VIENNA: The United Nations’ anti-crime body
today resolved to step up the global fight against wildlife and forest crime in
recognition of the urgent threat it poses and the serious nature of the
criminal networks involved.
The
Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) has been pressing for special agencies
tasked with crime fighting to turn their attention and resources to combating
wildlife and forest crime. All too often these crimes are not a priority for
law enforcement agencies and successful prosecutions of the perpetrators are
rare.
This week’s meeting of the UN
Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (CCPCJ) in Vienna had as
its core theme crimes that impact the environment and held a day-long
discussion on the issue.
Many
Member States expressed concern about the growth of such crimes, especially
trafficking in wildlife and forest products, and the impact this has on wider
issues of health and safety, security, good governance and sustainable
development. It was recognized this is no longer an emerging threat; it is now
one of the world’s largest forms of organised crime, generating tens of
billions of dollars in illicit profits.
In
a joint statement to the meeting, EIA and WWF said recognition of the serious,
transnational and organised nature of wildlife and forest crime, 12 years on
from the first discussion of these crimes under the UN General Assembly, is a
crucial step forward.
Debbie
Banks, EIA Senior Campaigner, said: “The severity of these threats can no
longer be ignored and we are glad that the discussion led to the adoption of a
resolution tabled by Peru and the USA specifically addressing wildlife and
forest crimes.
“EIA
has been pressing for action involving the professional law enforcement
community for several years, and this high-level political recognition of the
problem will hopefully lead to more concrete action at the national level.”
Member
States lined up to support the resolution, which recognises wildlife and forest
crime as an increasingly sophisticated form of transnational organised crime
and encourages member states to treat this as serious crime and to adopt the
necessary legislation and penalties for the prevention, investigation and
prosecution of such trafficking.
The
resolution further encourages establishment of national inter-agency
taskforces, international cooperation, and the use of measures to trace and
seize illicit proceeds of these crimes.
Crucially,
it also extends the mandate of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime
(UNODC) to pursue its role within the International Consortium on Combating
Wildlife Crime by working with member states who want to use the Wildlife and
Forest Analytic Crime Toolkit, and requests the UNODC to undertake studies of
the organised crime networks involved in wildlife and forest crime.
The
increased commitment shown at the meeting comes at a time when poaching of
wildlife and illicit timber trade is surging. To date, the enforcement response
has been inadequate, with seizures rarely leading to prosecutions and
environmental crimes generally having one of the lowest conviction rates.
EIA
will monitor the implementation of the resolution agreed, and will continue to
push for the full armoury of anti-crime measures to be applied against the
powerful syndicates behind many wildlife and forest crime.
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