Illicit trade generates billions of dollars annually for transnational criminal networks. Among the most sinister and most profitable forms of illicit trade is the illegal wildlife trade. The illegal wildlife trade is more than just an ecological issue; it can have significant economic impacts by creating disruptive imbalances in ecosystems for sustainable growth, and more directly on eco-tourism markets. Wildlife crime is such an ominous challenge that its reduction is designated as a target in the Sustainable Development Goals.
This report focuses on the illegal wildlife trade in Southeast Asia, where extensive poaching occurs on a commercial scale and natural resources are ravaged for short-term profits. These countries also serve as transit points and destination markets for wildlife and wildlife products that have been shipped across illicit global supply chains. In the coming years, hundreds of species in Southeast Asia are projected to go extinct. Governments must take stronger actions to tackle this form of illicit trade through concerted regional co-operation.
Long-term strategies to sensitize the public to the value of protecting natural resources and national heritage are important components of a holistic approach to combatting this form of trade. Unfortunately, the pace at which certain populations are dwindling, e.g. the pangolin, requires more urgent measures. The commitment and capacity of law enforcement in many countries is key to ensure sufficient wildlife populations for the longer-term strategies to be remain relevant.
This report focuses on the institutional capacities of law enforcement to combat the illegal wildlife trade in Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam. In recent years, these four Southeast Asian countries have been at the centre of the illegal wildlife trade debate concerning enforcement of wildlife crimes. Do legislative loopholes restrict effective enforcement to the protection of domestic species only? Is law enforcement co-ordination across administrations and across borders progressing or standing-still while the march toward extinction of species continues? This report gathered information from field research in these four Southeast Asian countries, and considers what further reforms could lead to better law enforcement outcomes.
Illicit trade is motivated by profit and wildlife crime is low risk and high reward. Controls can fail at multiple points in the trade chain leading to ineffective institutional responses. Corruption at maritime ports, airports and at land border crossings provide channels for the entry of a range of illicit products. Legal gaps and loopholes and un-enforceable provisions of laws permit the sale of illegal wildlife products. Traffickers operate with impunity in some public marketplaces. Proceeds of wildlife crime flow across borders and raise questions about the financial integrity of certain banks.
The report offers regional insights into the causes and consequences of this global challenge. It presents a broad overview of the key institutional frameworks and distils the key findings into policy prescriptions that should increase the effectiveness of law enforcement agencies responsible for combatting wildlife crime.