Law and Contemporary Issues in the 21st

Century
Topic: Animal Trafficking: The Illegal Trade People Often
Overlooked
By Haji Mohammad Ifwat bin Haji Md Jane

1. Introduction

Illegal wildlife trade or also known as animal trafficking has often been overlooked by people in
this world of changing perceptions. This illegal activity involving the trading of endangered
animals contributed to the world’s habitat destruction. In a way, the legal part of the wildlife trade
may not harm wildlife populations. However, people may not realised that animal trafficking can
potentially bring significant amount of damage to the environment. Risks ranging from the
decreasing amount of animal species to chances of overexploitation proved to be the main problem
needed to be tackled. This thereby raises the need for a stable legal action by the world authorities.

2. Animal Trafficking? What does it mean?

Basically, animal trafficking usually involves the trading of animals from one place to another for
business purposes. It can also be understood as those of animal smugglers illicitly trying to
smuggle animals so that they can sell them to other illegal entity where this usually occur on the
black markets. 1 Countries mainly from the continents of South and Latin America and the
Caribbean are rich in biodiversity which means they are more prone to this illegal activity. With
regards on the amount of worth made through illegal wildlife trade, it is been said that it generates
around $7 to $23 billion in illicit revenue annually.2

1
Grand Lingel, ‘Animal Trafficking: The Wildlife Trade You Don’t Want to Believe Exists’
https://sentientmedia.org/animal-trafficking/ accessed on 15th September 2020.
2
Wolfgang Lehmacher, ‘Wildlife crime: a $23 billion trade that’s destroying our planet’
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/09/fighting-illegal-wildlife-and-forest-trade/ accessed on 16th September
2020.
 The amount of revenue generated from animal trafficking could have easily increase and at the
same time effect the wellbeing of the wildlife particularly in Southeast Asia. Southeast Asia plays
a major role as a source to consumers of illegal wildlife trade. From the year 1998 until 2007, there
were about 35 million animals and also plants being traded from Southeast Asia.3 In these, majority
traded was reptiles followed by birds and mammals. There are a few reasons why people mainly
do illegal wildlife trade. This include using it as collectibles, pets, traditional medicine and also
food.

3. How does it affect the wildlife environment?

The activity of animal trafficking basically stems from the act of poaching animals. Trafficking
animals decrease animal populations and may cause extinction. Poachers and smugglers right now
tend to want the best quality animals they could find which could cause a serious problem in terms
of animal’s generations. Added to this the treatment given by the poachers to the animals are
somewhat cruel whereby some animals may need a specific amount of care. The treatment given
to these animals are often really cruel where they were transported in a way that is harmful.
Because of this many died as the effect of illness, starvation and others. The act of transporting
these fragile, innocent animals could have easily cause death or injury to the poor animals.4

At the same time, wildlife trafficking can be an important cause of biodiversity loss whereby it
can threaten the ecosystem. This may indirectly cause long-term problems as the reproduction of
endangered species may be affected. In which, population decline can be expected from this event.
Take for instance that of sharks, for example, that plays a key role in the ocean system but
unfortunately due to the act of shark finning, this decreased the shark populations.5

4. Are there any legal actions for this cruel act? How it is effective?

Countries in this world have tried to prevent this act of illegal trade as a collective effort. One of
the legal actions that can be seen is the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species
of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) which was an agreement in 1963 between national government

3
Krishnasamy.K, Traffic Report Southeast Asia: At the Heart of Wildlife Trade (TRAFFIC, 2020) pg 10.
4
‘Implications of wildlife trafficking’ (September 2019) https://www.unodc.org/e4j/en/wildlife-crime/module-
1/key-issues/implications-of-wildlife-
trafficking.html#:~:text=Trafficking%20in%20wildlife%20can%20diminish,risks%20the%20species%20becoming
%20extinct. Accessed on 16th September 2020.
5
Ibid.
to prevent the activity of animal trafficking. This convention was introduced to make sure that the
activity of animal trade makes sure that there is the element of sustainability in order to safeguard
the animals.6 CITES provide the framework for countries to make a law on illegal wildlife trade.
It is then up to the parties in CITES to ensure what will be their national controls and penalties
are.7 In Brunei, the issue of animal trade and also protection come under the Wildlife Protection
Act (Cap.102) and in Section 8 and 9 of the Act it mentions on the subject of protected animals to
not be sold or kept & the issue of wild animal exportation.8

However, do CITES really have an effect on this cruel activity? It is true that the CITES had
already reduced in terms of the underground trade of the activity. But CITES are relatively less
effective in controlling the illegal trade on particular endangered species. This include the Royal
Bengal Tiger, the Greater One-Horned Rhino and the Asian elephant where these species are in a
risk of depleting. Countries are losing their heritage without the world knowing it. It is now evident
that there is a need of a guaranteed legal action for the activity of illegal animal trade. Merely just
providing frameworks may not be sufficient in preventing this illegal act.

5. Conclusion

Animal trafficking has always been the act that creates danger to the wildlife environment. It can
lead to the destruction of animals especially the endangered species. Various effects because of
this illegal activity are seen however the legal action by CITES by merely providing framework
are still not enough to prevent this cruel activity. Thus, needing a more precise and well work
regulation is a must in this often-overlooked issue.

6
‘What is CITES? | CITES’ https://www.cites.org/eng/disc/what.php accessed on the 15th of September 2020.
7
‘Legal frameworks to deter and combat the illegal wildlife trade in Southeast Asia’ https://www.oecd-
ilibrary.org/sites/bb3eae76-en/index.html?itemId=/content/component/bb3eae76-en Accessed on the 15th of
September 2020.
8
Wild Life Protection Act (Cap.102)
 Bibliography

Statutes

• Wildlife Protection Act (Cap.102)

Books

• Krishnasamy.K, Traffic Report Southeast Asia: At the Heart of Wildlife Trade (TRAFFIC,
2020)

Websites

• Grand Lingel, ‘Animal Trafficking: The Wildlife Trade You Don’t Want to Believe Exists’
https://sentientmedia.org/animal-trafficking/ accessed on 15th September 2020.
• Wolfgang Lehmacher, ‘Wildlife crime: a $23 billion trade that’s destroying our planet’
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/09/fighting-illegal-wildlife-and-forest-trade/
accessed on 16th September 2020.
• Implications of wildlife trafficking’ (September 2019)
https://www.unodc.org/e4j/en/wildlife-crime/module-1/key-issues/implications-of-
wildlife-
trafficking.html#:~:text=Trafficking%20in%20wildlife%20can%20diminish,risks%20the
%20species%20becoming%20extinct Accessed on 16th September 2020.
• What is CITES? | CITES’ https://www.cites.org/eng/disc/what.php accessed on the 15th
of September 2020.
• ‘Legal frameworks to deter and combat the illegal wildlife trade in Southeast Asia’
https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/sites/bb3eae76-
en/index.html?itemId=/content/component/bb3eae76-en Accessed on the 15th of
September 2020.