Halting Illegal Wildlife Trade: From Starving Supply to Reducing Demand

MKS Pasha

The trade

Over-harvesting, unsustainable use and illegal trade of some species threatens not only their continued survival but also that of ecosystems and the livelihoods of communities and local economies that depend upon these species. Many communities also depend upon these species for their food security and traditional healthcare systems. This use and value, in many cases, provides positive incentives for the protection of these resources and their natural habitats. However the difference in perception of wildlife towards different species in supply and consumptive areas has also resulted in its exploitation differently and has given rise to poaching too. The ongoing demand for wildlife products including tigers, rhinos and elephants particularly in South-east Asia has put an additional threat on these mega-species and many other lesser known ones, jeopardizing their future.

The decline in species numbers across their range due to targeted poaching for different consumptive usages has become a major threat to several high net worth global wildlife species. For example wild tigers are killed to meet the demands for tiger-related products in eastern Asia and in western countries with large oriental populations. Records of seizures of skin, bones and other body parts, conducted by enforcement agencies account for about 500 tigers killed for illegal trade during 2000-2012. This is despite attaining the highest degree of protection globally. Tiger is listed in Schedule I of The Wildlife Protection Act (1972) of India and also in highest category of protection in countries where it exists, in the Endangered category of the IUCN Red Data List, and in Appendix I of CITES. Pasha (2013) has highlighted the challenges, trends and the crisis as a result of escalating wildlife crime. Similar is the situation for rhinos and elephants in Africa and Asia.

Little risk, high gain and low detection and punishment have acted as a catalyst for the clandestine trade in wildlife as stated in the paper published by Cook et. al. in 2002. Wildlife trade globally has grown from an estimated value of $5 to $8 billion as quoted by TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade network, this may account for both legal and illegal – is big business around the world. And it is still seems to be growing. While estimates vary, the numbers show that trade in wildlife and wildlife products (excluding timber and fish harvesting) has grown from around $3 or $4 billion annually in the late 1980s to at least $10 billion in 2001, according to TRAFFIC. Wyler and Sheik (2008) have concluded that given the current trends, illegal wildlife trade is one of the top five largest illicit economies in the world. A more recent report in 2011 by Global Financial Integrity ranks wildlife black markets as the fifth most lucrative in the world.

Globalisation and rising economy

At the site level, in consumptive countries (demand side), an increased access to global market now dictates the dynamics of wildlife crime. Actors in source countries (supply side) who enjoy impunity due to weak enforcement or low detection have also become more sophisticated and connected with transnational criminal networks. The growing economy in SE Asia has also given rise to more financial access to more people and thus creating a market of desire for high value goods. There is a section of wildlife products that have been always been viewed as symbols of status. But have been in the hands of few wealthy and powerful. This has been well brought out by James Conca in one of his recent articles published in Forbes, August 2014. Conca has well-reasoned out the role of massive energy and economic development in giving rise to one of the largest middle class in history, in China and also on the planet, and how are they are responsible for causing another type of environmental disaster – extinction of endangered species through poaching. The emerging economy has provided window of opportunity to other sections of the society to adorn or consume these wildlife products, erstwhile out of their reach. Thus has now drawn this segment too towards the illegal wildlife market. This has now pushed many species towards extinction including the much famed and sought after species, the elephants, rhinos and tigers. 

Crime trends

Wildlife trade has moved its positions over the years, from killing or hunting wildlife for subsistence to catering local demands, and beyond, to become a complete financial venture for some. Trends show that it is not the less-skilled casual hunters that are in the game anymore. With the protected species becoming scarcer, the casual hunters are replaced or joined by more high-tech or professionalized poachers or elsewhere some casual hunters are slowly becoming more sophisticated, for example elephant and rhino poaching in African countries is carried out by heavily trained militias with sophisticated weapons. Even the Tiger poaching in India and other range countries is becoming more organised. Also the networks along the trade chain (source, transit and destination countries) of different species are becoming more streamlined leading to complexity in detection and further escalation of the wildlife crime and trade. This has led to triggering the participation of marginalized communities in wildlife poaching and trade, catalyzing smuggling in new areas with local networks and brokering transnational deals with voluminous trafficking of wildlife articles, invariably related with the increasing local incentives given to communities to poach. 

In the early 2000s, the Secretariat of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), cooperating with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), had already specified indicators that demonstrated the organized nature of parts of the international illicit wildlife trade. A deeper understanding is required of wildlife crime in general as many patterns of illegal wildlife traders are similar to those that would be depicted by any criminal dealing in drugs or contraband items. At the same time we also need to get a better understanding of market forces those drive commodity trade as in many countries the wildlife products are traded as just another commodity. These trends therefore mark a paradigm shift in the entire operation of local and global wildlife trade networks which require targeted and adequately resourced interventions for dismantling the wildlife crime at a local, national, regional and global scale. 

Anticipated shift

As the law enforcement becomes stricter and new laws evolve to safeguard wildlife from being illegally traded. More the markets will become covert, and evolve newer ways to operate, leading to complexities of its real assessment. With growing technologies and especially the access to internet, the market has already becoming covert and shifting to more elusive locations that are difficult to decipher. Not only suppliers and buyers of raw products will adopt this but also other business dealers e.g. restaurant, (online food suppliers), cosmetics & jewellery, medicine, etc. will move to online medium which is even more complex and mysterious. 

Demand vs supply

To tackle the illegal wildlife trade and to completely disrupt the operational chain, the push in source & consumptive areas/regions needs to be strategically balanced. While we try an engage aggressively towards halting the demand, we also need the constant pressure on starving the supply too. Until the source is plugged the drain on the demand side will keep trickling. The figure below depicting the demand and supply scenario along the illegal wildlife trade chain provokes the thinking / judgement for prioritising, focussing and balance the actions. 

A study conducted by Anne Louise Bjørn Strøh of Roskilde University, titled “ENDING ILLEGAL WILDLIFE TRADE: FOR WHOSE SAKE?”, brings out the fact how we need to balance both the demand and the supply side, implying that the two sides, which are articulated as equally important, have not been attacked simultaneously to a satisfying extent. 

At times we will also have to go beyond the simple business logic of demand and supply. It has been advocated for wildlife trade for a long time, that when the demand will stop the killing will too, but on the contrary there are also new market being given birth to create the demand and as a result attracting newer customers and fuelling the trade. Myanmar is the recent example for several species including Tigers and Vietnam for Rhino horn. Having almost decimated the pangolins in Southeast Asia the poachers and traders have now moved slowly into South Asia as far as Pakistan. The seizures spread across the region have pointed to this indication. This clearly demonstrates the reach of the market forces and the advantages that they may take of existing political scenarios and social dynamics. This necessitates for making an analysis of such newer markets to stop the emergence and escalation of illegal wildlife trade in future. 

The consumption of wildlife products in Southeast Asia has a cultural linkage and a result of adoption through many generations. TCM market too has strong ethnic and social connections. Baring items for fashion consumption (ivory, corals, etc.) the large part of wildlife products are consumed as a result of deep-seated traditional beliefs/myths. It is to be remembered that traditions don’t change over a short time scale. Given the mammoth number of consumers, and given their escalation with rising economy in the region, reducing the demand has to be strategically designed. The recent reporting by the wildlife monitoring network TRAFFIC on retarding consumptive attitude towards shark fin soup in Hong Kong and China is a good benchmark of how a strategic approach can bring in a transformational change despite large target base. But at the same time to bring in a change in practices that have evolved with cultures and generations we need to target the youth of today for bringing in a change for tomorrow, bring in disincentives into this arena to dissuade the people from consuming the products, demystify the myths through scientific research and awareness campaigns and make good use of social media and other digital media technologies to keep the momentum of the campaign. 

At the same time, on the supply side, with popular perception as well as in fact, control of tiger poaching and bringing tiger poachers and traders is considered to be primarily the responsibility of the forest or wildlife departments. So far attention of organizations has also been chiefly towards sensitization and capacity building of these respective department personnel. However, very little attempts have been made to forge an alliance with the largest crime fighting organizations of the country, the Police departments. This is particularly surprising considering the fact that poachers would typically spend a small fraction of their time inside the forest, most of the time they reside in towns and cities transporting the contraband through public or private transport networks and conduct their illegal business in urban areas. It is also to be remembered that ports / borders are the last point of exit in source country / region and first point of entry in demand country / region. Thus at these borders / ports one agency that can play a crucial role is department of customs and immigration. The first entry point for any goods to enter the country is through customs / immigration. Across the regions we do engage with this agency but in a limited way and invest also marginally to upscale their capacity. More focused and regular engagement with such agencies would payoff higher dividends. More and better boots in wildlife areas ensuring better protection combined with active participation of police and other allied enforcement agencies outside wildlife areas will be the key to beat the illegal trade. 

Irrespective of any wildlife or their product that may be traded legally or illegally under the country’s law, we should have a campaign targeting the ports / borders to issue warnings encouraging those carrying wildlife products to declare such goods to customs, even if they subsequently proved to be legal. This would create a context whereby offenders are given a “fair warning”, so they would receive less sympathy and this would prove to be a big deterrent, and those innocently / or unknowingly have in their possession such products can take a conscious decision. (e.g. warnings to be displayed on airports, or on immigration forms for declaration as done for tobacco products, plant material, dairy products or against drugs). 

OTHER FACTORS

At times factors like linear infrastructure development and human wildlife conflict (HWC) also have been responsible for escalation of illegal wildlife trade, as a result of habitat dissection. In many cases such project may tend to expose wildlife areas, provide easy access into and make them vulnerable to illegal operators. Hence any new development planned across the wildlife habitats needs a careful thought processing and planning before being implemented. In of HWC scenarios each incident needs a thorough investigation. There would be opportunist who would take advantage of conflict and turn them around for making their profits.

The other important element that needs inspection is Harmonized system (HS) managed by World Customs Organisation (WCO). As much of the trade and movement of wildlife products in the past and in more recent times globally have been exploiting the HS coding across the global ports. The detection is deceived at times due to the lack of granularity of trade codes. This highlights the importance of the HS codes, their effectiveness in wildlife trade monitoring and its refinement for improved detection and harnessing its potential for monitoring the trade flows. Hon-Ki Chan, Huarong Zhang, Feng Yang and Gunter Fischer in their recent article ‘Improve customs systems to monitor global wildlife trade’ published in Science have dealt with this specific issue. 

Way forward

Effective Wildlife law enforcement needs coherence of mandates between the international and national regimes (compliance with CITES), the regional and transnational coherence would be crucial to protect endangered and threatened charismatic species, e.g.tiger, elephant and rhino. Non coherent regime leads to legal confusion among the people responsible for implementation across the chain of enforcement, the source country, the transit country and the destination country. There has to be a joint approach with the right balance of actions for curtailing both the demand and supply. These two components of trade will have to be dealt in tandem. The risk is, if we indulge heavily on demand side the supply side will try and change path through faulty channels and visa-versa. Balancing the two ends of the trade, by starving the supply and reducing the demand in a reciprocated way can help us in halting the illegal trade at global scale.

MKS Pasha has been working in the field of wildlife conservation. for last 15 years. His areas of interest include Protected Area Management Effectiveness, Wildlife Law Enforcement and Protection and Research in illegal wildlife trade.