(IN/NP) - Crossover border control needed to fight wildlife trade

[Guest guest]

*Endangered animals

*

 

By B K Dalit

 

Recently, I saw three television Public Service Announcements (PSAs)

produced by the U.S. Department of State in which a reknowned Hollywood

actor, Harrison Ford, was warning that our planet's endangered animals are

vanishing at an alarming rate globally, primarily due to widespread wildlife

trade. Nepal is also facing the same challenges.

 

Wildlife trafficking has been a soaring black-market worth an estimated $10

billion to $20 billion a year. The wildlife trade is flourishing due to

International demand, high profit with quick turnover, minimum involvement,

and back up support in case of arrest. The major species in trade in Nepal

are rhinoceros, leopard, tiger, musk deer and bear. The major trade in

Kathmandu involves Ivory, tiger trophy, fur and skin of different animals.

 

Behind the scenes there is bird trafficking, and a thriving illegal bird

trade in India. We can see street vendors selling the rare birds in the open

markets of Kathmandu but no attempt is made to prosecute them. There is also

a high demand for reptiles, lizards, and snakes.

 

Wildlife trade in Nepal began to intensify during the late eighties. If we

analyze the incidents of poaching and arrested cases till date, all the

efforts and fund targeted in wildlife conservation seem to be completely

meaningless. There are few protected areas in Nepal where one-horned rhinos

can be found like Sukhlaphanta Wildlife Reserve(SWR), Bardiya National

Parks, Chitwan National Park(CNP) and Parsa Wildlife Reserve. Rhino horn

trade is found to be prevalent in some areas of Nepal like Surkhet, Dang,

Tanahu, Gorkha, Nuwakot, Sindhupalchowk, Ramechhap, Bara and Dhading.

Nepalgunj, a town in western Nepal bordering India, is one of the hotbeds for

international smugglers.

 

In Bardiya, four poachers were arrested at Gola V D C. on 8 May 2008.They

were also found to be involved on Rhino killed in Kailasi Community Forest

on December 2007. On 18 May 2008,four more poachers were arrested from

buffer zone area for killing rhino at helipad area inside the park in April

this year. All the poachers were local people and army men. They were found

to have sold the animal parts to the Proprietor of Mansarobar Guest House,

Nepalgung. Altogether 29 persons were involved in these cases out of which

only 10 persons were arrested. Rhino mortality rate due to poaching is 10.

16. and 19 in the years 2003-2004,2004-2005,2006-2007 respectively which

indicates that the trend of poaching is increasing year by year. The total

number of Rhinos has declined from 800 in 1950 to 408 in 2008(DNPWC).

 

Nepal has been a member of CITES (Convention on International Trade in

Endangered Species ) on 18 June 1975. There is also a provision of

punishment for poaching wild animals. But due to the strong nexus of the

poachers with the high level politicians, the poachers are never punished.

There are ample evidences of amnesty granted to poachers by the government.

So much so that forest minister Matrika Prasad Yadav even went on to say

that several government agencies are involved in the trafficking network.

 

Even if the government officers carry out regular checks and nab the

culprits, nothing happens next. No one gets prosecuted and jailed. Moreover,

anyone can get away by paying a few hundred dollars and continue the

business freely whereas they can earn profits worth thousands of dollars.

This reveals the system of poor governance. How can we imagine wildlife

protection in such a country where there is a complete failure of

governance?

 

Firstly, to address this problem, there should be concerted efforts and

cross-border cooperation at national, regional and international levels to

make enforcement efforts effective, garner political commitments, improve

intelligence sharing and perhaps even gauge the possibility of extradition

mechanisms for those indicted in illegal wildlife trade.

 

Wildlife trade officials from SAARC countries have defined a series of joint

actions on 1 February 2008 under the new South Asia Wildlife Trade

Initiative (SAWTI) as per the direction by SAARC ministers at the Tenth

Meeting of Governing Council for the South Asia Co-operative Environment

Programme (SACEP). SAWTI has also developed a South Asia Regional Strategic

Plan on Wildlife Trade for the period 2008-2013.But the questions remain in

the implementation of the plans.

 

Secondly, the governmental bodies like DNPWC should be equipped with

sufficient resources and empowered to tackle illegal wildlife trade. Rhino

protection depends on the security in the protected areas, and the ability

to predict where there are possible poaching problem. The security aspect

should also be reconsidered and restructured. We need people who are

trained, who understand the legal framework in which they work, what

approaches are available, what skills we need.

 

Forest guards need to be trained to save the scene of crime so evidence is

not destroyed. Wildlife crime investigation should be intelligence-driven.

Cooperation between forest protection, wildlife and national parks, customs,

army and border control is vital, as is cross-border cooperation, which is

almost not happening now. Forensics department is also important like

wildlife forensics department to identify whether the bone is from a tiger

or from rhino horn or fake skin.

 

Last but not the least, the political will right from the top level to save

the endangered animals is the most essential element in Nepal.

 

Posted on: 2008-07-05 20:25:50 (Server Time

 

--

Lucia de Vries

Freelance Journalist

Bagdol, Patan, Nepal

Wijk 4-47, 8321 GE Urk, Holland