SYMPOSIUM ON COMBATING WILDLIFE CRIME Securing Enforcement, Ensuring Justice, and Upholding the Rule of Law The Proceedings Editors Kala K. Mulqueeny Francesse Joy J. Cordon SYMPOSIUM ON COMBATING WILDLIFE CRIME Securing Enforcement, Ensuring Justice, and Upholding the Rule of Law The Proceedings Editors Kala K. Mulqueeny Francesse Joy J. Cordon © 2014 Asian Development Bank All rights reserved. Published in 2014. Printed in the Philippines. ISBN 978-92-9254-791-2 (Print), 978-92-9254-792-9 (e-ISBN) Publication Stock No. RPT146586-3 Cataloging-In-Publication Data Mulqueeny, Kala K. and Francesse Joy J. Cordon, eds. Symposium on combating wildlife crime: Securing enforcement, ensuring justice, and upholding the rule of law. The proceedings. Mandaluyong City, Philippines: Asian Development Bank, 2014. 1. Environmental enforcement. 2. Wildlife crimes. 3. Law enforcement agencies. 4. Environmental jurisprudence. 5. Courts. 6. Rule of law. 7. Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. I. Asian Development Bank. The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) or its Board of Governors or the governments they represent. ADB does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this publication and accepts no responsibility for any consequence of their use. By making any designation of or reference to a particular territory or geographic area, or by using the term “country” in this document, ADB does not intend to make any judgments as to the legal or other status of any territory or area. ADB encourages printing or copying information exclusively for personal and noncommercial use with proper acknowledgment of ADB. Users are restricted from reselling, redistributing, or creating derivative works for commercial purposes without the express, written consent of ADB. Note: In this publication, “$” refers to US dollars. 6 ADB Avenue, Mandaluyong City 1550 Metro Manila, Philippines Tel +63 2 632 4444 Fax +63 2 636 2444 www.adb.org For orders, please contact: Public Information Center Fax +63 2 636 2584 [email protected] Contents Foreword v Acknowledgments vii Abbreviations ix Executive Summary 1 HIGHLIGHTSDay 1: 10 March 2013 8 Opening Sessions 8 Opening and Welcome Remarks 8 Combating the Illegal Wildlife Trade (Video) 13 Plenary Session 1 Overview—Wildlife, Extinction, and Wildlife Crime 14 A. Wildlife Crime as Transnational Organized Crime 14 Discussion 18 B. Key Illicitly and Illegally Traded Species 19 Terrestrial Wildlife Trade 19 Marine Wildlife Trade 20 Discussion No. 1 23 Forest and Timber Trade 24 Discussion No. 2 26 C. Mapping Trafficking Routes for Illegal Activities 27 Discussion 30 D. Cooperation in Combating the Illegal Wildlife Trade 31 Discussion No. 1 36 Discussion No. 2 37 HIGHLIGHTSDay 2: 11 March 2013 39 PLENARY SESSION 2 Curbing the Demand for Illegal Wildlife and Wildlife Products 39 Discussion 45 PLENARY SESSION 3 National Policy and Legal Frameworks to Curb the Wildlife Trade 48 Discussion No. 1 51 Discussion No. 2 52 Discussion No. 3 57 iii iv Contents PLENARY SESSION 4 Wildlife Law Enforcement—Current Approaches 58 Discussion No. 1 60 Discussion No. 2 63 Discussion No. 3 65 PLENARY SESSION 5 Innovative Wildlife Law and Enforcement Tools and Strategies 66 Discussion No. 1 69 Discussion No. 2 73 PLENARY SESSION 6 Wildlife Crime, Anti-Corruption, Integrity, and the Rule of Law 74 Discussion 78 HIGHLIGHTSDay 3: 12 March 2013 79 Track 1 Interactive Discussion on Wildlife Law, Policy, and Governance 79 Topic 1 Wildlife Policies and Legal Frameworks—Legal Constraints to Enforcement 79 Discussion 81 Topic 2 Sentencing, Penalties, and Securing Convictions for Wildlife Crime 83 Discussion 87 Topic 3 Multimedia, Social Media, and Technology: Innovating for Wildlife 90 Discussion No. 1 94 Discussion No. 2 98 Topic 4 Judges, Prosecutors, and Law Enforcement Officers— Making Them Aware, Care, and Act 99 Discussion 101 Track 2 Technical Training on Special Investigative Techniques 103 Wrap-Up and Closing Remarks 104 APPENDIXES 1 Concept Note 106 2 Program Agenda 110 3 List of Resource Persons 124 4 List of Participants 127 Foreword he Asian Development Bank (ADB)’s work on the illegal wildlife trade originated in the environmental law and enforcement component of the Office of the General Counsel’s Law, TJustice, and Development Program, which also initiated the Asian Judges Network on Environment. Under the network, chief justices and senior judiciaries recognized that the illegal wildlife trade and illegal forestry trade is a transnational organized crime issue and not just an environmental one. They urged those enforcing wildlife and forestry laws to recognize the problems of illegal transnational environmental crime, and to look for solutions. They also emphasized the need for the entire enforcement chain— the judiciary, prosecutors, police, customs, and other relevant government wildlife law enforcement agencies—to collaborate on measures to mitigate and ultimately end the illegal wildlife trade. This recognition coincided with a request from the Secretariat of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) for assistance to improve legislation in ADB’s developing member countries to ensure CITES compliance, and to partner with them and the Government of Thailand to support the 16th Conference of the Parties in Bangkok, Thailand, in March 2013. ADB supported this request, and together with the CITES Secretariat and other partners, convened the Symposium on Combating Wildlife Crime: Securing Enforcement, Ensuring Justice, and Upholding the Rule of Law. The symposium had two objectives: to attract high-level attention to the illegal wildlife trade and the various ecological, economic, social, and security challenges this crime creates to encourage further high-level action; and to explore innovative approaches and techniques to combat other serious crimes that could be applied to combat wildlife crime and uphold the rule of law. The symposium led to a larger ADB technical assistance project on the illegal wildlife trade that is ongoing. This project furthers ADB’s core mission because the illegal wildlife trade presents significant risks to sustainable livelihoods and development, which could worsen poverty and threaten inclusive growth. Wildlife crime has these wider effects because it destroys ecosystems, which give people benefits and services; takes direct revenue from state-managed natural resources and indirect revenue from taxes on those natural resources; stops local communities from obtaining sustainable livelihoods from biodiversity and natural resources; undermines law enforcement and the rule of law; involves corruption; and increases the risk of health epidemics and diseases as animals are transported across borders and through regions. These issues have severe and negative effects on the poor, denying them green and inclusive growth—issues that are at the core of ADB’s mission. v vi Foreword These proceedings record the symposium and seek to provide a reference for chief justices, justices, attorneys general, law enforcement officers, representatives of international and nongovernment organizations, and civil society to further their fight against wildlife crime. We believe it provides a valuable source of knowledge and encourages further efforts to combat the illegal wildlife trade. Christopher L. Stephens General Counsel Office of the General Counsel Acknowledgments he Asian Development Bank (ADB) expresses its appreciation to the distinguished participants— senior justices, attorneys general, heads of police and customs, high-ranking law enforcement Tofficers, and representatives from various intergovernmental and nongovernmental organizations and civil society—who took time out of their busy schedules to give wildlife crime the urgent high-level attention required; and the esteemed experts and partners at the International Consortium on Combating Wildlife Crime, who shared their knowledge and expertise on combating wildlife crime and other transnational organized crimes. ADB greatly appreciates its partnership with the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) led by Mr. John E. Scanlon, secretary general of the CITES Secretariat, with which it cohosted the Symposium on Combating Wildlife Crime: Securing Enforcement, Ensuring Justice, and Upholding the Rule of Law. Special thanks are in order for those who graciously agreed to chair or facilitate a session: Ms. Marie- Anne Birken, then deputy general counsel at the Office of the General Counsel of ADB and now the general counsel of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development; Ms. Marceil Yeater, chief of the Legal Affairs and Trade Policy Unit of the CITES Secretariat; Dr. Ken B. Johm, manager of the Natural Resources and Environment Management Division of African Development Bank’s (AfDB) Agriculture and Agro-Industry Department; Dr. Elizabeth L. Bennett, vice president for species conservation of the Wildlife Conservation Society; Mr. Eric Phu, marketing consultant and former vice chair of the Interactive and Direct Committee of the Association of Accredited Advertising Agencies of Hong Kong; Ms. Patricia Moore, international legal expert and former head of the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Regional Environmental Law Programme Asia Division and Ecosystems