War on wildlife crime gets nod
Bangkok. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has asked East African countries to borrow a leaf from Tanzania in implementing wildlife laws and prosecuting related cases to save the endangered animal species from extinct.
UNODC regional coordinator for Southeast Asia and Pacific, Mr Givovaani Broussard said Tanzania tops in the region in fighting economic crime and wildlife.
“Its life imprisonment when a person is convicted with wildlife crime in Kenya but the implementation of the laws is not as good as in Tanzania or South Africa,” said Mr Broussard.
He made the remarks at the Journalists Exchange Program (Jep) between Thailand and Tanzania writers. JEP is supported by USaid PROTECT and Wildlife Asia and implemented by RTI International in collaboration with Environmental Association of Tanzania (Jet). “Though not by ranking, Tanzania has done a remarkable work to amend some of its wildlife and economic crime laws to ensure the endangered species are protected and traffickers are sentenced.
“Tanzania is committed and doing well compared to Asian countries. This was demonstrated in the arrest of the ‘queen of ivory’. In Asia, with the exceptional of China, no other country has sentenced wildlife traffickers like Tanzania, “ he Said.
He also commended Tanzania for overhauling its criminal justice system with a special focus in ending wildlife crime.
“The population of elephants in Southern Africa are not as endangered as in East African. The region has been losing more elephants than any other parts of the world.”
“So, when I say Tanzania is doing well I do not mean it is not losing elephants, but the country has tried to respond strongly to these crisis,” he said.
Earlier reports, Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism assistant director anti-poaching Mr Robert Mande said 2010/14 wildlife was very high, almost 60 per cent of elephants disappeared due poaching.
He said the establishment of the National Strategy to combating Poaching and Illegal Wildlife Trade in 2014, elephant crimes have gone down significantly.
