By Business Daily
The latest forensic approach is considered a weapon that may
lead to a significant reduction in elephant poaching, both in Africa and Asia
where they are now classified as endangered species.
The wildlife trade monitoring network, TRAFFIC, is deploying
a new forensic weapon–DNA testing–to track illegal ivory products responsible
for the slaughter of hundreds of endangered elephants in Asia and Africa.
Widely used in criminal cases, forensic DNA examination
(Deoxyribonucleic acid) can help identify whether an elephant tusk is from Asia
or Africa.
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| A customs officer holds a piece of carved ivory, part of seized ivory to be destroyed, at the Royal Museum for Central Africa in Brussels . AFP |
“The ability to use DNA and other forensic expertise
provides great support to law enforcement, said Adisorn Noochdumrong.
Asked whether this is a first, Dr Richard Thomas, global
communications coordinator at the UK-based TRAFFIC, told IPS: “It’s the first
time I’m aware of when it’s been used to test ivory items for sale to prove
their (illegal) provenance.”
However, he added, it’s worth noting that at the March 2013
meeting of CITES (the 1975 Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Species), State Parties to the Convention were instructed that forensic
information should routinely be gathered from all large-scale seizures of ivory
(500kg).
Hence this is also an important demonstration of one
technique that can be employed in the fight against the illegal trade in
endangered species, he said. The current project is a collaborative effort
between Thailand’s Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant
Conservation (DNP) and TRAFFIC, to battle the widespread illegal trade of ivory
in Thailand.
Asked whether African countries have similar projects in
collaboration with TRAFFIC, Dr Thomas told IPS, “Not currently, although the
scope of DNA and stable isotope analysis of ivory are being examined by others
as means to determine the geographic origin of ivory within Africa.”
He also pointed out that any wildlife product, by
definition, is associated with life and therefore open for DNA examination.
“So, in theory it could be a very widely employed technique
in addressing wildlife trafficking.”
According to the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), the Sri
Lankan and Sumatran elephants are on a list of endangered species, along with
the black rhino, mountain gorilla, Bengal tiger, the blue whale and the green
turtle, among others.
WWF says the global illicit wildlife trade is estimated at
over 10 billion dollars annually and is controlled by criminal networks.
Specifically on the ivory trade, Dr Thomas told IPS, “We’re
very wary about speculating over black-market prices – in part, because they’re
black market and therefore unverifiable, but more because of anecdotal evidence
that high prices quoted in the media can lead to interest from the criminal fraternity
in getting involved in trafficking.”
In a report released here, TRAFFIC said 160 items of small
ivory products legally acquired by researchers, primarily from retail outlets
in Bangkok, were subjected to DNA analysis at the DNP’s Wildlife Forensics
Crime Unit (WIFOS Laboratory). The aim of the exercise was to determine whether
the ivory products were made from African elephant or Asian elephant tusks.
The African elephant Loxodonta africana is found in 37
countries in sub-Saharan Africa, and the Asian elephant Elephas maximas is
found in Thailand and 12 other Asian countries.
The study also said forensic results show that African
elephant ivory accounted for a majority of the items tested.
“Whilst the relatively small number of samples cannot be
considered as representative of the entire ivory market in Thailand, it
indicates that African elephant ivory is prominently represented in the retail
outlets in Bangkok,” it noted. This capability supports the enforcement
component of Thailand’s revised National Ivory Action Plan (NIAP) submitted to
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES in September
2014.
The plan was developed to control ivory tradein Thailand and
strengthen measures to prevent illegal international trade and includes a
strong focus on law enforcement and regulation, including the execution of a
robust ivory registration system, according to the report.
“The ability to use DNA and other forensic expertise
provides great support to law enforcement,” said Adisorn Noochdumrong, acting
deputy director general of DNP.
“We are deeply concerned by these findings which come just
at the moment a nationwide ivory product registration exercise is being
conducted pursuant to recently enacted legislation to strengthen ivory trade controls
in Thailand,” he added.
The report said the Thai government last month passed new
legislation to regulate and control the possession and trade of ivory that can
be shown to have come from domesticated Asian Elephants in Thailand.
With the passing of the Elephant Ivory Act B.E. 2558 (2015),
anyone in possession of ivory – whether as personal effects or for commercial
purposes – must register all items in their possession with the DNP from
January 22 until April 21. Penalties for failing to do so could result in up to
three years imprisonment and/or a maximum fine of Thai Baht 6 million (nearly
200,000 dollars).
“We remind anyone registering possession of raw ivory or
ivory products under Thailand’s new laws that African elephant ivory is
strictly prohibited and ineligible for sale in Thailand,” said Noochdumrong.
-IPS
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