Customs officers of Noi Bai International Airport on September 28 seized nearly one tonne of elephant tusks, ivory products and pangolin scales transported from Nigeria.
The products were hidden in 24 boxes sent by two companies based in Nigeria to two companies in Hanoi’s outskirt district of Soc Son through Turkish Airlines on September 21.
The products have been put on the seals. The Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology has also taken their samples to trace their origin.
Trading, storing and transporting ivory is forbidden in Vietnam. Violators can be fined from 5-50 million VND or imprisoned from six months to five years.
In August 2017, a “Say No to Ivory” campaign was launched in Ho Chi Minh City with a view to raising public awareness of elephant protection.
The campaign, part of the global wildlife programme “When the buying stops, the killing can too”, was launched by the Centre of Hand-on Actions and Networking for Growth and Environment (CHANGE) and WildAid organisation.
The “Say No to Ivory” campaign is set to last for three years.
In Vietnam, WildAid is focusing on measures to change people’s wrong belief in the uses of wildlife products, including ivory, through communication publications.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the number of elephants in Vietnam has fallen from more than 1,000 to about 100 which mainly live along the border with Laos and Cambodia. Vietnam has become an illegal point of transit for ivory over the last decade.-VNA
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Welcome to Elephant News Vietnam. This site is intended to be a public service to those wishing to keep up to date with events and issues affecting elephants in Vietnam.
Showing posts with label illegal elephant wildlife trade. Show all posts
Showing posts with label illegal elephant wildlife trade. Show all posts
Monday, October 01, 2018
Sunday, July 29, 2018
Study highlights need for monitoring of online wildlife trade
Viet Nam NewsHCM CITY — Việt Nam’s illegal online trade of wildlife is occurring on websites that end with “.vn” and “.com” domain names, including social media websites, according to a study released recently by TRAFFIC.
The study “Việt Nam Online: A Rapid Assessment of E-commerce Wildlife Trade in 2017” monitored 13 websites ending in “.vn” by using keyword searches for products ranging from elephants, leopards, pangolins, rhinos, Saiga Antelopes, marine turtles and tigers.
Of the websites surveyed, 30 per cent had advertisements for wildlife species’ parts.
From March to October in 2017, 14 of the advertisements offered a total of 1,072 selected wildlife products, but 90 per cent of them were listed in just one advertisement.
All but six of the advertised products were made from elephant ivory, with the remainder coming from tigers.
This was in contrast to previous surveys that included “.com” domain names (including social media websites) that discovered many more advertisements for wildlife products.
A 2017 TRAFFIC survey found a total of 1,095 tiger products offered for sale in 187 advertisements from 85 unique sellers on four e-commerce websites and two social media websites over a period of 25 days.
The majority of the advertisements (95 per cent) were found on a single social media site.
The same site also accounted for 89 per cent of the individual items, excluding items measured by weight.
Online trade in Việt Nam is regulated by the Law on Electronic Transactions and a decree on e-commerce which prohibit the online trade of certain goods, including wildlife where applicable.
People who break the law can be punished with the same severity as those that sell illegal wildlife products in a physical marketplace.
However, collecting evidence and prosecuting online crimes can be difficult.
“Online marketplaces have become attractive to traffickers because they offer anonymity and allow people to connect over large distances more easily than ever before,” said Rosa A. Indenbaum, a TRAFFIC senior programme officer based in Việt Nam, and author of the report.
“Defeating online trade will require diligence, both from enforcement officers and website companies. This study indicates that .com sites, including social media, are where monitoring and enforcement efforts should be concentrated,” she added.
The report recommends that the Vietnamese government ensure effective law enforcement across online channels.
The government has also been encouraged to form a specialised team to focus on online monitoring of wildlife trade.
The TRAFFIC study urges law enforcement personnel and members of the public to report online wildlife crime through the hotline 18001522.
The study was funded by the UK Government through the Illegal Wildlife Trade Challenge Fund.
TRAFFIC is at the forefront of addressing illegal wildlife trade online. This year, the organisation helped convene the Global Coalition to End Wildlife Trafficking Online with some of the world’s biggest internet companies.
In Việt Nam, TRAFFIC supports the Việt Nam E-commerce Association in its efforts to disrupt illegal online trade through workshops and training events. — VNS
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https://vietnamnews.vn/society/451580/study-highlights-need-for-monitoring-of-online-wildlife-trade.html#hDKvdt0C6soo36Sr.97
The study “Việt Nam Online: A Rapid Assessment of E-commerce Wildlife Trade in 2017” monitored 13 websites ending in “.vn” by using keyword searches for products ranging from elephants, leopards, pangolins, rhinos, Saiga Antelopes, marine turtles and tigers.
Of the websites surveyed, 30 per cent had advertisements for wildlife species’ parts.
From March to October in 2017, 14 of the advertisements offered a total of 1,072 selected wildlife products, but 90 per cent of them were listed in just one advertisement.
All but six of the advertised products were made from elephant ivory, with the remainder coming from tigers.
This was in contrast to previous surveys that included “.com” domain names (including social media websites) that discovered many more advertisements for wildlife products.
A 2017 TRAFFIC survey found a total of 1,095 tiger products offered for sale in 187 advertisements from 85 unique sellers on four e-commerce websites and two social media websites over a period of 25 days.
The majority of the advertisements (95 per cent) were found on a single social media site.
The same site also accounted for 89 per cent of the individual items, excluding items measured by weight.
Online trade in Việt Nam is regulated by the Law on Electronic Transactions and a decree on e-commerce which prohibit the online trade of certain goods, including wildlife where applicable.
People who break the law can be punished with the same severity as those that sell illegal wildlife products in a physical marketplace.
However, collecting evidence and prosecuting online crimes can be difficult.
“Online marketplaces have become attractive to traffickers because they offer anonymity and allow people to connect over large distances more easily than ever before,” said Rosa A. Indenbaum, a TRAFFIC senior programme officer based in Việt Nam, and author of the report.
“Defeating online trade will require diligence, both from enforcement officers and website companies. This study indicates that .com sites, including social media, are where monitoring and enforcement efforts should be concentrated,” she added.
The report recommends that the Vietnamese government ensure effective law enforcement across online channels.
The government has also been encouraged to form a specialised team to focus on online monitoring of wildlife trade.
The TRAFFIC study urges law enforcement personnel and members of the public to report online wildlife crime through the hotline 18001522.
The study was funded by the UK Government through the Illegal Wildlife Trade Challenge Fund.
TRAFFIC is at the forefront of addressing illegal wildlife trade online. This year, the organisation helped convene the Global Coalition to End Wildlife Trafficking Online with some of the world’s biggest internet companies.
In Việt Nam, TRAFFIC supports the Việt Nam E-commerce Association in its efforts to disrupt illegal online trade through workshops and training events. — VNS
Please credit and share this article with others using this link:
https://vietnamnews.vn/society/451580/study-highlights-need-for-monitoring-of-online-wildlife-trade.html#hDKvdt0C6soo36Sr.97
Saturday, September 02, 2017
Joint efforts called for to protect last wild elephants in Vietnam
No single country or individual could put an end to illegal wildlife trade, but joint international efforts should be made to prevent wildlife crimes and protect the elephant species in the centuries ahead, US Ambassador to Vietnam, Ted Osius, has said
The diplomat made the statement while addressing a talk held by the US Embassy in Hanoi, on August 11, in response to World Elephant day (August 12), under the theme “Please treat elephants well”.
In attendance at the event were Nguyen Dao Ngoc Van and Alegria Olmedo from the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), Rose Indenbaum from TRAFFIC, and Nguyen Thi Phuong Dung from Education for Nature Vietnam (ENV).
During the talk, delegates called for greater attention to elephants and their difficult living conditions, whilst discussing possible ways to preserve the last 100 wild elephants that remain in Vietnam.
The event enabled participants to understand more about the ways in which they could tackle the threats to elephants, through voluntarily joining wildlife organisations, supporting wildlife preservation efforts and raising awareness of the elephants’ struggle for survival.
Earlier on August 10, the US Embassy screened a film entitled “Ivory Game”, a documentary film featuring illegal elephant ivory trade, from the moment the elephant was poached in Africa to the moment when the elephant ivories were sold illegally in Asia.
Please credit and share this article with others using this link:http://dtinews.vn/en/news/017/52297/joint-efforts-called-for-to-protect-last-wild-elephants-in-vietnam.html
The diplomat made the statement while addressing a talk held by the US Embassy in Hanoi, on August 11, in response to World Elephant day (August 12), under the theme “Please treat elephants well”.
In attendance at the event were Nguyen Dao Ngoc Van and Alegria Olmedo from the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), Rose Indenbaum from TRAFFIC, and Nguyen Thi Phuong Dung from Education for Nature Vietnam (ENV).
During the talk, delegates called for greater attention to elephants and their difficult living conditions, whilst discussing possible ways to preserve the last 100 wild elephants that remain in Vietnam.
The event enabled participants to understand more about the ways in which they could tackle the threats to elephants, through voluntarily joining wildlife organisations, supporting wildlife preservation efforts and raising awareness of the elephants’ struggle for survival.
Earlier on August 10, the US Embassy screened a film entitled “Ivory Game”, a documentary film featuring illegal elephant ivory trade, from the moment the elephant was poached in Africa to the moment when the elephant ivories were sold illegally in Asia.
Please credit and share this article with others using this link:http://dtinews.vn/en/news/017/52297/joint-efforts-called-for-to-protect-last-wild-elephants-in-vietnam.html
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