Wildlife crime poses a serious and irrefutable risk to global biodiversity and is a driver of the current global extinction crisis. Southeast Asia accounts for up to a quarter of global demand for illegal wildlife products, and is also both a source and transit region for this transnational trade. This report examines the governance frameworks for countering illegal wildlife trade in Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam. After assessing the effectiveness of several responses to wildlife crime in these countries, the report provides recommendations for strengthening the capacities of the institutions involved and improving strategies to counter illegal wildlife trade.
In this book the author examines the illegal wildlife trade from multiple perspectives: the historical context, the impact on the environment, the scope of the problem internationally, the sociocultural demand for illegal products, the legal efforts to combat it, and several case studies from inside the trade. The illegal wildlife trade has become a global criminal enterprise, following in the footsteps of drugs and weapons. Beyond the environmental impact, financial profits from the illegal wildlife trade often fund organized crime groups and violent gangs that threaten public safety and security in myriad ways. This innovative volume covers several key questions surrounding the wildlife trade: why is there a demand for illegal wildlife products, which actors are involved in the trade, how is the business organized, and what are the harmful consequences. The author performed ethnographic fieldwork in three key markets: Russia, Morocco, and China, and has constructed a detailed picture of how the wildlife trade operates in these areas. Conversations with informants directly involved in the illegal business ensure unique insights into this lively black market. In the course of his journey the author follows the route of the illegal wildlife trade from poor poaching areas to rich business districts where corrupt officials, legally registered companies, wildlife farms and sophisticated criminal organizations all have a share. A fascinating look inside the world of poachers, smugglers and traders.
Illegal and unsustainable wildlife trade is a growing threat to the survival of thousands of species worldwide. Perhaps nowhere is the growing threat of illegal and unsustainable wildlife trade more obvious than in Southeast Asia. In theory, some forms of sustainable exploitation of wildlife may be possible, however, controlling exploitation can prove to be difficult, and combating illegal and unsustainable trade does not appear to be a priority in Southeast Asia. In response to overexploitation of wildlife, much of which is destined for international trade, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) came into effect in 1975. All countries in Southeast Asia are Party to CITES, with the exception of Timor Leste, and have national legislation in place as well to control harvest and trade to varying degrees. Here I examine, through a number of case studies, to illustrate the current effectiveness of CITES, and national laws, as conservation tools in Southeast Asia. I have attempted to present here information that highlights the scale and other relevant dynamics of the trade, focusing on the role Southeast Asia plays as a source, an import/re-export hub and as a consumer of wildlife. All of my case studies clearly illustrate that illegal and unsustainable trade in Southeast Asia is rife, carried out openly and poses a significant threat to the conservation many species, despite protection being provided, at least on paper, through national legislation and CITES.
UNK] A powerful and provocative expose of the persistent illegal trade in endangered animals; Shocking photographs are accompanied by interviews with government officials, wildlife protection agents, and conservationists; Focuses on the poachers, smugglers and the buyers revealing the larger issues in this high-stakes game The world's illegal wildlife market is estimated by Interpol to be worth USD 6 billion a year, and is one of the fastest growing areas of international crime. Black Market tells of the forces driving this multibillion dollar trade, and profiles some of the brave activists who are fighting back. The reader is taken on a pictorial journey across the Asian continent to explore the destruction of animal habitats and the disappearance of entire species. This important book proves that we have much to gain by learning more about this truly global issue
An intrepid investigation of the criminal world of wildlife trafficking--the poachers, the traders, and the customers--and of those fighting against it Journalist Rachel Nuwer plunges the reader into the underground of global wildlife trafficking, a topic she has been investigating for nearly a decade. Our insatiable demand for animals -- for jewelry, pets, medicine, meat, trophies, and fur -- is driving a worldwide poaching epidemic, threatening the continued existence of countless species. Illegal wildlife trade now ranks among the largest contraband industries in the world, yet compared to drug, arms, or human trafficking, the wildlife crisis has received scant attention and support, leaving it up to passionate individuals fighting on the ground to try to ensure that elephants, tigers, rhinos, and more are still around for future generations. As Reefer Madness (Schlosser) took us into the drug market, or Susan Orlean descended into the swampy obsessions of TheOrchid Thief, Nuwer--an award-winning science journalist with a background in ecology--takes readers on a narrative journey to the front lines of the trade: to killing fields in Africa, traditional medicine black markets in China, and wild meat restaurants in Vietnam. Through exhaustive first-hand reporting that took her to ten countries, Nuwer explores the forces currently driving demand for animals and their parts; the toll that demand is extracting on species across the planet; and the conservationists, rangers, and activists who believe it is not too late to stop the impending extinctions. More than a depressing list of statistics, Poached is the story of the people who believe this is a battle that can be won, that our animals are not beyond salvation.
