• E4J University Module Series: Wildlife Crime

• Module 2: International Frameworks for Combating Wildlife Trafficking

• Introduction and learning outcomes

• Key issues

• • Environmental protection and conservation
  • CITES and the international trade in endangered species
  • Organized crime and corruption
  • Animal welfare
  • References

• Exercises

• Possible class structure

• Core reading

• Advanced reading

• Student assessment

• Additional teaching tools

 

Published in September 2019 

Regional Perspective: Eastern and Southern Africa - added in April 2020 

 

 

  This module is a resource for lecturers  

 

Environmental protection and conservation

 

International Union for the Conservation of Nature

Established in 1948, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is the oldest international conservation organization. It has approximately 1,300 member organizations, including States, NGOs, scientific institutions, and business associations. IUCN played a central part in the drafting and implementation of a number of international legal instruments, including CITES and the Convention on Biological Diversity. It has official observer status with the UN, the only environmental organization to have such.

Arguably, the most significant product of IUCN is the Red List of Threatened Species , created in 1964, which assesses species and indicates those that are threatened with extinction. In 2019, the Red List contains over 96,500 species, more than 26,500 of which have been classified as threatened with extinction. The goal of the Red List is to identify species that require targeted recovery efforts and focus attention on key conservation sites and habitats, as well as 'guide and inform future conservation and funding priorities' (IUCN, 2019). By using data from multiple species, the Red List further provides a global index of changes in biodiversity (Vié et al, 2008). The Red List provides information about species' migratory ranges, habitats, population sizes, their use by humans, particular threats, as well as conservation actions.

The Red List assigns assessed species to one of eight categories, based on five criteria including population trends, size, and structure and geographic range (see further, Mace et al, 2008). These categories include 'Extinct, Extinct in the Wild, Critically Endangered, Endangered, Vulnerable, Near Threatened, Least Concern, and Data Deficient'. Species included in the 'Critically Endangered, Endangered, and Vulnerable' categories are all classed as threatened with extinction. This includes 40 percent of listed amphibians, 33 percent of listed reef building corals, 25 percent of listed mammals, and 14 percent of listed birds (IUCN, 2019).

The Red List is different, and serves a different purpose, from the CITES Appendices. While species may, and often do, appear in both the Red List and the Appendices, the latter only includes species deemed to require CITES regulation due to trade. Species included in the Red List may not necessarily be affected by trade. Data from the Red List is often used to inform additions and changes to CITES' and the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals' Appendices. It is also used as an indicator by the Convention on Biological Diversity to assess targets set out in the Convention's Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020 (IUCN, 2019a).

Through its work on the Red List, other conservation efforts, and its substantial engagement with CITES, IUCN plays a significant international role in combatting wildlife trafficking. The CITES Secretariat has worked with IUCN in this field, with the two bodies undertaking a number of joint activities (CITES, 28 August 2015). This includes, for example, their collaboration on the Monitoring the Illegal Killing of Elephants and other Endangered Species (MIKES) project.

 

Regional perspective: Eastern and Southern Africa   Example: Lion (Panthera leo) The IUCN Red List categorizes lions (panthera leo) as “vulnerable”, indicating they are threatened with extinction. Lions can be found across Central, Eastern and Southern Africa. The population is decreasing in numbers and it is estimated that less than 40,000 mature individuals are left in the wild. Lions are threatened, among others, by human intrusions, biological resource use and residential and commercial urban development. Use and international trade of lion products takes place in shape of handicrafts, medicine and sport hunting. (IUCN, 2016)

 

Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage

The Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage , or World Heritage Convention for short, was adopted within the General Conference of UNESCO in 1972, thus predating CITES. As of January 2019, the World Heritage Convention had 193 States Parties. The Convention aims to establish 'an effective system of collective protection of the cultural and natural heritage of outstanding universal value, organized on a permanent basis and in accordance with modern scientific methods' (preamble). In accordance with this aim, parties to the Convention may identify cultural and natural properties for protection, which are submitted to the World Heritage Committee for consideration and potential inclusion on the World Heritage List. For a site to be included on the World Heritage List it must be of 'outstanding universal value'. Outstanding universal value is determined according to criteria included in the Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention. One relevant consideration (criterion (x)) is whether the site contains important significant natural habitats for threatened species. Importantly, some 60 percent of natural heritage sites are selected according to this criterion.

The World Heritage Committee maintains the List of World Heritage for sites that face 'serious and specific dangers such as the threat of disappearance' and which require operations for their conservation (Articles 8, 11(4), (11)). Inclusion on this list is intended to increase awareness of threats and encourage the adoption of countermeasures. The Convention further creates a framework for the financial management of domestic resources through the World Heritage Fund, which States Parties contribute to and from which they can draw assistance for protecting their cultural and natural heritage.

The World Heritage Convention does not protect particular species of plants and animals and does not mandate measures for protection and conservation. It only encourages States to protect their cultural and natural heritage. A number of measures that States Parties may take to this end are set out in Article 5, including, inter alia, legal and administrative measures to protect heritage. Nonetheless, the fact that a significant number of sites contain endangered plant and animal species, many of which are affected by wildlife trafficking and listed in CITES's Appendices, has prompted cooperation between the governing bodies of CITES and the World Heritage Convention.

 

Regional perspective: Eastern and Southern Africa   Example: A World Heritage Site threatened by Forest Crime The Rainforests of the Atsinanana in northern Madagascar consists of six national parks, where around 80 per cent of all wildlife is unique to the World Heritage site. Inside the area, one can find 12,000 endemic plants, including rosewood and different species of ebony. Illegal logging of these trees has been a significant threat to the Atsinanana Rainforests, with logging rates peaking as high as 200 to 300 m³ per day in two of the national parks. Madagascar imposed a complete ban on logging in 2006, followed by an export embargo four years later. Yet, it is estimated that around 350,000 trees were logged in subsequent years until 2015. CITES banned rosewood exports from Madagascar in 2013 by listing all Malagasy rosewood populations in CITES Appendix II with a zero export quota. Despite these efforts, rosewood continues to reach destination markets. According to estimates, China receives around 95% of all illegal logs. These estimates suggest that, during the three following years of CITES ban on Malagasy rosewood, China received rosewood valued at USD 1.25 billion from the country. Illegal logging has caused a rapid degradation of Malagasy forests and opened the once inaccessible forest up to intruders, which led to increasing poaching incidents of endemic species such as lemurs. Deforestation further resulted in soil erosion and mudslides which negatively impacted local water quality and increased the threat of flooding. Consequently, illegal logging and trade in rosewood degrades the outstanding universal value of the Rainforests of the Atsinanana. (WWF, 2017)

 

Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals

The Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) was opened for signature in June 1979 and entered into force in November 1983. As of 1 June 2019, it had 128 State Parties.

The fundamental principles of the Convention, outlined in Article II, acknowledge the importance of migratory species and call on States Parties to, individually or in cooperation, take steps to conserve such species and their habitats. Article II emphasizes the need 'to take action to avoid any migratory species becoming endangered'. To these ends, the Convention 'lays the legal foundation for internationally coordinated conservation measures throughout a migratory range'. Migratory species are defined as

the entire population or any geographically separate part of the population of any species or lower taxon of wild animals, a significant proportion of whose members cyclically and predictably cross one or more national jurisdictional boundaries (Article I(1)(a)).

Species' range includes 'all the areas of land or water that a migratory species inhabits, stays in temporarily, crosses or overflies at any time on its normal migration route' (Article I(1)(f)).

Similar to CITES, the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals approaches the protection of certain species by listing them in two Appendices. Species listed in Appendix I are endangered throughout all or a substantial part of their migratory range. Strict obligations are placed on States Parties that are range states in relation to Appendix I-listed species (Article III). These include requirements to conserve and restore the habitats of such species, remove impediments to their migrations, and to prohibit the taking of animals belonging to such species (Article III(4), (5)). Appendix I-listed animals may only be taken for a limited number of purposes, including scientific purposes, enhancing survival of the species, and for the needs of traditional subsistence users (Article III(5)).

Species listed in Appendix II of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals have an 'unfavourable conservation status and … require international agreements for their conservation and management', or would otherwise benefit from international cooperation (Article IV(1)). The Convention does not place any direct obligations on States Parties in relation to Appendix II-listed species. Instead, the Convention states that States Parties that are range states shall endeavour to conclude agreements 'where these would benefit the species and should give priority to those species in an unfavourable conservation status' (Article IV(3)). Importantly, agreements may include States that are not parties to the Convention and are separate instruments. As of July 2019, seven agreements have been concluded under the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals.

Many species covered by the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals are affected by wildlife trafficking. One example is the Snow Leopard (Uncia uncia), listed in Appendix I, of which more than 40 percent may have been poached for their pelts (CMS & UNEP, [undated]). While the Convention provisions do not specifically address wildlife trafficking, its administration has devoted increasing attention to the issue. Of particular relevance are resolutions of its Conference of the Parties, such as the Resolution on the Prevention of Illegal Killing, Taking and Trade of Migratory Birds, as well as the establishment of a CMS-CITES Joint Work Programme 2015-2020.

 

Convention on Biological Diversity

The Convention on Biological Diversity was opened for signature in 1992 and, as of January 2019, has 196 States Parties. As stated in Article 1 of the Convention, its purpose is to conserve biological diversity through sustainable use of its components and fair, equitable sharing of the benefits from use of genetic resources. Biodiversity is defined by the Convention as

the variability among living organisms from all sources including, inter alia, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are a part: this includes diversity within species, between species, and of ecosystems.

The Convention on Biological Diversity is the first and principal treaty addressing biodiversity and covers a broad range of subject matter, including, inter alia, deforestation, access to biotechnology, and managing fragile ecosystems. The Convention is 'concerned primarily with the management of national development choices that impact directly upon national resources' (Swanson, 1999, p. 308). To this end, it requires States Parties to take various measures to promote biological diversity, such as establishing parks and protected areas (Article 8), developing national strategies, plans or programmes (Article 6), and adopting measures for the recovery and rehabilitation of threatened species (Article 9).

Importantly, the Convention emphasizes in situ conservation, defined in Article 2 as

the conservation of ecosystems and natural habitats and the maintenance and recovery of viable populations of species in their natural surroundings and, in the case of domesticated or cultivated species, in the surroundings where they have developed their distinctive properties.

The Convention asks States to take numerous measures related to in situ conservation that, naturally, includes the protection of endangered species subject to wildlife trafficking. In particular, Article 8 requires States Parties, inter alia, to 'as far as possible and as appropriate'

• 'promote the protection of ecosystems and natural habitats, and the maintenance of viable populations of species';
• 'legislate for the protection of threatened species and populations'; and
• 'regulate activities determined to have significant adverse effect on biodiversity'.

These measures may encompass actions to prevent and combat the trafficking of wildlife, including implementation of CITES. The need for cooperation between the Convention on Biological Diversity and CITES has been recognized by the administrative bodies of both instruments. In a Resolution at its 16 ^th conference, the CITES Conference of the Parties recommended that States strengthen their coordination with the focal points of the Convention of Biological Diversity to enhance implementation of CITES.

While it has a wide ambit and some relevance to combating wildlife trafficking, the Convention on Biological Diversity generally avoids imposing any concrete obligations on States; indeed it has been criticized for having little practical effect. Unlike CITES, the Convention on Biological Diversity

does not protect particular species and, unlike the Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, it does not protect particular places or areas. While the Convention on Biological Diversity advocates the protection of natural habitats, it does not contain specific measures to achieve this end' (UNODC, 2012, p. 19).

 

Next: CITES and the international trade in endangered species

Back to top