The Gulf Time Newspaper One of the finest business newspapers in the UAE brought to you by our professional writers and editors.
The online illegal wildlife trade is a roaring business today. And despite laws to stop the unholy practice, it goes on unabated. From cheetahs and bears to snakes, monkeys and mynahs, some websites advertise sale of exotic
animals in blatant disregard of legislations and with unthinkable impunity.
In 2014, a probe found that around 33,006 endangered wildlife and wildlife parts and products were for sale via 280 online market places across 16 countries. Sometime back, there was a website that audaciously displayed a young giraffe priced at $15,000, a black leopard for $4,000, a gorilla for $8,000 and a baby chimp for $60,000. In 2004, International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) also found 2,275 ivory items for sale on eight eBay websites in a single week.
Even though trade of live species and endangered animals has been prohibited on websites since 2007, a lot of online vendors are exploiting legal loopholes and subverting the law. They have found ways to avoid detection on the Internet. Without a foolproof law and a powerful cyber mechanism, this can never be stopped. The large crime syndicates and international networks — which are active online — will continue to tap buyers and earn a fortune from the booming trade. And as long as Internet continues to facilitate such business, the challenge to conserve wildlife will grow more daunting by the day.
It is imperative that the tech industry is prodded to join the fight against wildlife trade. The e-commerce and social media companies have to take steps that do not entertain transactions and dealings related to endangered species. In August, seven companies — including eBay, Etsy, Gumtree, Microsoft, Pinterest, Tencent and Yahoo — embraced a global, standardized wildlife policy framework with World Wildlife Fund (WWF), TRAFFIC and IFAW. While many firms have tied up with the wildlife protection groups, some are yet to do so. These companies need to be roped in for the global campaign to stamp out online animal trade. Only through coordination can this battle be won.
Besides, there is an urgent need to unify and simplify shopping guidelines for consumers. Apart from reining in the traders, it will help the buyers to identify whether the commodity they are purchasing is made from rare animal parts. It is important that the public is sensitized so that the myths about medicinal efficacy of animal parts are dispelled. They should also be persuaded to give up delicacies which may taste good, but put the entire food chain at risk. Forego pangolins and shark-fin soups so the ecosystem is preserved. It is worth a sacrifice to make!
Today, illegal trade in wildlife rakes in $20 billion annually. Conferences — like the one that took place recently in Johannesburg — pledge to end the trade with tighter conservation rules. However, scant attention is being paid to the source from which the problem springs. It’s the lifestyle and mindset which has got to change. Unless and until the consumers see the plight of hapless animals behind the commodities or products they buy, the illegal trade will thrive — on Internet or in covert markets.
As we become smarter with our phones, let us use the technology to back the fight against animal trade and contribute to conservation.