The Illegal Wildlife Trade in Southeast Asia by OECD

Author:OECD
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: environment/governance
Publisher: OECD Publishing
Published: 2019-09-06T00:00:00+00:00

Effectiveness of Current Implementation to Stop Wildlife Crime:

The implementation of specific legal provisions in line with international conventions does not guarantee that international legal frameworks will be effective in achieving their intended objective. The effective application of measures determined or guided by these conventions is equally, if not more important, than the simple ratification of conventions and treaties. For example, while the implementation of the MLAT agreement is considered to be met by the ASEAN Agreement to Co-ordinate through Mutual Exchanges of Evidence, the actual effectiveness of this convention is measured in the number of exchanges and subsequent successful prosecutions that have benefitted from evidence received or transmitted through MLAT requests in a timely manner. Similarly, the UNTOC’s effectiveness can be measured by the number of cases that have benefitted from joint investigations and joint operations related to serious transnational organized crime syndicates involved in wildlife trafficking.

The evidence that has been explored in this report suggests that the international conventions in place are largely acceded to and implemented (see table 4.1). For example, with the exception of Singapore, focus countries treat wildlife crime as a serious offense under the UNTOC definition, with maximum penalties in excess of four years (UNODC, 2000[3]). However, responses from interviewees and reviews of the literature suggest that the effectiveness of the international conventions vis-à-vis wildlife crime deterrence, investigation and prosecution is not highly effective. For example, the authors have found that very few corruption and bribery cases have been prosecuted in pursuit of wildlife crimes, and MLAT exchanges are rare and not prioritized for wildlife crime cases. Furthermore, no joint wildlife enforcement operations or investigations have taken place in any of the four countries – a key provision of the UNTOC. While this report has not compiled a systematic assessment of the evidence to determine the effectiveness of international legal frameworks, the below table highlights what such an analysis could compile for indicators of i) implementation ii) effectiveness and iii) evidence to establish a performance metric for the uptake and use of international legal frameworks:

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