of the Bombay natural History Society, spoke of the important biodiversity of the Western Ghats and the high level of endemism found in various faunal groups such as stream dwelling fish, amphibians and birds.
Dr Rahmani said that illegal wildlife trade not only threatens species by direct depletion of their populations but also due to accidental and intentional release of species which can hybridize with related endemic species, eroding their genetic stock.
Also attending the meeting were Mr T K Samant, Joint Director, NACEN, along with 20 participants from the forest department representing different wildlife and forest divisions of Maharashtra and 25 Custom officers from around the state.
During the meeting, Mr Ajesh Kumar, released the Hindi version“Musibat Na Mole Lein” of TRAFFIC-India’s“Don’t Buy Trouble” film, which educates people about the legal consequences of indulging in illegal wildlife trade.
Those conducting workshop sessions included Mr Samir Sinha, Head of TRAFFIC India, Dr S P Goyal, a wildlife forensic expert and Prof. B.C. Choudhary, an expert on marine issues, both from the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) Dehradun, Ritwick Dutta, Advocate from the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India and wildlife and environmental expert, and Saurabh Sharma, Advocate from Delhi High Court and expert on wildlife laws.
During the workshop a wildlife forensic sample collection kit developed jointly by Wildlife Institute of India and TRAFFIC was distributed to participants. The customized kit will enable the field staff to collect samples for forensic analysis as per the prescribed protocols. Other resource materials provided to participants included CDs on various themes plus books and posters relating to wildlife law and enforcement issues.
For more information, please visit: www.traffic.org and www.wwfindia.org/traffic or Contact: Mr Samir Sinha 09868144462 and 011- 41504786/43516290.
пятница, 14 января 2011 г.
TRAFFIC - Wildlife Trade News - Malaysia’s new wildlife law used to tackle cybercrime
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The Selangor State Wildlife and National Parks Department (Perhilitan) raided the man’s home in Bukit Jelutong on Tuesday and found the ivory items, which he advertised in the classified ads of a well known local website, officials told TRAFFIC.
He is expected to be charged under Section 68(b) of the Wildlife Conservation Act 2010 which came into force in December.
He faces up to MYR 100,000 (USD 32,500) in fines or up to three years in jail, or both, if found guilty.
Under the previous law the penalties would have been significantly lower: a fine of not exceeding MYR3,000 (USD975) or to a term of imprisonment not exceeding one year or to both.
“It is encouraging to see the new law deployed so quickly and to address this specific problem,” says Chris R. Shepherd, Deputy Regional Director of TRAFFIC Southeast Asia.
The case is not only significant in putting the new law to the test, it also shines a spotlight on the illegal trade in wildlife and wildlife parts on the internet.
“Illegal trade in wildlife on local websites is a serious issue that needs to be addressed, says Shepherd.
“This case exemplifies the need for increased monitoring of these websites.”
While Malaysia does not possess the open ivory markets of other countries in the region, the country is becoming one of concern for its role in the global ivory trade. Malaysia was identified in the latest Elephant Trade Information System (ETIS) report as a country of concern because of its role as a significant transit point.
ETIS is the world’s largest database of elephant product seizure records, comprising more than 15,400 ivory seizure cases compiled over the last 21 years and is compiled by TRAFFIC on behalf of the Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). The data shows a growing number of illegal ivory shipments passing through Malaysian ports.
In 2009, a large shipment of 5,647 kg of ivory was seized in Viet Nam, having passed through Pasir Gudang, Malaysia, while in 2010, 1,665 kg of ivory was seized in Hai Phong Port, Viet Nam, again having come via Malaysia.
In August last year, Wildlife officers seized two tonnes of elephant ivory and five rhino horns at Kenya’s international airport, which were to be illegally shipped to Malaysia.
четверг, 13 января 2011 г.
TRAFFIC - Wildlife Trade News - Rhino poaching in South Africa reaches new high
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The yearly total is the highest ever experienced in South Africa and nearly triple 2009 when 122 rhinos were killed in the country. An additional six rhinos have been lost to poaching since the New Year.
Kruger National Park, the world famous safari destination, was hardest hit losing 146 rhinos to poaching in 2010, authorities said. The park is home to the largest populations of both White and Black Rhinos in the country. Nationwide, South Africa is home to approximately 21,000 rhinos, more than any other country in the world.
Rhino poaching across Africa has risen sharply in the past few years, threatening to reverse hard-won population increases achieved by conservation authorities during the 20th century.
The first alarming yearly spike occurred in 2008 when 83 rhinos were lost. South Africa has responded by intensifying its law enforcement efforts, and made approximately 162 poaching arrests last year.
The recent killing increase is largely due to heightened demand for rhino horn, which has long been prized as an ingredient in traditional Asian medicine. It has been claimed recently that rhino horn possesses cancer-curing properties, despite there being no medical evidence to support the assertion.
“Only a concerted international enforcement pincer movement, at both ends of the supply and demand chain, can hope to nip this rhino poaching crisis in the bud,” said Tom Milliken, Director of TRAFFIC’s East and Southern Africa programme.
Milliken pointed to recently established co-ordination links between officials in South Africa and Viet Nam, the country heavily implicated in the recent poaching surge.
The current wave of poaching is being committed by sophisticated criminal networks using helicopters, night-vision equipment, veterinary tranquilizers and silencers to kill rhinos at night while attempting to avoid law enforcement patrols.
“The criminal syndicates operating in South Africa are highly organized and use advanced technologies. They are very well co-ordinated,” said Dr Joseph Okori, WWF African Rhino Programme Manager.
“This is not typical poaching.”
среда, 12 января 2011 г.
TRAFFIC - Wildlife Trade News - Indigenous peoples key to timber trade policy
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The comments came in a statement made to members of the International Tropical Timber Trade Organization (ITTO) by the organization’s Civil Society Advisory Group (CSAG).
According to the statement, there is“a growing trend in a rebalancing of the voices shaping policies and decisions in the forest sector. Indigenous peoples and community-based organizations…are increasingly shaping decisions in the forest sector, extending to forest management, trade and market decision-making, and to promotion of SFM {Sustainable Forest Management} and equitable and just conservation models that respect rights and tenure of communities, indigenous peoples and vulnerable minorities and women.”
The statement also noted the challenge facing ITTO on how its members could advance legal trade and Sustainable Forest Management without creating a barrier to segments of the tropical timber industry.
“Good governance is a prerequisite for countries to move forward on a sustainable timber trade policy and ITTO is uniquely placed to ensure this can happen,” said Chen Hin Keong, TRAFFIC's Global Forest Trade Programme Leader and Co-chair of ITTO’s Civil Society Advisory Group.
Indonesia has already signalled an interest in hosting an international conference on tenure and governance in forestry and timber trade, in 2011.
According to Chen, such a conference“would enable ITTO and its member countries to engage actively with civil society and forest communities in Asia and share lessons on tenure and governance reforms.”
The CSAG statement also noted the rapidly rising importance of domestic and regional markets, which would create an increasing number of opportunities for smallholder and community enterprises, as well as other levels within the timber industry.
“The domestic and regional timber trade is big and will only get bigger,” said Chen.“The challenge is to ensure this happens in a sustainable manner, with fair-sharing of the benefits from those who will profit from it.”
CSAG also recommended ITTO applies sustainable harvesting standards for wild forest biodiversity that comply with those discussed at October’s meeting of the Convention on Bioloical Diversity (CBD CoP 10) and that the ITTO should include more work on non-timber forest products (NTFPs).
Finally, the CSAG also called for strengthened collaboration between ITTO and CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora), on both threatened timber species and other non-timber forest products that may be at risk of over-exploitation.
Thefull statementmade by the CSAG to ITTO (PDF, 50 KB).
вторник, 11 января 2011 г.
TRAFFIC - Wildlife Trade News - Red Panda trade highlighted
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Red PandasAilurus fulgensare the only“true” panda species; they are found in mountainous forests of the Himalayas and adjacent mountain ranges in south-western China, ranging discontinuously from Central Nepal through Bhutan and North-East India (where it is the State animal in Sikkim) and Myanmar, into the Tibetan Autonomous Region, Yunnan, Sichuan and even into the Qingling Mountains in Shaanxi, China.
The attractively coloured fur of Red Pandas has long held an appeal to people, and the animals have traditionally been hunted, for example to make hats and coats worn by the Yi minority in Yunnan Province. Such garments are still worn today, although it remains unclear whether they are from recently taken animals.
Today the Red Panda is afforded national protection throughout its range, and all commercial trade has been banned under CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) since 1995.
The species is listed by IUCN as Vulnerable, with an estimated population of fewer than 10,000 fecund individuals.;)
The studies find little evidence of ongoing trade in Red Pandas for their fur: only one seizure of panda parts—a shipment of carcasses from Japan to the US in 1995—has been reported by Parties to CITES, while a study of wildlife trade along the Yunnan (China)–Vietnam border in the late 1990s found only one case of a Red Panda fur on sale.
However, Roland Melisch, who wrote a chapter about a preliminary assessment of Red Panda trade in Glatston’s publication said:“Although traditional hunting of Red Pandas for their fur appears to be mostly under control, fur and fur parts of Red Pandas are still occasionally reported as illegally offered and traded in Nepal. Furthermore, a completely new threat was revealed in 2009 when a business traveler visiting Guangdong, China, was offered fresh game meat from a caged Red Panda in a restaurant.”
The scale and potential threat posed by the capture of Red Pandas for human consumption is presently unknown, but the sale of wild meat is widespread in China’s southern provinces, despite government efforts to prevent the sale of protected species.
“International co-operation through wildlife enforcement networks, like SAWEN in South Asia and ASEAN-WEN in South-East Asia, can be an important mechanism for countries to work together to detect and deter illicit trafficking of Asia’s natural heritage,” said Samir Sinha, Head of TRAFFIC India.
“For a species that occurs naturally at low density, even low levels of hunting could pose a serious threat to Red Pandas and is a situation that demands close monitoring,” said Melisch.
понедельник, 10 января 2011 г.
TRAFFIC - Wildlife Trade News - CITES: 35 years on, more resources needed
A team of scientists from the National University of Singapore and Oxford Brookes University published their deliberations today in the journalScienceon how they believe the effectiveness of CITES could be boosted.
CITES is an international agreement between governments that aims to ensure international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival.
The paper’s authors note that while credible biological and trade data are core to informing decisions and garnering political will and consensus among CITES Parties“many CITES Parties fail to systematically monitor and report international wildlife trade.”
“The net result is that analysis of available data often remains insufficient to identify species threatened by trade and to detect trade inaccuracies and loopholes,” says Vincent Nijman of Oxford Brookes University, and an author of theSciencestudy.
The collection of trade data only along easily accessed trade routes, such as at airports, is also problematic as it fails to convey the full scale of wildlife trade, say the authors.
To address these, and other issues, the paper calls for a much greater degree of co-ordination among CITES Parties, including initiatives already underway on enhanced data-sharing and analysis, such as the Wildlife Enforcement Monitoring System, and the planned illegal trade database.
The majority of such proposed solutions depend on enhanced active, sustained, and reciprocal engagement of CITES Parties with external partners, a process the authors recognize would by administratively demanding, costly, and politically challenging.
To meet these requirements, far greater resources are needed: as the report notes“The {CITES} Secretariat operates on meager party donations,” and it calls for“Parties, particularly importing nations, to increase contributions dramatically.”
“After 35 years, the CITES framework remains highly relevant,” says Nijman,“but only through increased resources can the Convention move toward proactive, real-time monitoring and regulation to strengthen wildlife trade enforcement and data quality.”
“These are vital improvements: a strengthened Convention is essential to protect imperiled biodiversity.”
The paper,Boosting CITESby Jacob Phelps, Edward L. Webb, David Bickford, Vincent Nijman and Navjot S. Sodhi is available through theSciencewebsite