Souvenirs of the Slaughter

The slaughter of elephants is no doubt a tragedy, but as the deadly attack at the Westgate mall in Kenya shows, the bloodshed fueled by the sale of ivory does not stop with the elephants. Buying ivory helps pay for the bullets and bombs used by terrorists to kill innocent people, including park rangers and now these shoppers in Nairobi.

Highlighting this connection between the sale of ivory and violence is important because a powerful tool in combating the demand for poached ivory is to so thoroughly taint the image of ivory goods that potential consumers are shamed and discouraged from ever buying ivory again.

For more on the ivory trade, ABC News had a good segment on the challenges of distinguishing "illegal" ivory from that which was on the market before the ban was in place.

Elephants in Crisis is incredible undercover by reporter Bryan Christy on how religion plays a role in the problem of ivory trafficking, a cover story for National Geographic magazine.

Tracking Poached Ivory

Collected ivory samples ready for analysis

The Ivory weighing 3287.21 kilogrammes comprised of 382 whole pieces and 62 cut pieces have been sampled for DNA analysis. 

The consignment had been declared as 240 bags of groundnuts. The container full of ivory disguised as groundnuts had been seized on July 8, 2012 at the Port of Mombasa, thanks to inter-agency collaboration between the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS), Kenya Ports Authority, Kenya Police and Kenya Revenue Authority. 

Another container stashed in 69 bundles of several pieces disguised as sun dried fish maws intended to throw off sniffer dogs was also sampled. Some bags had worked polished pieces of ivory while others had raw ivory.with unknown weight of ivory was last evening intercepted in Mombasa and is being held at the port police.  This exercise was co-funded by both KWS and the University of Washington Seattle. 

KWS has cracked down on ivory smuggling at its ports and airports, making Al Shabaab an even more attractive market, with a reputation for good prices, immediate payment, and ready access (prior to the Kenya invasion at the Westgate) to outlets at the ports of Marca and Kismayo as well as the airport in Mogadishu to conduct its smuggling. Yet the real boon for Al Shabaab’s ivory business is soaring demand in consuming countries, which translates into high prices. Illicit raw ivory now fetches over $1,500 per kilogram in Asia; in China the “official” cost for raw ivory is supposedly more than $2,865 per kilogram. That means higher profits for Al Shabaab—and a treasury it can use to wreak chaos.

That cache of money allows Al Shabaab to pay their fighters well and regularly. Shabaab mercenaries get about $300 a month, while soldiers in Somalia’s regular army earn far less. It is these profits that help them recruit and sustain their fighters. 

Raw ivory from one of the seized containers

Ivory finished products in the seized container

Ivory is dentine, composed of organic proteins and very poorly crystallized mineral, all laid down in incremental banded growth structures, which reflect environmental and dietary conditions at the time of deposition.  It is therefore a very useful tissue to sample for molecular analyses.

The idea of being able to distinguish species and identify specimens including incomplete, damaged or immature specimens using a very short gene sequence is one of the many initiatives dedicated to developing it as a global tool for species identification.This will help the KWS new Forensic and Genetics laboratory to analyze the samples and help identify their origin.

Sam Wasser will also be visiting KWS Forensic laboratory in November during which he will closely work in conjunction with KWS new laboratory and make recommendations on procedures, expansion and priorities. Read  Tracing wildlife trophy origin using DNA. The potential of DNA analysis on ivory is limitless.  So far, mitochondrial DNA and single-nucleotide polymorphism data have been used to source ivory and explore population genetics.

 

According to Center for Conservation Biology, University of Washington, the goal is to identify the major elephant poaching hot spots across Africa by determining the geographic origin of large volumes of contraband ivory seized by wildlife authorities. Also, identifying the origins of these large seizures helps reveal where to most efficiently focus law enforcement as well as key strategies used by ivory poachers and dealers. These methods may be among the only reliable means to monitor trade in forest ivory and bushmeat because poached carcasses are difficult to detect in dense forests.


In picture: Senior KWS officers from left Patrick Omondi - Deputy Director Wildlife Conservation and Co-Chair Barcode of Wildlife Project Kenya, Ibrahim Lubia - Chief Licensing Officer, and Vincent Obanda - Senior Research Scientist during the exercise.

KWS has recently constructed a world class forensic laboratory that will bridge the gap between conservation genetics and law enforcement. In the past, several arrested suspects found with the meat have been released by the Courts because KWS didn`t have a laboratory to prove whether the meat is from wildlife or not. Today, with the successful fundraising campaigns to equip the already newly constructed forensic lab, such wildlife crimes will be a thing of the past. In the meantime, the Kenya Government is committed to the fast-tracking of the enactment of the New Wildlife Bill and calls upon all relevant stakeholders to support this initiative to conserve and protect our national heritage for posterity.

WILDLIFE SCENE IN KENYA AND POSITION OF MANAGEMENT BILL 2013

The trade in wildlife and its products poses a major challenge in wildlife conservation. Elephants are killed for ivory, while the rhinos are killed for the horns. The elephants and rhinos in Kenya, like in other African states are under severe and escalating levels of poaching threats, which is one of the greatest threats to wildlife conservation. In fact, poaching and wildlife trafficking has now become more organized, lucrative, and widespread than ever before. These challenges are undermining the anti-poaching and wildlife trafficking interventions by the Government and the international community over the last twenty five years.

KWS Rangers on foot patrol

The Wildlife Conservation and Management Bill, 2013 was published in the Kenya Gazette on 22nd July, 2013. The purpose of the Bill is to broaden investment in the wildlife sector, in order to support livelihoods of the Kenyan people, among others. In particular, enactment of the Bill will lead to enhancing the fight against poaching of endangered species by stiffening the penalties meted on offenders. The Ministry is committed to the fast-tracking of the enactment of this Bill and calls upon all relevant stakeholders to support this initiative to conserve and protect our national heritage for posterity.

Consultations so far point towards common understanding of the need to enhance the penalties – both sentences and fines – as stipulated currently in the Bill that is before Parliament. Section 79, Offenses relating to endangered and threatened species, states that “Any person who commits an offense in respect of an endangered or threatened species or in respect of any trophy of that endangered or threatened species shall be liable upon conviction to a fine of not less than ten million shillings or to imprisonment of not less than fifteen years or to both such fine and imprisonment.” Various stakeholders have advocated that the fine should be raised to twenty (20) million shillings and the sentence enhanced to life imprisonment.

On its part, the Ministry, Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) and other arms of Government have partnered to form a special anti-poaching unit named the Elite Inter-Agency Anti-Poaching Unit, comprising of security officers from the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS), the Administration Police (AP) and the General Service Unit (GSU). The special unit, which shall be under the command of KWS, is undergoing a joint training at the KWS Law Enforcement Academy (LEA) at Manyani before deployment to poaching hotspot areas of Narok, Tsavo and Isiolo.

The Government is committed to provide facilitation and equipment to support the Elite Inter-Agency Anti-Poaching Unit operations. In order to support the Unit, the Government has engaged partners, including the governments of United States, China and the United Kingdom for assistance. Plans are underway to recruit an additional 1000 KWS rangers to effectively tackle poaching.

The Government shall also deploy aerial surveillance support to enhance their capacity to deal with poaching incidents. Already, the Government has established an Inter-Agency Task Force to advice and co-ordinate wildlife security management interventions across the country.

KWS has also adopted a multifaceted approach to eliminate the poaching vice. The organization has actively engaged communities living next to wildlife sanctuaries, through conservation education on the negative impacts of poaching. Consumers of illegal wildlife products, both local and international are being sensitized on their indirect contribution to poaching by buying such products.

Laboratory Will Net Bushmeat Trade

The Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS) has identified four notorious hotspot areas for bush meat trade in the
country. KWS spokesperson Mr. Paul Mbugua said Kajiado, Naivasha, Narok and Tsavo are leading in bushmeat trade.

“Kajiado, Naivasha and Narok are some of the areas where we are facing a serious challenge of bush meat trade. These are the areas that supply Nairobi City. We have also identified that most of the meat from wildlife that is killed in Tsavos is sold at Chakama," Mr Mbugua said.

Cautioning the public against buying bushmeat from unauthorised dealers, Mbugua said the meat is unfit for human consumption.

“The slaughtering is done in very dirty environments and the meat poses serious risks. In most cases
people have ended up eating baboons, hyenas and even dogs that are disguised as bush meat,” he said.

KWS has recently constructed a world class forensic laboratory that will bridge the gap between conservation genetics and law enforcement. In the past, several arrested suspects found with the meat have been released by the Courts because KWS didn`t have a laboratory to prove whether the meat is from wildlife or not.

Today, with the successful fundraising campaigns to equip the already newly constructed forensic lab, such wildlife crimes will be netted.

“By the end of this month we are optimistic that the forensic lab will be officially opened,” Mr. Mbugua emphasized.

In picture: Commercial and unsustainable hunting of dikdiks is causing a widespread of local extinctions in and around Kenya National Parks.

About Kenya Wildlife Service

Aerial View of KWS Headquarters

The Kenya WildlifeService (KWS) conserves and manages Kenya’s wildlife for the Kenyan people and the world. It is a state corporation established by an Act of Parliament Cap 376 with the mandate to conserve and manage wildlife in Kenya, and to enforce related laws and regulations. The Barcode of Wildlife Project Kenya is a project under Kenya Wildlife Service and National Museums of Kenya.

KWS core Mission is “To sustainably conserve, manage, and enhance Kenya's wildlife, its habitats, and provide a wide range of public uses in collaboration with stakeholders for posterity” and a Vision "To save the last great species and places on earth for humanity”. 

The Organizational mandate is set as the sole Stewardship of all National Parks and Reserves, including security for visitors and wildlife within and outside protected areas. It oversees wildlife conservation and management outside protected areas, including those under local authorities, community and private sanctuaries. Other specifics include Conservation education and training, Wildlife research, and input into national wildlife-related law and policy, and adapting and carrying out international conventions and protocols.

KWS is key in tourism development and the governments Vision 2030. KWS is a key enabler and one of the key implementing agencies for Vision 2030 flagship projects. Tourism is the second largest sector of Kenya’s economy hence providing multiplier effects in agriculture, horticulture, transport and communications. Wildlife managed by KWS forms the backbone of Kenya’s tourism industry, since most visitors come above all to view wildlife. The tourism industry accounts for 21 per cent of total foreign exchange earnings and 12 per cent of GDP.  KWS accounts for 90 per cent of safari tourism and about 75 per cent of total tourist earnings. 

The Kenya Wildlife Service continues to strengthen the approach of science- driven wildlife conservation and management. These approaches include: monitoring of wildlife health through continuous disease surveillance and control; Genetic resources, Environmental assessments, Restoration of ecosystems,  Wildlife translocation, Bio-prospecting, Coordination of biodiversity related multi-lateral environmental agreements (MEAS), formation of the African Elephant Coalition and CITES convention, and among others Review of wildlife-related policy and legislation on land, tourism, fisheries, forest conservation, water and environmental management.

On Law Enforcement and Regulation to combat Wildlife Crime, KWS has put in place proactive, preventive and reactive measures to enhance the safety of wildlife; ground and aerial patrols targeting poachers and to provide security for wildlife, wildlife habitats and tourists. Building synergies with stakeholders to enhance the conservation and protection of the country’s natural resources has been a priority. These stakeholders include police, customs Kenya Airports Authority, Judiciary, Kenya Forest Service Officers, and Cross-border wildlife security collaborative initiatives.

About National Museums of Kenya

NMK Entrance

National Museums of Kenya (NMK) is a state corporation established by an Act of Parliament, the Museums and Heritage Act 2006. NMK is a multi-disciplinary institution whose role is to collect, preserve, study, document and present Kenya’s past and present cultural and natural heritage.  This is for the purposes of enhancing knowledge, appreciation, respect and sustainable utilization of these resources for the benefit of Kenya and the world, for now and posterity. NMK’s mutual concern for the welfare of mankind and the conservation of the biological diversity of the East African region and that of the entire planet demands success in such efforts.  NMK is also undertaking the Barcode of Wildlife Project Kenya with Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS).

 
In addition, NMK manages many Regional Museums, Sites and Monuments of national and international importance alongside priceless collections of Kenya’s living cultural and natural heritage. As an institution that must respond to the growing needs of the society, NMK is striving to contribute in a unique way to the task of national development.

The history of the institution dates back in 1910 when a museum was established in Nairobi by the then East Africa and Uganda Natural History Society [currently the East African Natural History Society (EANHS)]. The group consisted mainly of colonial settlers and naturalists who needed a place to keep and preserve their collections of various specimens. Its first site was at the present Nyayo House. The site soon became small and a larger building was put up in 1922 where the Nairobi Serena Hotel stands.

The expansion of its mandate and the staff numbers coupled with the dynamic environment in which NMK operates has put enormous challenges for the institution. In order to keep abreast with changes in the environment in which it is operating, NMK had to redefine its operations to become more responsive to the changing circumstances. This meant moving towards developing museum as a place where people from all walks of life meet and have dialogue on various socio-economic issues.  It called for NMK to develop programmes that promote cultural dynamism in order to build a sense of nationhood and belonging.

NMK’s vision is “To be a global leader in heritage, research and management’ with core Mission “To promote the conservation and sustainable utilization of national heritage through generation, documentation and dissemination of research and collection management knowledge, information and innovations”.

NMK houses one of the most unique and diverse collections in the world. The collections are categorized into two major areas that include Natural History and Cultural/History/Musicological.

Research: NMK undertakes research based on cultural and natural history in various fields as well as research in biomedical and bio- conservation in collaboration with other research and development institutions. For this reason, NMK has the mandate to preserve/ conserve all its collections which range from tangible to intangible, move and immovable, in-situ and ex-situ. NMK also synthesizes the information generated from research and collections and presents the same to the public for the purpose of raising awareness and learning amongst the general population through exhibitions, education programmes and other multimedia channels.