In 2019, the illegal wildlife trade reached staggering levels. Pangolin scales and ivory were being trafficked in massive quantities from Africa to Asia, exposing a network of crime syndicates operating at an industrial scale. The sheer volume of these shipments marked a disturbing milestone, one that revealed the global reach …
An indigenous leader has been found murdered in Brazil, exposing the growing threat to tribes fighting illegal logging in the Amazon, campaigners and authorities said. Jorginho Guajajara was found dead in the northern state of Maranhao with his neck broken, rights group Survival International said. Police in Maranhao confirmed on …
More than 100 wildlife rangers died on the job in Asia and central Africa over the last year, nearly half killed by poachers, the WWF reported today. Illegal hunters are decimating endangered wildlife to gather rhino horns and big cat body parts to sell in East Asia, as well as …
Murders of land and environmental activists are surging in the Philippines, making it the deadliest country in Asia, according to campaigners who said the government has failed to provide protection. The Philippines-based rights group Karapatan recorded at least 63 killings of land and environmental activists last year, more than double …
More than 200 environmental activists were killed last year for opposing large-scale agricultural and mining projects, a global rights watchdog said on July 24. The British-based Global Witness said it had documented 207 cases in 22 countries where activists were killed while trying to protect land from development, often for …
International police agency Interpol says a giant operation against illegal trade in wildlife and timber has resulted in millions of dollars' worth of seizures and the identification of 1,400 suspects across the world. The monthlong operation involved 93 countries in May, the statement said. The 1,974 seizures include 43 tons …
Christopher Magnenjika, an activist working to stem corruption and wildlife trafficking in northeastern Madagascar, was tried, convicted, fined $9 and released earlier this month. The charges against Magnenjika include “rebellion” and insulting local officials. Magnenjika’s supporters say his arrest and conviction were a pretext for keeping him quiet about the …
Wildlife poachers in Kenya will face the death penalty, the country’s tourism and wildlife minister has reportedly announced. Najib Balala warned the tough new measure would be fast-tracked into law. Existing deterrents against killing wild animals in the east African nation are insufficient, Mr Balala said, according to China’s Xinhua …
Indonesia’s anti-graft agency has vowed to include environmental damages in its calculations of state losses incurred through corruption, in a move that could translate to heavier sentences and fines for crimes in the natural resources sector. The announcement by the KPK, as the agency is known, comes in connection to …
An initiative designed to protect environmental defenders around the world from threats, intimidation, harassment and murder was launched Tuesday by the United Nations Environment Program. The UN Environmental Rights Initiative was introduced in Geneva with guests on hand including John Knox, UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and the Environment; …
The treaty was signed two years after the killing of Honduran activist Berta Cáceres, who had protested against the construction of a dam. Photograph: Jorge Cabrera/Reuters Officials from 24 Latin American and Caribbean states have signed a legally binding environmental rights pact containing measures to protect land defenders, almost two …
Animal traffickers are taking advantage of remote ivory trade routes to smuggle pangolins - one of the world's most endangered animals - out of Central Africa, a new study has found. The solitary mammals - sought after for their meat and scales - are being transported across remote forest borders …
The Environmental Protection Agency levied around half the average number of penalties against polluters in the first year of the Trump administration as in the same period of the past three presidential administrations, according to a report released Thursday. The decline was due to staff and budget cuts by U.S. …
The US has sanctioned Ugandan Okot Lukwang and Musa Hatari of Sudan for alleged involvement in illicit trade in ivory by supporting an armed group that is contributing to conflict in Central Africa. The US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) blacklisted them for transferring ivory, weapons and money to …
Heavily armed militia and poachers are a threat to wildlife populations in the Garamba-Bili-Chinko (GBC) region in Central Africa. The militias are decimating wildlife in the 75,593 square kilometre region straddling northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo and southeastern Central African Republic. Investigations have unearthed that poachers are trafficking in wildlife …
More than 8,000 cases of human trafficking were reported in India in 2016, while 23,000 victims, including 182 foreigners, were rescued during the year, according to National Crime Records Bureau data. Last year, a total of 8,132 cases were reported from across the country compared to the 6,877 cases in …
Kenya Wildlife Service rangers on Tuesday arrested three suspected poachers and impounded 14 pieces of ivory weighing 58kgs. Addressing journalists at Chogoria Police Station, Maara OCPD Johnston Kabusia said the three suspects were arrested in a hotel in Chogoria Town, Tharaka-Nithi County, following a tip-off. UNDERCOVER He said the rangers …
MEDAN, Indonesia — Several NGOs in Indonesia’s North Sumatra Island province have established a joint team of legal experts to focus on addressing environmental crimes in the region. “This team is a step forward in our efforts to enforce environmental law and justice,” said Dana Tarigan, executive director of the …
Endangered indigenous tribes are increasingly facing threats from miners in the Amazon rainforest amid budget cuts to the Brazilian government agency responsible for protecting them, local officials and activists say. A federal prosecutor in Brazil's Amazonas state has launched an investigation into a reported massacre of at least 10 members …
IFP leader Mangosuthu Buthelezi was among several people honoured on Monday night for his long-standing commitment to rhino conservation. Speaking at the annual Rhino Conservation Awards at Montecasino‚ Buthelezi said he had been mocked many years ago for "caring more about animals than people". "When a country is waging a …
The head of an animal conservation NGO who had received numerous death threats has been shot and killed by an unknown gunman in Tanzania. Wayne Lotter, 51, was shot on Wednesday evening in the Masaki district of the city of Dar es Salaam. The wildlife conservationist was being driven from …
