Vietnam: Action plan agreed to end wildlife poaching

By Bennett Murray

HANOI, Vietnam (AA) - A new global action plan to end the illegal wildlife trade was signed in the Vietnamese capital Friday.

More than 50 delegates representing nations and inter-governmental organizations signed off on the Hanoi Statement on Illegal Wildlife Trade, which calls for countries to treat wildlife trafficking as “a serious crime.”

Each country and organization present at the conference made specific pledges in the joint statement agreed upon Friday, with Vietnam -- a central hub for wildlife smuggling -- promising to increase public education on the subject while beefing up laws to prosecute offenders.

China, the world’s largest ivory consumer, pledged to bolster an information campaign at airports and train stations to warn travelers of the legal risks of possessing illicit wildlife products.

The United States Agency for International Development, which co-sponsored the conference, also announced a new $10 million program with the mission to fight poachers and discourage consumers.

The conference took place in a city at the center of illegal wildlife trafficking, with Vietnamese criminal syndicates acting as middlemen between African poachers and Asian consumers.

Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Dang Thi Ngoc Thinh, whose government hosted the Hanoi Conference on Illegal Wildlife Trade in conjunction with the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime, admitted there would be “challenges in enhancing people's need and habits of consuming illegal wildlife products”.

At least 40 tons of ivory has been seized by Vietnamese authorities since 2011, with 3.5 tons confiscated in October alone.

While much of it is destined for the Chinese market, many jewelry stores in Hanoi openly sell ivory accessories and trinkets.

Rhino horns, whose shavings are consumed in tonics, are also popular among some circles of wealthy Vietnamese as both a pseudo-medicine and status symbol.

British monarch Prince William, who attended the two-day event, said in a speech Thursday that the situation remained bleak.

Despite some progress, William said that “the betting man would still bet on extinction" for African elephants and rhinos.