Wildlife trade is any sale or exchange of wild animal and plant resources This can involve live animals

and plants or a diverse range of products needed or prized by humans including skins, medicinal ingredients, tourist curios, timber, fish and other food products. Products are in trade internationally or just within national borders In the early 1990s, the value of legal wildlife products imported globally was around USD160 billion per year. In 2005, the estimated annual value of global imports was over USD342 billion The value of illegal wildlife trade could be between USD10 to 20 billion a year

Wildlife is traded for Food: commercial fisheries, bushmeat Healthcare: traditional medicines, tonics, herbal remedies Ornamental: skins, tortoise shell, amulets Pet trade: Live birds. reptiles Building materials: timber Clothing and ornaments: leather, furs, fabrics Sport: falconry and trophy hunting

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. Established in 1976 as wildlife trade programme of WWF and IUCN, the World Conservation Union TRAFFIC employs over 100 staff based in nearly 30 countries TRAFFIC operates through a network of nine regional programmes, co-ordinated by the TRAFFIC International headquarters in Cambridge, UK

TRAFFIC International (Cambridge) TRAFFIC Central Africa TRAFFIC East Asia TRAFFIC East/southern Africa TRAFFIC Europe

TRAFFIC North America TRAFFIC Oceania TRAFFIC South America TRAFFIC South Asia TRAFFIC Southeast Asia

Early warning: Catalysing responses to new and emerging knowledge about wildlife hunting, harvest and trade levels, patterns and trends Flagship species in trade: Catalysing urgent action for emblematic threatened species that act as flagships of wider trade and conservation challenges Resource security and wildlife trade: Supporting trade measures that help encourage sustainable practice within some major wildlife resource sectors Wildlife trade routes: Taking focused action along priority trade routes to reduce wildlife trade threats to priority centres of biodiversity, species and resources Rapid response and innovation: Responding to emerging regional wildlife trade issues and promoting innovative approaches and solutions

Effective regulation: Governments (with stakeholder input) enact, adapt, implement and enforce policies and legislation that ensure trade in wild animals and plants is not a threat to the conservation of nature. Positive economic and social incentives: Governments and the private sector develop and adopt economic policies and practices that provide incentives and benefits that encourage the maintenance of wildlife trade within sustainable levels and support effective wildlife trade regulation. Sustainable consumer behaviour: Traders and consumers make choices in their wildlife purchasing decisions that do not threaten the conservation of nature. Mobilized knowledge: Decision-makers at all levels acquire and apply sound knowledge about the scope, dynamics and conservation impact of wildlife trade and its response to different management measures and approaches.

TIGERS
Parts of at least 1,069 Tigers have been seized in Tiger range countries over the past decade More than 100 wild Tigers actually poached each year India reported by far the highest number of Tiger part seizures, followed by China and Nepal Increasing number of seizures in Indonesia, Nepal, Thailand and Viet Nam Hot spots identified Nepal as a transit country, and the China-Myanmar, RussiaChina, Malaysia-Thailand and India-Nepal borders Parts seized ranged from complete skins, skeletons, meat, through to bones, meat, claws, teeth, skulls, penises and other body parts, with different parts predominating in different countries

RHINOS
Rhino poaching worldwide hit a 15year high in 2009 The illegal trade is being driven by an Asian demand for horns and run by organized criminal networks Viet Nam was highlighted as a country of particular concern Anecdotal evidence of use as a cure for cancer rather than its traditional use as a fever-reducing agent Abuse of permitting system: Ownership of rhino horns from trophy hunting is allowed, under strict regulations, but it is illegal to trade the horns commercially

ELEPHANTS
Illicit trade in ivory has been continually increasing from 2004 to the present and that the rate of increase has moved sharply upward in 2009 CITES action plan for the control of trade in African elephant ivory adopted in 2004 has been generally ineffective Three countries most heavily implicated in the illicit trade in ivory are the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria and Thailand China remains the main destination for international ivory, with Thailand having the largest domestic market Frequency of large-scale ivory seizures is increasing and provides evidence that there is a growing involvement of organized Asian crime syndicates operating from bases in Africa

CAPTIVE BREEDING
Between 2000 and 2009, the proportion of captive-bred and ranched specimens1 amounted to: 74% for live reptiles (1.2 million specimens per year) - 35% of reptile skins (1 and 2 million specimens per year), 60% for live birds (equating to 200,000 specimens in per year). Article VII, paragraphs 4 and 5 of CITES provides special provisions for captive breeding potentially reduces pressure of harvest of species from the wild Provides socio-economic incentives for the conservation of species and a reliable source of income for local communities. However, illegal trade in wild taken specimens declared as captive-bred is occurring High trade in specimens known to be difficult to keep and/or breed in captivity Trade in captive-bred specimens from non-range states Shipments where captive bred specimens and wild specimens were mixed

TIGER 'FARMING'
Population of captive-bred Tiger population exceeds 6,000 (global population of tigers in the wild is not more than 3200) The two primary Tiger captive breeding facilities led a major push in 2007 for the government to allow them to legally sell products made from their Tigers China examining whether legalizing trade in products from farmed Tigers would be likely to reduce poaching and benefit global wild Tiger conservation Concern that a legalized trade will only lead to a surge in demand for tiger products and a surge in illegal trade Risk of 'laundering' of illegally-killed tigers Risk of any potential impact on the precarious wild population is unacceptable Tiger wines and meat already being sold illegally from existing captive-breeding facilities

LEGISLATION: MALAYSIA
Wildlife Conservation Bill 2010 provides significantly higher penalties and mandatory jail terms for wildlife crime International Trade in Endangered Species Act 2008 came into force Maximum fine for hunting Schedule 1 species increased from maximum fine of RM15,000 (USD4,700) or five years jail, or both, to a minimum fine of RM100,000 (USD 31,600), and a jail term not exceeding five years Widens the list of agencies empowered to enforce wildlife laws by including Police and Customs officers Protects more species of wildlife Significant loopholes closed (such as trade in products claiming to contain tiger derivatives) Wildlife smuggler Anson Wong sentenced to five years by a Malaysian High Court in November 2010, for for attempting to export 95 Boa Constrictors without a permit.

JUDICIARY
Those convicted of wildlife-related offences to walk away with minor penalties and in some cases continue with their illegal activities Prosecutions fail due to lack of evidence ASEAN Wildlife Enforcement Network worked with TRAFFIC to increase the awareness of judges and prosecutors in the region of the seriousness of wildlife-related crime Judiciary workshops on wildlife crime and prosecution held in Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Cambodia and Lao PDR Raised awareness among judicial officers of the nature, scale and impact of the illegal trade in wildlife Examined existing CITES and other wildlife-related national legislation Identified potential weaknesses and loopholes in the existing legal system Examined the role forensic science can play in strengthening wildlife crime cases brought before the courts

REGIONAL COOPERATION

LEGAL DETERRENT

ENCOURAGING SOCIAL STIGMA

ENFORCEMENT DETERRENT

DEMAND REDUCTION

MOTIVATING CONSUMER PREFERENCE

CITES CoP15, Doha, March 2003

Proposal by Monaco to list Atlantic Bluefin Tuna in Appendix I of CITES Overwhelming scientific evidence indicating plummeting populations and unsustainable harvests Opposition led by Japan and Libya Proposal defeated by 68 votes to 20, with the EU nations abstaining

Are politics and economics dominating CITES?

Science and conservation were not driving the decisions at CoP15 Following the science worked well with species for which there were no significant economic or political concerns but not where there were important economic impact CITES is threatening the sovereignty of nations and other MEAs CITES is now attracting real-world multilateral trade politics

Are politics and economics dominating CITES? Some perceptions

Science and conservation were not driving the decisions at CoP15 Following the science worked well with species for which there were no significant economic or political concerns but not where there were important economic impact CITES is threatening the sovereignty of nations and other MEAs CITES is now attracting real-world multilateral trade politics

CHALLENGES How do we address the increasing role of economics in CITES debate? How do we strengthen the role of science in CITES decisionmaking? How do we more closely link CITES with the wider socio-economic and developmental priorities of the Parties? What is the way forward now for CITES?

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