[NAIROBI, 26/SEPT/2008 © A POSITIVE OUTCOMES FEATURE]International criminal rings have fueled the decimation of much treasured wildlife species in the vast continent of Africa.
A plethora of matchless Faunal and Floral species has not been spared. Elephants, rhinos, apes, turtles, chameleons, tortoises, African Gray Parrots, eagles, cranes and the illegal harvesting and plunder of species like Aloes, cacti, orchids, East African Sandalwood (sandali) and Prunus Africana (Mweri) among others have been the bane of conservationists in the continent. Unscrupulous wildlife traders in western capitals are making obscene black market profits from the sale of the continent’s irreplaceable heritage.
Dee Cook, Martin Roberts and Jason Lowther of the University of Wolverhampton have authored a damning report “The International Wildlife Trade and Organised Crime” which shows how organised criminal networks - Russian Mafia, Asian Triad Gang and the Medellin cartel - are turning their tentacles into wildlife crime, thanks to the lucrative profits. Today wildlife crime is said to be third after narcotics and arms trafficking, and the unique African wildlife is playing a pivotal role in this. According to the dossier, wildlife smuggling is done through, concealment; customs misdeclaration; permit fraud; laundering through export; diplomatic baggage and postal routes.
“Wildlife crime is rampant in many countries. International trafficking in endangered species is thought to be the third largest contraband business in terms of the cash value after the trade in narcotics and arms. High rewards and low risks of detection and punishment have made the illegal wildlife trade attractive to the criminals. There is increasing evidence of the involvement of serious and organized criminal syndicates in illegal wildlife trade. The number and frequency in interceptions of ivory and other valuable specimens from Africa such as reptiles, birds, live animals and plants is an indication.” Says Emily Kisamo, director of the Lusaka Agreement Task Force (LATF).
LATF is a multinational law enforcement agency established under the ‘Lusaka Agreement on Co-operative Enforcement Operations Directed at Illegal Trade in Wild Fauna and Flora’. The Task Force is the only one of its kind, as it is an Agency borne out of a Multilateral Environmental Agreement, which unlike others has enforcement powers to fight against illegal wildlife trade. It commenced its operations in June 1999. Its member countries consist of Congo (Brazzaville), Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Lesotho. Three other countries - South Africa, Ethiopia and Swaziland - are signatories to LATF. Several other African countries are showing keen interest in joining the Task Force.
In its eight years of existence LATF which is based in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi has become a searing thorn in the flesh of international wildlife smugglers. Ever since it was established, LATF has had a continuous string of successes in tracking down wildlife criminals and bursting their illegal operations whilst obliterating long-established illegitimate floral and faunal trade networks in Africa’s porous borders and even across the globe.
“In Africa, evidence on the organised levels of the illegal trade shows at least four broad areas of serious activity. Illegal timber trade; Wild animal trophy trafficking mostly ivory, rhino horns, skins; illegal trade in live and dead specimens for specialist collectors of butterflies, birds, reptiles, amphibians, primates, plants, eggs, and wildlife derivatives.” Says Kisamo who hails from Tanzania.
The main objective of the Lusaka Agreement is pegged on assisting member states to trim down and ultimately eliminate illicit trade in wild fauna and flora. The Task Force is composed of national law enforcement officers seconded from member states, to coordinate cross-border law enforcement operations and facilitate the development of new techniques to fight prohibited wildlife trade. The Task Force is also well represented at Interpol’s Wildlife Crime Sub Group.
According to Kisamo, Ivory is frequently encountered in banned trade and is a major reason for poaching of the African elephant, whose numbers are dwindling.
“The ivory contraband transits through border entry and exit points where capacities of law enforcement agencies are inadequate. Absence of scanning and other detection equipment at some of these points has exacerbated the situation. Criminal trafficking of ivory continues unabated in many parts of Africa despite the international ban on ivory trade by the Convention of the International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).” Says Kisamo.
LATF reveals that readily available local and international markets have contributed largely to the high demand for elephant ivory. A significant number of seizures have been recorded recently thanks to LATF’s under-cover operations in wildlife crime detection and adoption of new methods to fight this vice.
So far it has been established that the wildlife trade racket operates due to international demand.
“International demand provides incentives to middlemen who in turn engage local communities to undertake poaching. There are different black markets pricing levels for the specimen at each stage. For instance a poacher’s selling price to a middleman for elephant ivory in September 2006 was between $5-10 per Kg in Kenya and the middleman would then sell at $19 –22 per Kg. In the past, the international market price has fetched up to more than US$ 100 per kg. Foreigners provide the incentive. Locals’ come in at the starting level of obtaining specimens and are as expected paid a nominal amount. These specimens are usually sold to another tycoon who will arrange to export them from the country to outside Africa.” Kisamo reveals.
According to Interpol records in the period 2002 to 2004 alone, more than 18,000 Kg of ivory were intercepted in various parts of the world. Most of the elephant ivory is collected from established wildlife protected Areas in remote areas and concealed in commodities like timber, charcoal, fish, and farm produce (banana, maize and rice) during transportation, to avoid detection, by law enforcement agencies.
“Being the only regional enforcement agency, we are not sitting on our laurels as we still face a number of challenges in our ultimate work of eliminating and dismantling wildlife crime syndicates and ensuring that the inimitable naturally endowed wildlife fortunes of the African continent are protected for posterity.” Says Kisamo. [ENDS]
A plethora of matchless Faunal and Floral species has not been spared. Elephants, rhinos, apes, turtles, chameleons, tortoises, African Gray Parrots, eagles, cranes and the illegal harvesting and plunder of species like Aloes, cacti, orchids, East African Sandalwood (sandali) and Prunus Africana (Mweri) among others have been the bane of conservationists in the continent. Unscrupulous wildlife traders in western capitals are making obscene black market profits from the sale of the continent’s irreplaceable heritage.
Dee Cook, Martin Roberts and Jason Lowther of the University of Wolverhampton have authored a damning report “The International Wildlife Trade and Organised Crime” which shows how organised criminal networks - Russian Mafia, Asian Triad Gang and the Medellin cartel - are turning their tentacles into wildlife crime, thanks to the lucrative profits. Today wildlife crime is said to be third after narcotics and arms trafficking, and the unique African wildlife is playing a pivotal role in this. According to the dossier, wildlife smuggling is done through, concealment; customs misdeclaration; permit fraud; laundering through export; diplomatic baggage and postal routes.
“Wildlife crime is rampant in many countries. International trafficking in endangered species is thought to be the third largest contraband business in terms of the cash value after the trade in narcotics and arms. High rewards and low risks of detection and punishment have made the illegal wildlife trade attractive to the criminals. There is increasing evidence of the involvement of serious and organized criminal syndicates in illegal wildlife trade. The number and frequency in interceptions of ivory and other valuable specimens from Africa such as reptiles, birds, live animals and plants is an indication.” Says Emily Kisamo, director of the Lusaka Agreement Task Force (LATF).
LATF is a multinational law enforcement agency established under the ‘Lusaka Agreement on Co-operative Enforcement Operations Directed at Illegal Trade in Wild Fauna and Flora’. The Task Force is the only one of its kind, as it is an Agency borne out of a Multilateral Environmental Agreement, which unlike others has enforcement powers to fight against illegal wildlife trade. It commenced its operations in June 1999. Its member countries consist of Congo (Brazzaville), Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Lesotho. Three other countries - South Africa, Ethiopia and Swaziland - are signatories to LATF. Several other African countries are showing keen interest in joining the Task Force.
In its eight years of existence LATF which is based in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi has become a searing thorn in the flesh of international wildlife smugglers. Ever since it was established, LATF has had a continuous string of successes in tracking down wildlife criminals and bursting their illegal operations whilst obliterating long-established illegitimate floral and faunal trade networks in Africa’s porous borders and even across the globe.
“In Africa, evidence on the organised levels of the illegal trade shows at least four broad areas of serious activity. Illegal timber trade; Wild animal trophy trafficking mostly ivory, rhino horns, skins; illegal trade in live and dead specimens for specialist collectors of butterflies, birds, reptiles, amphibians, primates, plants, eggs, and wildlife derivatives.” Says Kisamo who hails from Tanzania.
The main objective of the Lusaka Agreement is pegged on assisting member states to trim down and ultimately eliminate illicit trade in wild fauna and flora. The Task Force is composed of national law enforcement officers seconded from member states, to coordinate cross-border law enforcement operations and facilitate the development of new techniques to fight prohibited wildlife trade. The Task Force is also well represented at Interpol’s Wildlife Crime Sub Group.
According to Kisamo, Ivory is frequently encountered in banned trade and is a major reason for poaching of the African elephant, whose numbers are dwindling.
“The ivory contraband transits through border entry and exit points where capacities of law enforcement agencies are inadequate. Absence of scanning and other detection equipment at some of these points has exacerbated the situation. Criminal trafficking of ivory continues unabated in many parts of Africa despite the international ban on ivory trade by the Convention of the International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).” Says Kisamo.
LATF reveals that readily available local and international markets have contributed largely to the high demand for elephant ivory. A significant number of seizures have been recorded recently thanks to LATF’s under-cover operations in wildlife crime detection and adoption of new methods to fight this vice.
So far it has been established that the wildlife trade racket operates due to international demand.
“International demand provides incentives to middlemen who in turn engage local communities to undertake poaching. There are different black markets pricing levels for the specimen at each stage. For instance a poacher’s selling price to a middleman for elephant ivory in September 2006 was between $5-10 per Kg in Kenya and the middleman would then sell at $19 –22 per Kg. In the past, the international market price has fetched up to more than US$ 100 per kg. Foreigners provide the incentive. Locals’ come in at the starting level of obtaining specimens and are as expected paid a nominal amount. These specimens are usually sold to another tycoon who will arrange to export them from the country to outside Africa.” Kisamo reveals.
According to Interpol records in the period 2002 to 2004 alone, more than 18,000 Kg of ivory were intercepted in various parts of the world. Most of the elephant ivory is collected from established wildlife protected Areas in remote areas and concealed in commodities like timber, charcoal, fish, and farm produce (banana, maize and rice) during transportation, to avoid detection, by law enforcement agencies.
“Being the only regional enforcement agency, we are not sitting on our laurels as we still face a number of challenges in our ultimate work of eliminating and dismantling wildlife crime syndicates and ensuring that the inimitable naturally endowed wildlife fortunes of the African continent are protected for posterity.” Says Kisamo. [ENDS]
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