Ivory, rhinos and organized criminals: the world responds

An elephant is killed every 15 minutes for its ivory.

Every day, two rhinos, for their horn.

Organized criminal groups against wildlife operate on such an industrial scale that threatened species such as elephants and rhinos must be under armed surveillance 24 hours a day.

Total impunity?

No. There is a clear international law framework that should serve as a deterrent and sanctioning response.

For example, the clear and precise United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime, adopted in November 2000, establishes the obligations of international judicial and police cooperation between States against these types of crime.

The organized criminal groups against wild fauna and flora that have been operating are, precisely, the focus of the Convention.

There are some operational difficulties.

But the truth is that, despite the limitations, there are relevant answers.

The collaboration between the States concerned with civil society organizations stands out.

Like those that have been promoted, with energy and effectiveness, for example, by the Wildlife Justice Commission (WJC, or Wildlife Justice Commission) with headquarters in the Netherlands and the United States.

This convergence of actions illustrates well some of the most effective ways to forcefully hit organized crime networks around protected species.

“Protected” species… but on paper

Wildlife trafficking is an immense and growing criminal industry.

Which, it is estimated, moves more than 20 billion dollars a year in the world, with impunity.

These criminal networks cross nations and continents and often include customs and police officials.

Only the trafficking of drugs, human beings and weapons constitute more powerful organized crime structures.

In the complex operational networks that extend across different countries, we find an extreme marked by the passive behavior of indolent and corrupt customs officials from countries that supply endangered wild species, such as Nigeria or South Africa, who choose to “look to the side” and leave May your well-oiled indolence let valuable elephant tusks or pangolin scales leave your country.

At the other end of the chain of this illegal trade are individuals longing for valuable and beautiful ivory.

But what they stand out for, beyond those looking for ivory for “ornament,” are elderly buyers, in search of a mythical equivalent of “Viagra,” supposedly contained in the horns of slaughtered rhinos.

The price of rhino horn on the black market reaches 60,000 euros per kilogram.

More than cocaine.

In countries like China or Vietnam there are those who think that horn turned into powder cures everything from hangovers to cancer.

Although on paper there are “protected” species, such as rhinos, in practice they are being systematically liquidated, leaving any hint of protection forgotten.

Many of them are even sacrificed in theoretically protected national parks, such as the Kruger National Park in South Africa.

After being liquidated, the rhinos then pass through eager intermediaries, often operating from Vietnam, making the supposed “virtues” of rhino horn accessible to, and theoretically enjoyed by, elderly Chinese, longing for greater sexual vigor.

Almost all States have laws against wildlife crime and the money laundering, fraud, tax evasion and corruption associated with it.

And they are States party to international treaties designed, precisely, against organized crime or to prevent the illegal trade in wild species.

But this trade continues to decimate our natural heritage.

Sharks: in danger of extinction

Fragile habitats are threatened and communities and livelihoods destabilized.

And not only in Africa, but even in the seas of the South American Pacific.

The merciless attack on wildlife has to do not only with mammals in the process of extinction (such as elephants or rhinos).

It also affects marine species, such as sharks, which were at the top of the food chain for millions of years.

By spreading nutrients and absorbing carbon, they keep marine ecosystems in balance, from within.

Its eventual extermination affects the entire marine ecosystems.

The undeniable tragedy is that sharks and their ecosystems are today in serious danger in countries like Peru, with large areas of maritime presence.

Shark fins are desirable targets for fishermen because they can sell for a high price and serve as a status symbol in Eastern cultures and are used in a popular dish in China (shark fin soup).

According to the United Nations, almost 100 million sharks are killed each year.

The decline in the shark population in Peru, for example, can lead to unintended consequences in marine ecosystems, such as the collapse of fish populations that are important both commercially and economically, in addition to contributing to global climate change.

Severe blows to illegal trafficking

Last month, Olivia Swaak-Goldman, executive director of the WJC, announced severe blows in Nigeria to trafficking in protected African species.

Before joining the WJC, Swaak-Goldman, among other responsibilities, was head of the International Relations Working Group of the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court.

The announcement highlighted the success of WJC's partnership with the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS).

He specified that several arrests were made in a joint investigation directed against networks of illicit suppliers of wild fauna and flora.

During the operation, the NCS seized no less than five pieces of ivory tusks, with a total weight of 25 kilograms and a value of approximately $16,000.

With this, the total number of detainees since the beginning of institutional collaboration amounts to 27;

The seizures amount to almost 10 tons of pangolin scales and more than a ton of ivory.

In the midst of this panorama, usually plagued by discouragement, as seen in this example, security systems manage to deal severe blows to those who traffic in protected species.

It's not an everyday thing.

But they include in that list, for example: elephants and their valuable ivory tusks, rhinos and their sought-after tusks or the also valuable pangolin scales.

Due to initiatives like these, trafficking in these species has reached its lowest level in five years.

It has also allowed trafficking of ivory and pangolin scales to move from Nigeria to other countries.

The crucial Wildlife Justice Commission

Criminal acts like these are fully and solidly documented by organizations like the WJC.

That conceptually supports its analyzes in legally supported theses such as that our wild fauna and flora cannot be for sale to the highest bidder, and that they must be protected from traffickers who turn threatened species into trinkets and jewelry.

I have the honor of being a member of the WJC and participating in its work as a member of the so-called Independent Review Panel.

I have had the privilege of contributing in recent years to the fundamental role of that Panel and the WJC in the objective examination and evaluation of files on specific cases of impact on wildlife.

The space of the WJC is not that of an academic forum for reflection and analysis.

Rather, it carries out very concrete and operational in-depth research activities on the ground.

Thus, there are researchers who work undercover to bring criminals against wild fauna and flora out of the shadows.

Their objective is to put an end to this dirty business, which moves billions of dollars.

On that basis, the WJC collaborates closely with local authorities with valuable information to confront organized crime with current international standards.

Pending agenda: Amazonian species

The illegal trafficking of species is a serious problem that also affects the biodiversity and ecological balance of the Amazon region, although without the “spectacularity” of the killing/trafficking of African elephants or rhinos.

The illegal trade in animals, plants and their derived products obtained illegally from the Amazon rainforest, for sale in the national and international market, whether as exotic pets, collectibles, ingredients for traditional medicine, is a growing threat. or even as food.

This illegal trafficking has devastating consequences for the Amazon ecosystem.

It endangers the survival of animal and plant species, interrupting food chains and unbalancing ecosystems.

In addition, it contributes to the loss of biodiversity and can spread diseases between species, including humans.

To address the problem of illegal trafficking of Amazonian wildlife, a comprehensive approach is necessary that includes effective enforcement of environmental laws, strengthening surveillance and control in protected areas, environmental education and public awareness, as well as international cooperation

Government organizations, environmental NGOs and civil society play a crucial role in protecting Amazon biodiversity and fighting wildlife trafficking, by promoting conservation policies, supporting research and monitoring projects, and reporting illegal activities.

The threat to be faced in the protection of Amazonian species is very powerful.

It does not come from an improvised group of criminals but from transnational organized crime networks.

There are two fundamental variables.

First, a

very valuable materia

criminis .

Which may be protected African animal species in the process of extinction, such as elephants or rhinos.

Or, moving on to other examples, gold of illegal origin in Peru, which is exported to spaces such as Switzerland or India.

Second, organized crime that turns borders and customs into convenient transit spaces for millions of dollars in elephant tusks or other protected goods to pass through.

Within this framework, it is worth highlighting how crucial it is to make use of international treaties, such as the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime, to counteract the criminal leniency of customs officials who choose to look aside and let tons of ivory pass through. .

Recent particularly effective actions against illicit wildlife suppliers have been an encouraging factor.

Highlighting the importance of the work of private international organizations to put an end to this illegal trade and the prevailing impunity.

Subscribe here to the

EL PAÍS América

newsletter and receive all the key information on current events in the region

Subscribe to continue reading

Read without limits

Keep reading

I am already a subscriber

_