Did you know that the illegal wildlife trade falls into the top 5 most lucrative illegal markets in the world? Some experts say that the illegal wildlife trade stands in the top 3, with guns and drugs taking the top lucrative spots. The trade in wildlife and parts such as ivory, rhino horn, and tiger bones funnels tens of billions of dollars annually into the hands of criminal syndicates. With the poachers so well funded, it became a struggle in recent years for nations to fight the slaughter happening daily on their territory.
But the
tide may be changing. In the second half
of 2012, the New York Times reported on the ties between Kony, a rebel militia
leader in Central Africa, and elephant poaching. Evidence showed that he began using ivory to
buy weapons for his army. Soon after,
the United Nations Convention
against Transnational Organized Crime finally recognized environmental crime, such as wildlife trafficking, as a form of transnational organized crime. This
recognition may help spur valuable partnerships with national governments and
Interpol, Crime Commissions, etc.
Wildlife trafficking has been rooted in international crime syndicates
for years, but finally international bodies recognized this connection.
Another exciting proclamation and recognition of the
epidemic came from the US Department of State.
Wildlife trafficking caught the attention of Secretary of State, Hillary
Clinton. She gave a speech to wildlife
conservations and leaders declaring the urgent need for enhanced global
partnerships and financial resources large enough to fight the vast resources
the criminals use to poach.
Finally top officials and international bodies took
notice of the staggering threat to wildlife worldwide. But unfortunately 2012 saw the worst poaching
numbers yet for elephants and rhinos (668 rhinos killed in South Africa alone). Will 2013 be the year of change in this fight? We can only hope that this new momentum will
be enough to win the war.
Written for SIEL by:
Mandy Rude, 3L
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