Your daily dose of bad news about poaching, wildlife and environmental
crimes, BUT, Interpol is now hot on the
heels of these kingpin suspects
in the spotlight today ……………………
INTERPOL needs your help to catch these environmental crime kingpins
http://www.treehugger.com/endangered-species/interpol-needs-your-help-catch-these-environmental-crime-kingpins.html (NA comment: YOU can make a difference, simply by adding this link to your Twitter feed and Facebook account. If you do, you can become part of the solution. You do want to see these environmental criminals arrested, don’t you?)
No 271 Wildlife Trade News 20th November 2014
Illegal logging penetrated wildlife sanctuaries MALAYSIA
EXTRACT: “Samunsam wildlife sanctuary was completely decimated by illegal loggers and this has been happening over the past ten years,” said chairman of Malaysia Nature Society Kuching Anthony Sebastian (pic).“The entire sanctuary is gone, all that’s left is its borders. That should not be happening,” he told The Star in an exclusive interview. (NA COMMENT: Recommended reading to gauge how utterly useless are the wildlife management authorities in Malaysia – the same department who act as CITES MA’s.)
Police personnel checking illegal logs seized during a raid on a sawmill in Bintawa, Kuching. Star File pic
Palanivel asked to quit in wake of mudslide tragedy: MALAYSIA. extract: MIC director of strategy Vell Paari, the son of Palanivel’s predecessor S. Samy Vellu, said in a media update that Palanivel’s mental condition is suspect. (NA comment: He is the minister responsible for the wildlife authorities)
Emulate Sarawak CM and stop illegal logging, former minister tells Pahang MB: MALAYSIA http://www.therakyatpost.com/news/2014/11/20/emulate-sarawak-cm-stop-illegal-logging-former-minister-tells-pahang-mb/#ixzz3JaY1ogwj
Root out problems threatening Asean parks extract: Millions of dollars have been invested by donors and Asean governments alike to protect these parks and the invaluable biological resources and life support system they provide. However, despite this, the system is deteriorating at a vast rate, leading to the extinction of various species.- See more at: http://www.straitstimes.com/news/opinion/more-opinion-stories/story/root-out-problems-threatening-asean-parks-20141120#sthash.J01vHAUu.dpuf
Rampant poaching (PAKISTAN) extract: According to a report, almost 25,000 Houbara Bustards arrive in the arid areas of Pakistan every year and approximately 6,000 of them are killed just to serve the Arab Sheikhs’ blood sport. http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/editorial/20-Nov-2014/rampant-poaching
Kilns of greed: PAKISTAN) extract: The Wild Life Department of Pakistan is famous, neither for display of any scruples nor for having good eyesight. There are only two possibilities, either the Arab Sheikh’s are plundering and poaching our birds illegally or our mindless and obsequious Foreign Ministry is back to its old tricks of fabricating fraudulent permits. In the first case, the Arab Sheikhs should be put behind bars.
Chinese Embassy Officials Accused of Smuggling Tons of Ivory on Xi’s Presidential Plane
(Photo : Reuters) Tanzanian women bid farewell to Chinese President Xi Jinping in front of the presidential plane in 2013. A damning new report accuses members of Xi’s delegation of smuggling thousands of pounds of ivory back into China on that same plane during the goodwill visit.
Read more: http://www.chinatopix.com/articles/21147/20141106/xi-jinping-chinese-officials-accused-of-smuggling-ivory-tanzania-presidential-plane-environmental-investigation-agency.htm#ixzz3IMZ0r6j9
Apocalypse Now for elephants caught in South Sudan civil war
An adult male elephant looks up at a helicopter in a remote area of South Sudan, whose location cannot be disclosed due to issues of accelerating poaching. File photo.
Image by: STRINGER / REUTERS http://www.timeslive.co.za/scitech/2014/11/19/apocalypse-now-for-elephants-caught-in-south-sudan-civil-war
Wildlife devastated in South Sudan war: conservationists – See more at: http://www.straitstimes.com/news/world/more-world-stories/story/wildlife-devastated-south-sudan-war-conservationists-20141119#sthash.c3GOBI67.dpuf
Joseph Kony’s rebels trade in ivory, minerals despite hunt for its leaders, say rights groups: UGANDA http://www.dailyjournal.net/view/story/d1e29f24345949cca85e7c9458061570/AF–Uganda-Kony/
33 kilos of ivory seized in Libreville: GABON
http://en.gabonews.com/en/environment/items/id-33-kilos-of-ivory-seized-in-libreville.html
Govt asks EU to ease Indonesia palm oil import regulations http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/11/20/govt-asks-eu-ease-indonesia-palm-oil-import-regulations.html
Orangutan Confiscation: Kalimantan: INDONESIA
For those not familiar with such scenes. This is box/crate is typical of the conditions baby orangutans are kept in by villagers. The scene has been repeated a thousand times or more. Most of the babies (the mother must first be killed before the baby can be captured) are victims of the ruthless palm oil industry.
Liberia: Forestry Chief Says U.S.$150 Million Norway Deal Not Anti-Logging (NA comment: Is Norway so naïve as to think illegal logs won’t be mixed with ‘legal’ ones? If Indonesia is anything to go by, the answer is ‘yes’.)
CITES: NOTIFICATION TO THE PARTIES Monitoring the illegal trade in ivory http://cites.org/sites/default/files/notif/E-Notif-2014-052.pdf
CITES: NOTIFICATION TO THE PARTIES Trade in specimens of tree species included in CITES Appendices II and III
http://cites.org/sites/default/files/notif/E-Notif-2014-053.pdf
Deforestation risks in supply chains http://csr-asia.com/csr-asia-weekly-news-detail.php?id=12434
Tanzania: State to Rear Crocodiles for Human Protection http://allafrica.com/stories/201411190580.html
Land Rover showcases ‘Tracking the Tiger’ book http://overdrive.in/news/land-rover-showcases-tracking-the-tiger-book/
US$8,000 dog stolen and sold to a restaurant for meat CHINA http://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1643717/us8000-dog-stolen-and-sold-restaurant-meat
Diet enacts bills to stiffen penalties for poaching. JAPAN http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/kyodo-news-international/141119/diet-enacts-bills-stiffen-penalties-poaching
Kenya: Poachers Trap and Kill Elephant in Kilifi Forest http://allafrica.com/stories/201411191532.html
ISS: Poachers without borders
http://www.defenceweb.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=37058&catid=87&Itemid=188
Africa: U.S. Official – Crushing Ivory Builds Hope for Africa’s Elephants http://allafrica.com/stories/201411191569.html
Kenya: Foreigners Charged Over Ivory http://allafrica.com/stories/201411191492.html
RM5 million seizure as Sarawak steps up war on illegal logging – See more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/rm5-million-seizure-as-sarawak-steps-up-war-on-illegal-logging#sthash.eLJ6B7LN.dpuf
Timber worth RM5.5mil seized in two-week Sarawak illegal logging blitz http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Nation/2014/11/19/swak-illegal-logs-rm5mil-seized/
4 arrested for rhino poaching in Limpopo http://ewn.co.za/2014/11/19/4-arrested-for-rhino-poaching-in-Limpopo
Kashmir forest officer critical after timber thieves attack him http://www.kashmirdispatch.com/headlines/191127578-kashmir-forest-officer-critical-after-timber-thieves-attack-him.htm
WWF worried at permitting houbara bustard hunting http://nation.com.pk/lahore/20-Nov-2014/wwf-worried-at-permitting-houbara-bustard-hunting
VN, US hold multilateral wildlife-trafficking workshop VietNamNet Bridge – The governments of the United States and Vietnam have partnered to organize a multilateral wildlife trafficking workshop in Hanoi from November 19 – 21, with the participation of investigators and prosecutors from Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam.
Prominent Chinese thought leaders join the fight to save elephants http://english.cntv.cn/2014/11/19/ARTI1416389735758331.shtml
Saving the rhinos through capitalism http://www.tylerpaper.com/TP-Editorials/209050/saving-the-rhinos-through-capitalism#.VG2GDcm6j4c
Local man fined RM12,000 for illegal hunting of protected animals SABAH / MALAYSIA (NA comment: An extremely rare sight – Sabah authorities actually having prosecuted a wildlife poacher. No doubt due to Sabah’s frequent mentions in this newsletter which is sent to Sabah authorities…..who are every bit as useless as those on Peninsula Malaysia.)
500 animals rescued from squalid zoo SABAH / MALAYSIA ( NA comment: This closure ONLY came after the zoo was reported and exposed by NGOs. How the hell can 500 animals be held in an illegal zoo in Sabah and right under the noses of the Sabah Wildlife Department? It’s way past the time when the top management of SWD were either fired or retired, along with its minister, isn’t it?)
http://news.asiaone.com/news/malaysia/500-animals-rescued-squalid-zoo
Two wildlife traffickers arrested. CAMEROON
‘Tougher laws needed to fight illegal logging’ . SARAWAK http://www.nst.com.my/node/54668
NGO: Not easy to wipe out corruption in S’wak timber sector http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Nation/2014/11/20/NGO-Not-easy-to-wipe-outcorruptionin-Swaktimber-sector/
Sarawak Forestry nabs illegal logging ops http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2014/11/20/sarawak-forestry-nabs-illegal-logging-ops/
Rhino poaching revisits Kaziranga http://www.assamtimes.org/node/12381
NGO says Australian summit ‘disappointment’ http://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/259863/ngo-says-australian-summit-%27disappointment%27
Lacey Act: 2008 Illegal Logging Law Signed By Bush Has Worked http://www.science20.com/news_articles/lacey_act_2008_illegal_logging_law_signed_by_bush_has_worked-149563
No settlements in game parks – State. ZAMBIA https://www.daily-mail.co.zm/?p=11666
Indian wildlife managers use ‘camera trap images’ to identify conflict-prone tigers http://www.business-standard.com/article/news-ani/indian-wildlife-managers-use-camera-trap-images-to-identify-conflict-prone-tigers-114112000199_1.html
Kenya: Conservation Groups to Get Sh68 Million http://allafrica.com/stories/201411191519.html
Mozambique: World Bank Supports Mozambique’s Conservation and Biodiversity Efforts to Reduce Poverty http://allafrica.com/stories/201411191501.html
A tale of 2 Perus: Climate Summit host, 57 murdered environmentalists http://news.mongabay.com/2014/1118-hance-peru-murders.html#sthash.9twyv5HJ.lNxM9axG.dpbs
Palawan youth fight for reefs, forests through stories
http://www.rappler.com/move-ph/75469-youth-fight-reefs-forests
