Illegal Trade of endangered species

234
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH AND
ANALYSIS VOLUME 2 ISSUE 5
2014
INTERNATIONAL LAWS GOVERNING THE TRADE OF
ENDANGERED SPEICIES
** Rashi Rajani & Kopal rastogi
INTRODUCTION
The history of trading animals and poaching goes back to the Stone Ages when animals were
hunted out of sheer necessity of food. Deprived of the knowledge of cultivating permanent
food sources, humans turned to the ready-made ones of the natural world, thus hunting was
implemented to sustain their hunger. The natives hunted the animals primarily for food and
used the fur of the animals for clothing. But it was in the late Middle Ages when poaching
was restricted to only privileged and the aristocrats while it was forbidden for the commoners
by the contradictory laws in the 14th
Century. Since the 18th
century, people have attempted
to identify and advance the rights of these animals and laboured to protect them from the
forthcoming danger of extinction. Close to the 20th century, witnessed a number of
international declarations supporting animal rights. Perhaps the most prominent venture was
the announcement of the Universal Declaration of Animal Rights by the United Nation’s
Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The main aim was to ensure
that all animals have the same rights to existence, and no animal shall be ill-treated or subject
to cruelty and all animals shall command the protection of law. The Declaration, however,
waned and faded away before it could reach significant levels of international agreement.
Over the period of time, significant steps have been taken in order to put a ban on animal
hunting. Treaties have been signed by countries, such as The Lacey Act, The Migratory Birds
Act and Endangered Species Act1
. The issues have been addressed and debated in
international forums, agreements have been codified among nations and yet these endangered
animals have not received any worldwide protection. Sadly in spite of all the long-standing
trade bans, animal species are still being traded in black markets and facing the prospect of
extinction.
1
http://blogs.uoregon.edu/cgsf13gateway/timeline/

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2014
WHY KILLING OF THE ENDANDERED WILDLIFE?
Animals have always experienced rise and fall in their numbers and many species have
become extinct through a long natural process. Humans have hunted animals to extinction for
food or sport and have driven them from their natural habitats. Some of the best known
animals in the world today, such as the tiger or the rhinoceros, are in danger of extinction.
Many lesser-known species are also under threat.
People have always hunted animals for food, but unlike predators, humans may pursue a
single species ceaselessly until it becomes extinct. Many kinds of whale almost became
extinct during the eighteenth and nineteenth century, due to high rate of hunting for their
meat and oil. In a similar persecution, island animals, especially flightless birds that had no
natural predators, proved easy targets for the first human settlers. With small population and
nowhere to retreat to, these animals were driven to extinction within a short time. Animals
are also hunted for sport. “Big gain” animals such as lion, elephants and tigers were shot as
trophies by European hunters during the 20th
century. Today, song birds in northern Europe
are declining in number, partly due to hunting as they migrate in southern Europe. The trade
in animal skins to make fur coats or rugs has drastically reduced the number of cats, such as
ocelots and tigers.
CITES, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and
Flora, is an international agreement between governments. Its aim is to ensure that
international trade in wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival. CITES was
drafted in 1963 after a meeting of members of IUCN (The International Union for
Conservation of Nature) and entered into force on 1 July 19752
. Countries adhere voluntarily
to the CITES agreement. Although CITES is legally binding on the parties, it does not take
the place of national laws, but rather provides a framework for domestic legislation. There are
now over 175 parties to CITES3
. [US] The Endangered Species Act (ESA) of 1973 is a key
legislation for both domestic and international conservation. ESA aims to provide a
framework to conserve and protect endangered and threatened species and their habitats.
By providing States with financial assistance and incentives to develop and maintain
conservation programs, ESA serves as a method to meet many of the United States’
international responsibilities to treaties and conventions. The ESA was passed to prevent the
2
http://www.princeton.edu/~achaney/tmve/wiki100k/docs/CITES.html
3
http://www.cites.org/eng/disc/parties/alphabet.php

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2014
extinction of native and foreign animals and plants by providing measures to help alleviate
the loss of species and their habitats.
Migratory Birds Conventions Act, 1994: This Act and its complementary Regulations ensure
the conservation of migratory bird populations by regulating potentially harmful human
activities.
Giant pandas are beloved around the world for their striking black and white coats and
charming behaviour. The giant panda is known as the panda bear. The rarest member of the
bear family, wild giant pandas are found in the mountains of central China in dense bamboo
and coniferous forests. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Act (Service) listed the giant
panda as an endangered species under the [U.S]. Endangered Spices Act (ESA) in 1984. The
species is also listed under Appendix I of the Convention on the International Trade in
Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. These international and domestic regulations
prohibit the use and international trade of the species for commercial purposes. Pandas are
dying out mainly because of habitat loss as bamboo is the main source of food and it takes a
long time to grow. Also, with the advent of industrialisation and development of cities,
bamboo forests in Asia, in particular, China started to be deforested and thus they declined
tremendously. Habitat fragmentation affects their feeding and mating as well. The giant
pandas are at risk anytime they have has to leave their territory. Due to all these
circumstances, the numbers in the giant panda community have dwindled significantly. It is
estimated that there are currently less than twenty-five hundred pandas in the wild today.
They were placed on the endangered species list, and are now protected under the ESA.
Through conservation efforts, more than forty panda reserves have now been created. These
reserves are free from people, and protect the panda’s from the expansion of the human
population. Furthermore, laws were put in place making it illegal to poach the panda, and
poachers who were caught could be punished. In spite of these efforts, poaching remains a
huge threat to the giant panda. Today the panda is still considered rare, and remains on the
endangered species list. Further conservation efforts being considered by the World Wildlife
Fund include building and maintaining more panda reservations, finding and creating links
between isolated pandas in the wild, and continuing the research and studying of the giant
panda.

237
2014
Polar Bears are the largest land Carnivores4
. In the wild, they are only found in the Artic, in
the USA, Russia, Canada and Norway. The worldwide population is estimated to be just
around 2200-2700. Polar Bear hunting and other human activities in the Artic, such as Oil
Exploration, led to the first International Scientific Meeting on the Polar Bears in 1965. The
participants were the representatives from Canada, Greenland (Territory of Denmark),
Norway, the USA and the former Soviet Union. The meeting set the foundation for additional
International Conferences and Research efforts which eventually led to an International Polar
Bear Conservation. The agreement on Conservation of Polar Bears and their Habitat, 1973
allows the taking of Polar Bears for scientific purposes, for preventing serious disturbances in
the management resources for use by local people, using traditional methods and exercising
traditional rights and for protection and life and property. In 1975, the polar bear was placed
on CITES Appendix II, which includes species identified as threatened or likely to be
endangered. International Trade of Polar Bears or their parts is permitted with a
documentation issued by the Governments of the Exporting Country.
The tiger bones are in huge demand in the Chinese medicine industry as it gives a hope of
survival for people suffering from dreadful diseases such as cancer and aphrodisiac. Poaching
of tigers for such industries started in northern India in 1980s. An estimated number of 3200
tigers are surviving in the world. Under the [Indian] Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972, the term
of imprisonment is for a maximum period of three years or a fine which may extend to
Rupees 25,000 or both. An offence involving a species in Schedule 1 or part 2 of Schedule II
or an offence committed within a sanctuary or a natural park attracts a mandatory prison of 3
years, which may extend to 7 years and a minimum fine of Rupees 10,000. For a subsequent
offence committed, the prison term remains the same while the mandatory fine is minimum
Rupees 25,000. An offence committed inside the area of a Tiger Reserve involves a prison
term of 3 years, which may extend to 7 years and fine of Rupees 50,000, which may extend
to Rupees 200,000. In case of a subsequent conviction of this nature, there is an
imprisonment of atleast 7 years and a fine of Rupees 500,000 which may extend to Rupees
50,00,000.
The most disturbing trend has been the horrific increase in poaching of rhinos and elephants
in South Africa. Rhinoceros and elephants are killed for their horns just like tigers are killed
4
http://www.defenders.org/polar-bear/basic-facts

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for their bones. The horns are marketed for medicinal purposes in the Far East countries, such
as Vietnam for curing malignant diseases, like Cancer. One of the major challenges to
curbing illegal Rhino and elephant trading is the lack of evidences. Out of 157 poaching cases
in Kenya in the past 3 years, law enforcement has prosecuted less than 5% of them and only
3% of those convicted were sentenced to jail. Kenyan officials have planned to tackle the
increasing poaching by of rhinos by implementing harsher punishments for unlawful killing
of wild animals.
The [Kenyan] Wildlife Conservation and Management Bill which was passed on July 22,
20135
has increased the fine for poaching offences to 10 million shillings or approximately
US$114,000 which was earlier only 40,000 shillings. Earlier the imprisonment period was 10
years and after the Bill was passed, it was increased to a period of 15 years. In South Africa,
as per the data published South African Department of Environmental Affairs (2014), the
recorded number of rhinos poached in South Africa was 6 in 2000, which increased to 1004
in 2013 and gradually dropped to 787 in 2014. The rhino poaching has increased over 5000
percent since 20076
. The recorded number of poaching arrests in South Africa from 165 in
2010 to 343 in 2013 and has gradually reduced to 232 in 2014. Globalization and economic
growth has made it easier to establish illegal trading routes. Kenya’s economy depends on
tourism, but lately it has been hit due to the increasing dependency on wildlife resources.
Rhino poaching has also increased in Assam, India where around 70 rhinos were killed in
Assam in the last 2 years7
. 21 rhinos were killed in the year 2012 which increased to 41 in
2013 and has declined to 8 in 20148
. Most of them were killed in Kaziranga National Park.
Aaranyak, a wildlife and biodiversity organization, has appealed to the Government to bring
such rhino poaching cases under fast track courts.
Taking about the endangered sea creatures, Sea Turtles are facing extinction worldwide.
Thousands of turtles every year are incidentally caught in shrimp trawl nets known as
bycatch. They are mostly used for human consumption and the trade of turtle parts is a
booming business, particularly in Asia and the Western Pacific region. Turtles are also used
for medicinal purposes and traditional ceremonies. The Leatherback Sea Turtles are circum
global species and are killed for use in Oil lamps in Papua New Guinea, for medicinal use in
5
http://www.kenyalaw.org/kl/fileadmin/pdfdownloads/bills/2013/WildlifeConservationAndManagementBill2013.pdf
6
http://www.savetherhino.com
7
http://www.dna.com
8
http://www.internationaltimes.com

239
2014
the Caribbean. In the Soloman Islands, hunting Sea Turtles is considered an important
cultural event9
. Sea Turtles are protected by various International Treaties and Agreements
such as Appendix I of the CITES which prohibits International Trade. It is also mentioned in
the Appendices I and II of the Convention of Migratory Species (CMS). Additionally there
are Treaties like IOSEA – Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation and
Management of Marine Turtles and their habitat of the Indian Ocean and South East Asia.
The USA is a party of the Inter-American Convention for the Protection and the Conservation
of Sea Turtles, which is the only International Treaty dedicated exclusively to Marine Turtles.
Atlantic Tuna Blue Fin Fish is a Japanese delicacy which has declined in population by 60%
due to overfishing. In a CITES meeting held in relation to the protection of Blue Fin Fish,
Libya asked to vote on the less consumption where 86 out of 129 countries voted against the
less consumption proposal which sadly failed. In reaction to the proposal, WWF remarked
“After overwhelming scientific justification and growing political support in past months with
backing from the majority of catch quota holders on both sides of the Atlantic. It is
scandalous that even the government could not get the chance to engage in the meaningful
debate of the International Trade Ban proposal.”
Europe has immense demand for dog fish meat so as to strike a balance by having sustainable
managed stocks. CITES helps to provide a structure within which imports to Europe can be
certified as coming from sustainably fish population. Protection from CITES can ensure
survival of these fish. It is estimated that 20 million tonnes of fish a year are discarded by
fishing boats because they are not the right kind a practice that that needlessly reduces stocks
of other kinds of fish.
Additionally, the demand for the number of species of sharks, the endangered colossal sea
mammals, has escalated in markets of Guam, Saipan, Toronto, Hawaii, Washington,
California, Illinois, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Costa Rica and other European countries for the
shark fin soup which is a famous delicacy. Relative to other marine mammals, sharks are
characterized by relatively slow growth, late sexual maturity and a small number of young
per brood. These biological factors leave many species of sharks vulnerable to over fishing.
Sharks are captured in directed fisheries and also bycatch in other non-directed fisheries. This
has led to the collapsing stocks around the world10
. The countries of South Africa, New
9
http://www.worldwildlife.org/species/sea-turtle
10
See, e.g., Nicholas K. Dulvy et al., You Can Swim but You Can't Hide: The Global

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2014
Zealand, Australia and the State of California have formulated laws in order to ban the illegal
trading of White Shark, Basking Shark, Grey Nurse Shark and Whale Shark products. These
species are also mentioned on Appendix II of CITES and have been listed on the Red List of
the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)11
. However, legal protection
does not imply that the animals are truly protected in their territorial waters, for instance in
South Africa, the Natal Shark Board is permitted to catch and kill White Sharks. This has
encouraged the growing of international black market for White Shark jaws, fins and teeth.
Experts estimate that between 26 and 73 million sharks are killed every year12
to supply the
global demand for shark fins, and that such unsustainable numbers are contributing to
declines in shark populations worldwide. In January 2011, President Barack Obama signed
the Shark Conservation Act to strengthen the federal law against shark fining in U.S. waters.
Inspite of all the efforts, sadly the governments of all the countries with the help of CITES
have failed to establish a strong legal enforcement in protection of these species.
The convention on International Trade in endangered species of wild fauna and flora (CITES)
is one of the oldest Environmental agreements, which has been signed by more than 130
countries. It aims to regulate the international wild life trade and ensures that it would remain
sustainable. It mandatorily covers everything from rare Brazilian trees to hammer head
sharks.
Another endangered species are the Grey Whales which are becoming extinct over a period
of time due to the Whaling of ships. Whales used to be hunted for their meat and oil. In
modern times that commercial whale fishing has become so profitable that the whale is in
danger of being overfished. As a result thereof, commercial whaling was banned by
international agreement in 1986. Under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, three people
from the Makah Tribe faced imprisonment for a period of one year and a penalty of
US$100,000 for killing of the Grey whales.
Status and Conservation of Oceanic Pelagic Sharks and Rays, 18 AQUATIC CONSERVATION:
MARINE & FRESHWATER ECOSYSTEMS 459, 471 (2008) (finding sixteen out of twenty-one
elasmobranchs surveyed, including several sharks, to be endangered); see also Mark D. Evans,
Comment, Shark Conservation: The Need for Increased Efforts to Protect Shark Populations
in the Twenty-First Century, 10 PENN ST. ENVTL. L. REV. 13, 14 (2001) (noting that "many
shark species have been and are being depleted at alarming rates").
11
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, INT'L UNION FOR CONSERVATION OF
NATURE [IUCN], http://www.iucnredlist.org (last visited Jan. 25, 2012). The list, updated
several times a year, lists all known species and whether their population status is of concern.
A search for the keyword shark shows that many are vulnerable or near threatened, with a
decreasing population trend.
12
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/10/061012-shark-fin.html

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2014
CONCLUSION
Though a number of treaties such as CITES have been signed by different countries in order
to protect and keep a check on the Import and Export of Animal Products and to control the
Illegal Trade of Endangered Species with different international animal protection acts have
somehow failed to reach out to the Illegal Traders. It is necessary to have a strong
International Judicial Legislation for governing the International Laws. Many NGOs, such as
WWF, UNEP, Save the Rhino, World Wild Life Fund, Wild Life Conservation Society, etc.
have taken a leap in promoting awareness about the importance of the Endangered Species.
Educational Awareness and Workshops accompanied by Programmes have been trying to
educate the local hunters to survive and thrive on other Sustainable means of Livelihood. For
instance, the killing of all these Endangered Species has led to a drastic climate change and
ecological imbalance as every animal has an important role to be played in the food chain.
For example, the Green Turtles graze on sea-grasses and algae, which maintain the sea-grass
beds and make them more productive as it is quickly digested by them and becomes available
as recycled nutrients to the many species of plants and animals that live in the sea-grass
ecosystem. All the citizens of the world should collectively boycott the consumption of
animal products and start living on substitutes. With the decrease in demand or no demand
for such animal products the rate of poaching would decline substantially. One would never
have thought a simple, seemingly innocent quest would progress into today’s profit yearning
industry. From Stone Age spears to present day’s improved gadgets, dynamite, deadlier traps
laced with poisonous chemicals and heavy guns, animals are finding it tougher than ever to
survive in the harrowing environment.
In conclusion, it can be said that endangered species can be as big as a blue whale or as small
as a tiny little ant. The responsibility of saving them is on us to secure the ecosystem.
Rampant killing of endangered species in the last two centuries has contributed to extreme
disturbance in the ecosystem. The blue planet never faced as for millions of years the
ecosystem has survived only because of the law of nature that has ensured a stable food cycle
like the food chain. With annihilation of certain species animals, it will eventually have an
impact on the animal race with the animals immediately below and above the annihilated
animals being affected the most.

Illegal Trade of endangered species

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