Illegal Wildlife Trade
Hunting for the illegal wildlife trade has the greatest potential to do maximum harm in minimal time, and is a serious threat to a number of endangered and vulnerable species. Illegal wildlife trade and contraband includes live pets, hunting trophies, fashion accessories, cultural artifacts, ingredients for traditional medicines, and wild meat for human consumption. Bushmeat trade is considered illegal when imports occur in contravention of the Washington Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Fauna and Flora (CITES), national quarantine laws, and other laws that ban the trade of specific animals.
Illegal wildlife trade is broadly defined as an environmental crime, which directly harms the environment. Wildlife trafficking is driven by organised groups who exploit natural resources and endanger threatened species and ecosystems in contravention of CITES. Environmental crimes by their very nature are trans-boundary, using porous borders, and involve cross-border criminal syndicates characterised by irregular migration, money laundering, corruption and the exploitation of disadvantaged communities.
The links between wealth, poverty and engagement in the wildlife trade are complex: people involved in the trade are not necessarily poor, and the poor who are involved do not capture the majority of the trade’s monetary value. In 2002, the illegal wildlife trade was estimated it to be the second largest illegal trade, second only to the drugs trade, with a value of at least £10 billion. In 2008, it was estimated that it is worth at least US$5 billion, and may potentially total in excess of $20 billion annually. This ranks the illegal wildlife trade as among the most lucrative illicit economies in the world, behind illegal drugs and possibly human trafficking and arms trafficking. Due to its clandestine nature, the illegal trade is difficult to quantify with any accuracy. Potential areas of market growth include the Internet, where traders use chat rooms and auction websites to engage in illicit wildlife sales.
Read more about this topic: Wildlife Trade
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